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Min svenska historia berättad for folket #1
MIN SVENSKA HISTORIA. Berättad för folket.
Jag beslöt att berätta om de människor i det förgångna, som historien hade glömt. Jag började i Rid i natt! 1941 och fortsatte år 1949 med Utvandrarna... I föreliggande arbete fortsätter jag linjen från min historiska diktning i en ny form, i berättande historia."
Så lyder Vilhelm Mobergs expressiva programförklaring i MIN SVENSKA HISTORIA, det verk som inleder en ny fas av hans storslagna författarskap med djupa rötter i själva grund valarna för hans liv. Han vill berätta om hur "livet för det folk jag själv tillhör" gestaltat sig i det förflutna "Min historiesyn är bestämd av de upplevelser och erfarenheter av svenskt folk som jag har fått genom mitt ursprung." "Jag har bara tilldelat mig själv den historiske berättarens rörelsefrihet och gjort mitt eget bruk av den Min avsikt är att göra en egen vandring genom Sveriges historia." När Vilhelm Moberg nu börjar denna vandring, är han full av entusiasm. Han är, som han säger, "besatt av nyfikenhet på det som har hänt före honom på jorden". Han vill "närma historien till de levande människorna och de levande människorna till historien", genom att ständigt gå "från det förflutna till det när- varande och från det närvarande tillbaka till det förflutna". Nya perspektiv öppnas, oskrivna blad i vår historia spanas upp. Den grundstämning av djup mänsklig förståelse, den mäk tiga realism, den spänning som präglar Vilhelm Mobergs romaner om 1800-talets utvandrare, dominerar även hans nya stora epos en berättelse för folket om folket med mottot: Sveriges historia är dess allmoges. Hans begynnande historievandring har väckt en stigande förundran inom honom: "Hur har detta folk, som jag söker följa genom tiderna, kunnat överleva allt det onda som har drabbat det hur har det förmått överleva allt detta? Jag tror att läsarna kommer att ställa samma fråga.
Så lyder Vilhelm Mobergs expressiva programförklaring i MIN SVENSKA HISTORIA, det verk som inleder en ny fas av hans storslagna författarskap med djupa rötter i själva grund valarna för hans liv. Han vill berätta om hur "livet för det folk jag själv tillhör" gestaltat sig i det förflutna "Min historiesyn är bestämd av de upplevelser och erfarenheter av svenskt folk som jag har fått genom mitt ursprung." "Jag har bara tilldelat mig själv den historiske berättarens rörelsefrihet och gjort mitt eget bruk av den Min avsikt är att göra en egen vandring genom Sveriges historia." När Vilhelm Moberg nu börjar denna vandring, är han full av entusiasm. Han är, som han säger, "besatt av nyfikenhet på det som har hänt före honom på jorden". Han vill "närma historien till de levande människorna och de levande människorna till historien", genom att ständigt gå "från det förflutna till det när- varande och från det närvarande tillbaka till det förflutna". Nya perspektiv öppnas, oskrivna blad i vår historia spanas upp. Den grundstämning av djup mänsklig förståelse, den mäk tiga realism, den spänning som präglar Vilhelm Mobergs romaner om 1800-talets utvandrare, dominerar även hans nya stora epos en berättelse för folket om folket med mottot: Sveriges historia är dess allmoges. Hans begynnande historievandring har väckt en stigande förundran inom honom: "Hur har detta folk, som jag söker följa genom tiderna, kunnat överleva allt det onda som har drabbat det hur har det förmått överleva allt detta? Jag tror att läsarna kommer att ställa samma fråga.
314 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1970
17 people are currently reading
415 people want to read
About the author
Vilhelm Moberg
177 books207 followersVilhelm Moberg was a Swedish journalist, author, playwright, historian, and debater best known for his Emigrant series of novels about Swedish emigrants to America. He also wrote other novels and plays and also participated in public debates about the Swedish monarchy, bureaucracy, and corruption. Among other works are Raskens (1927) and Ride This Night (1941), a historical novel of a 17th-century rebellion in Småland acknowledged for its subliminal but widely recognised criticism against the Hitler regime.
