Knut Alvsson and the men of Dalarna write to Östergötland
SDHK 34430 (DN 22/12) · 29. august 1501 · Mora
What the letter says
Sten Sture the Elder, Knut Alvsson and the common people of Dalarna write from Mora on 29 August 1501 to Hemming Gad, Svante Nilsson and the common people of Östergötland. They write about the misfortunes that have struck the realm since King Hans was accepted, and about the dangers that still threaten, among them the claims to land in Finland that the Russians put forward in the town hall in Stockholm. They urge everyone to hold to the alliances that have been made, to defend the realm.
Background
Here Knut Alvsson, lord of Giske, appears as a sender together with Sten Sture and the farmers of Dalarna. The letter is an open letter meant to be read to the common people, and it shows how the rebellion against King Hans was justified to ordinary people. This is the letter Sten Sture mentions in the letter from Tuna (SDHK 34312). It survives in a contemporary copy with remains of two seals. Shortly afterwards Knut went over to Norway to carry the rebellion on there.
People: Knut Alvsson