Kingdom: Swedish Rulers

It is time for our third episode covering a regent. But how will Kettil Karlsson Vasa manage as Riksföreståndare after he leads a revolt to avenge his cousin the archbishop and remove the deeply unpopular Kristian I from Sweden? Perhaps his great education in Germany and connections to the powerful Oxenstierna family will help lead him towards claiming The Three Crowns? You can find out more infor...

We have a German king of Denmark on the throne of Sweden this time. There's tumult within the Kalmar Union and a lot of Swedes aren't keen for this chap to come in and start ruling them. However, as long as Kristian sticks to two very simple rules, we're sure he'll be fine... You can find out more information about the podcast on our website , and follow us on social media here: Facebook Bluesky T...

It is time for the second part of KKB's life. Karl Knutsson Bonde will be the first, but not last person to be both riksföreståndare and king, but how will his terms as regent and monarch be judged in the cold light of history? Listen to find out! You can find out more information about the podcast on our website , and follow us on social media here: Facebook Bluesky Twitter P.S. If you like Kingd...

We've reached one of our favourite, or at least most interesting rulers. Karl Knutsson Bonde, or KKB, will go on to bend Swedish political life to his will, but how does he go about doing it? In this first part, we look at his early travels around Europe, how he received political offices very young and discuss the first few of his many rivalries with other nobles. He also manages to squeeze in a...

This time we're not judging or ranking anyone, but looking into the way castles dominated the landscape of Sweden, both physically and politically. We have seen in the last few episodes how commanders of castles played key roles and even rose to the heights of being a regent of all Sweden, but what did they do when they were back at home in the castle? Who lived there, what jobs were done and what...

We have our first regents and our first episode on two people; the Oxenstierna brothers! In this very long titled episode, we cover the life of and political rise of Bengt Jönsson Oxenstierna and Nils Jönsson Oxenstierna. We look into how they rose through the ranks before judging their brief time at the helm as they rule Sweden as Riksföreståndare! One of them likes castles and one of them likes...

King Chris is brought in from abroad after Erik of Pomerania was unceremoniously removed from his throne. But will Chris really lead the Kalmar Union into its most calm and stable period, or is he going to have a fight on his hands to pick up all the pieces? You can find out more information about the podcast on our website , and follow us on social media here: Facebook Bluesky Twitter P.S. If you...

Erik was the result of a wide search to find an heir for Margareta, following the death of her son Olof. He's been taking on ruler-responsibilities whilst his foster mother was still alive, but now he's on the throne for real. Will he be able to follow in Margareta's footsteps and keep the kingdoms of the Kalmar Union together, or will the independent minded Swedes eventually tire of his constant...

This time we conclude the epic story about the life of Queen Margareta. How will she hold together everything she has built so far and how will her actions shape the surrounding region? Plus, how will people react when her adopted son Erik gradually wields more power as the ruler of all three Scandinavian kingdoms, in the brand new and unprecedented Kalmar Union? You can find out more information...

Finally, after 30 episodes, it's time for a woman ruler! And not just any woman. Margareta is born a Danish princess and her journey to the Swedish throne is quite a remarkable one. So remarkable in fact, we need two episodes to cover it. In this first one, we will see Margareta using her skills to manoeuvre both her son and herself to tremendous positions of power across all three Nordic kingdoms...

Albert's dad, confusingly also called Albert, gives him the throne of a foreign country. But what will our Albert do once he has an entire realm to rule by himself? The most important question is though; why is nobody turning up to his meetings? You can find out more information about the podcast on our website , and follow us on social media here: Facebook Bluesky Twitter P.S. If you like Kingdöm...

The second son of Magnus IV was perhaps more successful than his brother Erik XII, but does that mean he scores more points? He had to deal with his brother's rebellion, his father's capture by Albert of Mecklenburg and a whole bunch of stuff to do with his rule over in Norway. Plus at the end he had a formidable woman by his side too. Lots to talk about this week! You can find out more informatio...