A noted public intellectual and debater in Sweden, he was noted for very vocal criticism of the Swedish monarchy (most notably after the Haijby affair), likening it with a servile government by divine mandate, and publicly supporting its replacement with a Swiss-style confederal republic. He spoke out aggressively against the policies of Nazi Germany, the Greek military junta, and the Soviet Union, and his works were among those destroyed in Nazi book burnings. In 1971, he scolded Prime Minister Olof Palme for refusing to offer the Nobel Prize in Literature to its recipient Alexander Solzhenitsyn – who was refused permission to attend the ceremony in Stockholm – through the Swedish embassy in Moscow.
A noted public intellectual and debater in Sweden, he was noted for very vocal criticism of the Swedish monarchy (most notably after the Haijby affair), likening it with a servile government by divine mandate, and publicly supporting its replacement with a Swiss-style confederal republic. He spoke out aggressively against the policies of Nazi Germany, the Greek military junta, and the Soviet Union, and his works were among those destroyed in Nazi book burnings. In 1971, he scolded Prime Minister Olof Palme for refusing to offer the Nobel Prize in Literature to its recipient Alexander Solzhenitsyn – who was refused permission to attend the ceremony in Stockholm – through the Swedish embassy in Moscow.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
September 25, 2017
Fantastic read and perfect translation that does not translate every single swedish name, which I LOVE.
I feel that money isnt able to pay for the knowledge Vilhelm Moberg shares us in his book after his lifetime of research and personal experience.
Never met the man, wish I did, but after reading this piece I cant help to feel extremely thankful and repectful towards his name. Ive lived in the swedish countryside and to see the very embodiment of what he speaks of, makes me understand and love Sweden more than what I already did.
Tack så mycket!
I feel that money isnt able to pay for the knowledge Vilhelm Moberg shares us in his book after his lifetime of research and personal experience.
Never met the man, wish I did, but after reading this piece I cant help to feel extremely thankful and repectful towards his name. Ive lived in the swedish countryside and to see the very embodiment of what he speaks of, makes me understand and love Sweden more than what I already did.
Tack så mycket!
July 27, 2018
Vilhelm Moberg was born in 1898, in a small remote village where remnants of the peasant way of life persisted. He wrote A History of the Swedish People, which spanned two volumes: (1) before the Renaissance, and (2) after. Moberg’s writing has been translated into 20 languages, and Swedes have bought six million copies of his books. Most histories focus on the big shots, the decision makers, the conquerors, the villains. His work focuses on the nameless people that historians disregard: the common folks, the salt of the Earth. I like that.
In this spirit, chapter one is a discussion of slavery, which existed for several thousand years. Bondsmen (slaves) have been invisible in Swedish history, because textbooks are obligated to focus on the patriotic glories, and step around the embarrassing dreck. Bondsmen could be bought, sold, given way, or killed. Throughout his life, Moberg was devoted to the notion of freedom. He estimated that in the eleventh century, twenty percent of the population was bondsmen. The rest of the book is devoted to the commoners who were freeborn, the rugged peasantry who worked hard to survive in the forests of Sweden, and were the majority of the population.
In most other European nations, peasants were not free. They suffered for centuries under the heavy fist of feudalism. They inhabited lands crisscrossed with roads, which enabled the nobility to snatch the fruits of their toil and keep them under control. The main exceptions were Sweden, Norway, and Switzerland, where the peasants escaped serfdom. The Swiss, surrounded by powerful enemies, were protected by the Alps. The Norse and Swedes were protected by their vast rugged forests. As long as the forests survived and remained roadless, the people were much safer.
In several European languages, the words for “road” and “raid” evolved from a common root. Romans built many roads for the expansion and management of their empire. Later, those same roads made it easier for scruffy outsiders to rubbish their empire and loot their booty. In Roman times, the wild German tribes were also fiercely warlike, but their goal was not conquest and expansion. Their goal was to keep outsiders out, homeland security. Caesar noted, “It is the greatest pride of the Germanic tribes to surround themselves with broad desolate frontier regions.” Frontier forests were buffer zones that were kept untilled and uninhabited.
