Eric XIV of Sweden
Swedish king (1533-1577)
- Fame55.5
- Momentum1.0
- Sweden rank#228
Source-basedStable
- Fame55.5
- Momentum1.0
- Sweden rank#228
- Historical Figures rank#223
- Wikipedia12.3K
Lived 1533–1577, aged 44Sweden
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Summary
Updated 2026-06-21
A Renaissance king who lost his mind and his throne. Erik XIV of Sweden ruled for eight years before paranoia and instability overtook him — ending in a rebellion, a locked cell, and poison in 1577.
Biography
About
Erik became King of Sweden on 29 September 1560 after his father Gustav I died, inheriting a realm that soon included Estonia when it sought Swedish protection in 1561. Intelligent, artistically gifted, and politically ambitious, he showed early promise. But mental instability crept in during his reign — scholars debate whether the illness was there from the start or erupted with the Sture murders, a brutal act that marked his unraveling. By 1568 his half-brother John III led a rebellion against him, locked him away, and had the Riksdag formally depose him on 26 January 1569. Erik remained imp…
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Fame
Stable55.5
Composite of search demand, mentions, audience & graph footprint.
Score components
Momentum1.0
Historical23.1
Source confidence60.0
Completeness70.0
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Sources
- WikidataHigh confidencewikidata · wikidata.org
- WikipediaHigh confidencewikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
- Pantheon 2.0High confidencedatabase · pantheon.world
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