Erik XII doesn't spend too much time on the throne, as we saw last time in his father's episode, but he does manage to get up to a fair amount of stuff. Plus, rebelling against your father to get there in the first place is a pretty big deal. But how will we judge him when it comes to the categories? You can find out more information about the podcast on our website , and follow us on social media...

The Black Death has arrived in Sweden and promises to upend Magnus IV's reign. Add in money woes and problems in the family and you get a choatic mix that even the best rulers of medieval Europe would struggle to deal with. But how does Magnus go about dealing with all of this and will he come out of it with The Three Crowns on his head? You can find out more information about the podcast on our w...

We're back with the next king and ready to kick start 2026 with the reign of another King Magnus! We cover his early life, the period his mother was in control whilst he was busy being a child, as well as the beginnings of his own rule. We'll see how he expands the kingdom, creates some new laws but also sees the beginnings of some discontent brewing. If you want some homework before Part Two, you...

We've covered around 300 years of Swedish history on our first year of Kingdom and a lot has changed in the country since the time of Olof Skötkonung. So what does Sweden look like now we enter the new century of the 1300s? What are the major towns and cities and what sort of things have stood out on the way so far? We look back into the Flatpack archives for an episode that fits in perfectly here...

King Birger comes to throne on the back of a lot drama in recent decades. His grandfather was his namesake Birger Jarl and his father Magnus Ladulås had taken the throne by overthrowing Valdemar. The drama will only continue in Birger's reign, as we see a famous event in Swedish history, worthy of Shakespeare or Game of Thrones. But what else will this ruler get up to and will he be worthy of rece...

This is the final part of our three part biography on Birger Jarl, the man who changed Swedish royal power and politics forever. This time we finish the story of his life and look briefly into his legacy. We hope you've enjoyed this discussion about one of Sweden's most famous historical figures. We're back next time with our next ruler, King Birger - appropriately named! As you heard at the start...

This is part two of our three part biography on Birger Jarl! Last time we covered his early life and his first forrays into power as the Jarl of Sweden. Now we continue the story of his life and see what he got up to next. Part three is out next time! Remember, there's no ranking at the end, as he was never a proper king or regent! You can find out more information about the podcast on our website...

This time we won't be ranking anyone, but we will be sharing part one of our three part biography on Birger Jarl, that almost omnipotent man in charge of Sweden thanks to his power as Jarl. In the next three weeks we will share our episodes from A Flatpack History of Sweden about him and do a deep dive into the man who changed Sweden for good. We even start this episode visiting Birger's statue he...

How do you follow on from your brother who was most famous for the sex scandals which at least partly led to his deposition? Well, by reforming the nobility, expanding control over Gotland and focusing on a cool building project, for a start! But just how did Magnus get his nickname Ladulås and what does it even more? All of this and more in another action packed episode of Kingdom! Thanks to The...

In this review episode, we look back at all the rulers we have covered so far to see who is leading the way and who is lagging behind. Which ruler was the most sinful, who wielded an iron fist in Stormakt and who was the best at Flatpack? We answer all those questions, as well as look into which dynasty was the most successful and how many Meatballs we have created! You can find out more informati...

Valdemar was placed on the throne by his father Birger Jarl when he was just a boy, leaving his father to run the kingdom on his behalf. Birger actually keeps control until he dies, meaning Valdemar doesn't really get to take charge until his late 20s, despite being king for over 15 years by that point. Will he get up to anything spectacular in the second half of his story though? Check out the Fl...

We covered all of Knut's short reign last time around as he split Erik's rule over Sweden into two separate reigns. But did Knut get around to doing anything we didn't mention last time and was he really that tall? You can find out more information about the podcast on our website , and follow us on social media here: Facebook Bluesky Twitter P.S. If you like Kingdöm, how about you check out A Fla...

A six-year-old Erik receives a letter whilst living in exile in Denmark, asking him to become king of Sweden. His reign will be marked by powerful jarls, a tall rebel and expeditions to the east, but will any of it be any good? It's time to check out the latest edition of the Erik Dynasty! You can find out more information about the podcast on our website , and follow us on social media here: Face...