In the dense roadless forests of Sweden, invaders soon became perfectly lost. It was terrifying. Behind any bush might be a man with a crossbow. The forest people knew every rock, hill, and cranny in the woods. They could pick the ideal time and place to strike. When attack was unwise, they vanished and waited patiently for fresh opportunities.
Over the centuries, Swedes adapted well to forest life. In addition to fishing, foraging, and hunting, they farmed on a small scale. Livestock was their primary resource, providing them with meat, milk, butter, cheese, hides, and wool. The forest was common land owned by no one. A Swedish proverb declares, “The forest grows as well for the poor as for the rich.” It was the poor man’s garden. Forest dwellers often lived in isolation, with few neighbors to rely on.
Moberg devoted an entire chapter to his love for the forest wonderland in which he grew up. In his strict rural Lutheran village, good and bad were sharply defined. Where others could see him, little Vilhelm had to behave properly, to avoid criticism. In the forest, he was free. He could hide where no one would see him, and behave any way he liked. He was happier as a child in the forest than in any other place in his life.
In pagan times there were festivals in which stallions, bulls, billy-goats, cocks, and humans were sacrificed to the gods. One observer recorded details about the annual ceremony at Uppsala. Next to the temple was a sacred grove, where the corpses of up to 200 sacrificed men and beasts hung from the trees. The sacrificial humans included criminals, infirm old men, foreigners, bondsmen, and prisoners.
The Vikings were possessed with an insatiable hunger for the valuables belonging to others. They enjoyed cruising along coasts and rivers and raiding Christian towns and villages — peaceful settlements with which they had no disputes. Vikings were extraordinarily cruel and inhuman, and they fought with pure fury. Vikings ravaged Europe from 800 to 1050.
Sweden’s conversion to Christianity was slow and bloody. The Asa people (pagans) were open minded, and they worshipped many gods and goddesses. Deities that brought good harvests, weather, and health were honored, and bummer gods were tossed on the compost pile. When foreign missionaries suggested worshipping a new one, they were willing to give him a try. The pagans were open minded, but the missionaries were not. Naturally, the Swedes were not delighted to be told that all their ancient beliefs were wrong and evil. Commonly, after the missionaries had moved on to convert others, the newly baptized folks returned to the faith of their ancestors.
It took 300 years to convert the small population of Swedes. In 1122, Småland was last region to be converted. The chronicle reads: “King Sigurd set his course for a trading city called Kalmar, which he laid waste, and thereafter ravaged Småland, exacting from the Smålanders a tribute of fifteen hundred beasts; and the Smålanders accepted Christianity.” This slaughter was called the Kalmar Raid. Sigurd returned to Norway laden with loot. In some regions, Swedes continued to secretly practice pagan rituals into the seventeenth century.
Later, Christian Swedes decided to teach the Finns about the Prince of Peace. King Erik offered the Finns peace on condition they let themselves be baptized and adopt the Christian faith, but they turned his offer down. So the Finns were massacred. “After the struggle was over the king walked about the battlefield among the masses of the fallen heathen and was so deeply moved by the sight of their corpses that he wept.”
Moberg had deep appreciation for the 5,000-year era of Swedish peasants, which was approaching extinction by 1900, displaced by the hideous rise of industrialism and urbanization. Ancient farms and villages were being abandoned, returning to forest. Growing numbers of weird and spooky human-like beings, known as Consumers, were wandering into peasant country from Stockholm, and other insane asylums.
Rural peasants were the last full-blooded individualists; each one was personally unique, warts and all. They were highly attuned to the ecosystem that had been their ancestors’ home for centuries, and they had little contact with outsiders, or their peculiar ideas. The Consumers were rootless tumbleweeds who dressed alike, smelled alike, thought alike, and lived alike — the standardized outputs of a mass culture.
Peasants spent a lot of time with each other, gathered around the hearth fire. Folks did handiwork — spinning, weaving, carving, and so on. Elders shared stories and memories. The daily lives of peasants were spent in intimate contact with the magic, mystery, and beauty of wild nature, which is essential for wellbeing. Consumers would suffer panic attacks if forced to live in a medieval cottage — no lights, TV, radio, internet, books, running water, toilet. Here’s Moberg’s punch line: “Instead of the things they lacked, medieval people had others, which we have lost.” They enjoyed good old fashioned community.
The book goes on to discuss many other topics. It interested me because my mother’s family has Norwegian roots. The Norse and Swedes are closely related. I’ve been reluctant to review this book, because it’s not about ecological sustainability. But it does discuss subjects that are both interesting, and rarely mentioned. So, I turned to a number of other sources to look for the missing eco-info.
Like the wild Irish, British, and Germanic tribes, Scandinavians shifted from hunting, fishing, and foraging, moving toward small scale pastoralism and farming in forest clearings. This encouraged conflicts with wild critters, who were thrilled to feast on the delicious offerings of rye, oats, calves, poultry, sheep, and so on. Nature became an enemy. The peasant lads fetched their war paint.
By 1870, wild boars, aurochs (wild cattle), and beavers were extinct in Sweden, and red deer and moose were getting close. By the mid-1900s, the wolf population was zero. Later, some beavers (from Canada), boars, and wolves were reintroduced, or wandered in from elsewhere. To this day, the eternal peasant’s war on wolves continues in Sweden, Norway, and Finland — three of the most “eco-progressive” societies in Christendom.
Oddest of all, in Moberg’s celebration of the common folk of Sweden, he made no mention of the Sami people, the wild hunter-gatherers who have been harshly abused and exploited by the civilized racist settlers for several centuries. New research is discovering that the Sami people inhabited large portions of Scandinavia long before the Nordic (Germanic) pastoralists arrived. Sami lived as far south as Hadeland in Norway, not far from Oslo, one of my ancestral homelands.
Genetic data has linked the modern Sami to the first humans who wandered into Scandinavia more than 10,000 years ago. They have been in Sweden much longer than the Swedes. The Sami homeland is known as Sápmi, and it spans large areas of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. Sami have another name, Lapp, which some do not like.
To learn more about Sami and reindeer, four nice essays are [HERE]
Lapps and Labyrinths , an excellent 2010 book on the Sami, by archaeologist Noel Broadbent, can be purchased from Amazon ($$$), or downloaded free [HERE]
In this spirit, chapter one is a discussion of slavery, which existed for several thousand years. Bondsmen (slaves) have been invisible in Swedish history, because textbooks are obligated to focus on the patriotic glories, and step around the embarrassing dreck. Bondsmen could be bought, sold, given way, or killed. Throughout his life, Moberg was devoted to the notion of freedom. He estimated that in the eleventh century, twenty percent of the population was bondsmen. The rest of the book is devoted to the commoners who were freeborn, the rugged peasantry who worked hard to survive in the forests of Sweden, and were the majority of the population.
In most other European nations, peasants were not free. They suffered for centuries under the heavy fist of feudalism. They inhabited lands crisscrossed with roads, which enabled the nobility to snatch the fruits of their toil and keep them under control. The main exceptions were Sweden, Norway, and Switzerland, where the peasants escaped serfdom. The Swiss, surrounded by powerful enemies, were protected by the Alps. The Norse and Swedes were protected by their vast rugged forests. As long as the forests survived and remained roadless, the people were much safer.
In several European languages, the words for “road” and “raid” evolved from a common root. Romans built many roads for the expansion and management of their empire. Later, those same roads made it easier for scruffy outsiders to rubbish their empire and loot their booty. In Roman times, the wild German tribes were also fiercely warlike, but their goal was not conquest and expansion. Their goal was to keep outsiders out, homeland security. Caesar noted, “It is the greatest pride of the Germanic tribes to surround themselves with broad desolate frontier regions.” Frontier forests were buffer zones that were kept untilled and uninhabited.
In the dense roadless forests of Sweden, invaders soon became perfectly lost. It was terrifying. Behind any bush might be a man with a crossbow. The forest people knew every rock, hill, and cranny in the woods. They could pick the ideal time and place to strike. When attack was unwise, they vanished and waited patiently for fresh opportunities.
Over the centuries, Swedes adapted well to forest life. In addition to fishing, foraging, and hunting, they farmed on a small scale. Livestock was their primary resource, providing them with meat, milk, butter, cheese, hides, and wool. The forest was common land owned by no one. A Swedish proverb declares, “The forest grows as well for the poor as for the rich.” It was the poor man’s garden. Forest dwellers often lived in isolation, with few neighbors to rely on.
Moberg devoted an entire chapter to his love for the forest wonderland in which he grew up. In his strict rural Lutheran village, good and bad were sharply defined. Where others could see him, little Vilhelm had to behave properly, to avoid criticism. In the forest, he was free. He could hide where no one would see him, and behave any way he liked. He was happier as a child in the forest than in any other place in his life.
In pagan times there were festivals in which stallions, bulls, billy-goats, cocks, and humans were sacrificed to the gods. One observer recorded details about the annual ceremony at Uppsala. Next to the temple was a sacred grove, where the corpses of up to 200 sacrificed men and beasts hung from the trees. The sacrificial humans included criminals, infirm old men, foreigners, bondsmen, and prisoners.
The Vikings were possessed with an insatiable hunger for the valuables belonging to others. They enjoyed cruising along coasts and rivers and raiding Christian towns and villages — peaceful settlements with which they had no disputes. Vikings were extraordinarily cruel and inhuman, and they fought with pure fury. Vikings ravaged Europe from 800 to 1050.
Sweden’s conversion to Christianity was slow and bloody. The Asa people (pagans) were open minded, and they worshipped many gods and goddesses. Deities that brought good harvests, weather, and health were honored, and bummer gods were tossed on the compost pile. When foreign missionaries suggested worshipping a new one, they were willing to give him a try. The pagans were open minded, but the missionaries were not. Naturally, the Swedes were not delighted to be told that all their ancient beliefs were wrong and evil. Commonly, after the missionaries had moved on to convert others, the newly baptized folks returned to the faith of their ancestors.
It took 300 years to convert the small population of Swedes. In 1122, Småland was last region to be converted. The chronicle reads: “King Sigurd set his course for a trading city called Kalmar, which he laid waste, and thereafter ravaged Småland, exacting from the Smålanders a tribute of fifteen hundred beasts; and the Smålanders accepted Christianity.” This slaughter was called the Kalmar Raid. Sigurd returned to Norway laden with loot. In some regions, Swedes continued to secretly practice pagan rituals into the seventeenth century.
Later, Christian Swedes decided to teach the Finns about the Prince of Peace. King Erik offered the Finns peace on condition they let themselves be baptized and adopt the Christian faith, but they turned his offer down. So the Finns were massacred. “After the struggle was over the king walked about the battlefield among the masses of the fallen heathen and was so deeply moved by the sight of their corpses that he wept.”
Moberg had deep appreciation for the 5,000-year era of Swedish peasants, which was approaching extinction by 1900, displaced by the hideous rise of industrialism and urbanization. Ancient farms and villages were being abandoned, returning to forest. Growing numbers of weird and spooky human-like beings, known as Consumers, were wandering into peasant country from Stockholm, and other insane asylums.
Rural peasants were the last full-blooded individualists; each one was personally unique, warts and all. They were highly attuned to the ecosystem that had been their ancestors’ home for centuries, and they had little contact with outsiders, or their peculiar ideas. The Consumers were rootless tumbleweeds who dressed alike, smelled alike, thought alike, and lived alike — the standardized outputs of a mass culture.
Peasants spent a lot of time with each other, gathered around the hearth fire. Folks did handiwork — spinning, weaving, carving, and so on. Elders shared stories and memories. The daily lives of peasants were spent in intimate contact with the magic, mystery, and beauty of wild nature, which is essential for wellbeing. Consumers would suffer panic attacks if forced to live in a medieval cottage — no lights, TV, radio, internet, books, running water, toilet. Here’s Moberg’s punch line: “Instead of the things they lacked, medieval people had others, which we have lost.” They enjoyed good old fashioned community.
The book goes on to discuss many other topics. It interested me because my mother’s family has Norwegian roots. The Norse and Swedes are closely related. I’ve been reluctant to review this book, because it’s not about ecological sustainability. But it does discuss subjects that are both interesting, and rarely mentioned. So, I turned to a number of other sources to look for the missing eco-info.
Like the wild Irish, British, and Germanic tribes, Scandinavians shifted from hunting, fishing, and foraging, moving toward small scale pastoralism and farming in forest clearings. This encouraged conflicts with wild critters, who were thrilled to feast on the delicious offerings of rye, oats, calves, poultry, sheep, and so on. Nature became an enemy. The peasant lads fetched their war paint.
By 1870, wild boars, aurochs (wild cattle), and beavers were extinct in Sweden, and red deer and moose were getting close. By the mid-1900s, the wolf population was zero. Later, some beavers (from Canada), boars, and wolves were reintroduced, or wandered in from elsewhere. To this day, the eternal peasant’s war on wolves continues in Sweden, Norway, and Finland — three of the most “eco-progressive” societies in Christendom.
Oddest of all, in Moberg’s celebration of the common folk of Sweden, he made no mention of the Sami people, the wild hunter-gatherers who have been harshly abused and exploited by the civilized racist settlers for several centuries. New research is discovering that the Sami people inhabited large portions of Scandinavia long before the Nordic (Germanic) pastoralists arrived. Sami lived as far south as Hadeland in Norway, not far from Oslo, one of my ancestral homelands.
Genetic data has linked the modern Sami to the first humans who wandered into Scandinavia more than 10,000 years ago. They have been in Sweden much longer than the Swedes. The Sami homeland is known as Sápmi, and it spans large areas of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. Sami have another name, Lapp, which some do not like.
To learn more about Sami and reindeer, four nice essays are [HERE]
Lapps and Labyrinths , an excellent 2010 book on the Sami, by archaeologist Noel Broadbent, can be purchased from Amazon ($$$), or downloaded free [HERE]
July 17, 2022
Verket har en amatörmässig nivå och Moberg har svårt att hålla sig till sak. Han börjar med att berätta en historia ur folkets perspektiv, vilket är en väldigt intressant tanke, och något som enligt vad jag vet är något som saknas bra böcker om. Speciellt delen om trälar känns väldigt relevant, och en del av våra förfäder som saknar en röst. Men han börjar snabbt spekulera och förhärliga sina favoritdelar, vilket känns lite oväntat och synd. Sedan byter han till en torr och tråkig kungahistoria, vilket han i förorden lovade att inte göra, för att sedan göra en lång avstickare för att prata om digerdöden. Han verkar helt glömma bort bokens titel och drömmer sig iväg till andra länder i Europa. Med tiden kommer han på sig och återvänder till Sverige, men inte blir man gladare för det, då han tappar den gnutta energi han byggt upp under sin utlandsvistelse.
Boken känns obalanserad, och lägger fokus på fel saker. Början var bra nog att dra in läsaren och bygga upp ett intresse, för att sedan visa sig vara en helt annan bok. När boken är färdigläst känner man sig mest lurad. Speciellt med tanke på att Moberg har gjort en rad andra böcker av bättre kvalitet. Min enda slutsats är nog att Moberg är bäst i renodlad skönlitteratur.
Boken känns obalanserad, och lägger fokus på fel saker. Början var bra nog att dra in läsaren och bygga upp ett intresse, för att sedan visa sig vara en helt annan bok. När boken är färdigläst känner man sig mest lurad. Speciellt med tanke på att Moberg har gjort en rad andra böcker av bättre kvalitet. Min enda slutsats är nog att Moberg är bäst i renodlad skönlitteratur.
November 10, 2019
The book has a quirky style. It is unclear to whom the style can be attributed: the author or the translator. Either way, it was a very informative read. Spoiler alert: Early Swedes kept bondsmen, which I didn't know before. Also, the two most famous Swedes of all-time are women and are related to one another: St. Birgitta and Queen Margareta (Birgitta's granddaughter).
January 30, 2018
Puncturing a few balloons
In every country, you've got the official history, full of glorious deeds and virtuous causes, peopled by heroes and Big Men, once in a while an Astonishing Woman. Most nations base their national image on such a history. Back before World War II, that sort of history was standard, taught in all the schools to generations of bored kids. The by-product usually turned out to be rampant chauvinism. Since then, at least in the USA and Australia, school history has been toned down somewhat. Still, though, we can find an extreme reluctance to call things by their proper names. I'm totally unfamiliar with the history books of other countries, but most academic histories are either scholarly tomes which deal with details, or sweeping panoramas describing complicated processes over centuries. I happen to like both types. But it is rare to find a book like Moberg's A HISTORY OF THE SWEDISH PEOPLE, written by a man who perhaps was better known for his novels.
Moberg does not start from prehistory and move patiently, step by step, up through the centuries. We find extremely few dates and only some names---which is just as well, considering the paucity of monickers that seems to have existed in medieval Sweden, where every second royal bore the name of Valdemar, Erik or Magnus. Instead, the author takes a handful of topics and bases his chapters on these. Each topic pricks a certain balloon, perhaps those most often flown in the old, official versions of Swedish history. "The Swedes As a Proud, Free Race". Moberg's first chapter shows that for centuries, more than half the population were bonded laborers, often little better than slaves. "100 Kings". Moberg shows that this ancient tally of royal Swedes is little more than a persistent myth. There is no proof that most existed at all. "A Family of Royal Criminals". Here he goes to town, with considerable humor, on the Folkung dynasty, whom he likens to gangsters and fictional characters in novels about "bad guys". In other chapters, Moberg tries to create a history of the common people of prehistoric and medieval Sweden---the ancient farmers, the Viking seafarers, and the medieval population. He dwells long on the Black Death of the 14th century, which he calls the biggest event of the Middle Ages in Sweden. It killed a third of the population. And not leaving out the female half of the population, he devotes considerable space to Sweden's most famous saint, St. Bridget and Queen Margareta, who presided over the short-lived union of Kalmar, which covered Norway, Denmark, and Sweden back in the period 1397-1457, as well as constantly noting the effect various trends and practices would have had on women. Though a book of this kind necessarily leaves out as much as it puts in, I can recommend A HISTORY OF THE SWEDISH PEOPLE for its readability (though the translation is a bit weak at times), its humor and directness, its socialist idealism, and its interesting slant on the Swedish picture. In criticism I might say that he sometimes indulges his fancy for including information on whatever caught his attention. Lateral thinking is fine, but a little discipline....? The final word: every country should have its Moberg. Down with balloons !!
In every country, you've got the official history, full of glorious deeds and virtuous causes, peopled by heroes and Big Men, once in a while an Astonishing Woman. Most nations base their national image on such a history. Back before World War II, that sort of history was standard, taught in all the schools to generations of bored kids. The by-product usually turned out to be rampant chauvinism. Since then, at least in the USA and Australia, school history has been toned down somewhat. Still, though, we can find an extreme reluctance to call things by their proper names. I'm totally unfamiliar with the history books of other countries, but most academic histories are either scholarly tomes which deal with details, or sweeping panoramas describing complicated processes over centuries. I happen to like both types. But it is rare to find a book like Moberg's A HISTORY OF THE SWEDISH PEOPLE, written by a man who perhaps was better known for his novels.
Moberg does not start from prehistory and move patiently, step by step, up through the centuries. We find extremely few dates and only some names---which is just as well, considering the paucity of monickers that seems to have existed in medieval Sweden, where every second royal bore the name of Valdemar, Erik or Magnus. Instead, the author takes a handful of topics and bases his chapters on these. Each topic pricks a certain balloon, perhaps those most often flown in the old, official versions of Swedish history. "The Swedes As a Proud, Free Race". Moberg's first chapter shows that for centuries, more than half the population were bonded laborers, often little better than slaves. "100 Kings". Moberg shows that this ancient tally of royal Swedes is little more than a persistent myth. There is no proof that most existed at all. "A Family of Royal Criminals". Here he goes to town, with considerable humor, on the Folkung dynasty, whom he likens to gangsters and fictional characters in novels about "bad guys". In other chapters, Moberg tries to create a history of the common people of prehistoric and medieval Sweden---the ancient farmers, the Viking seafarers, and the medieval population. He dwells long on the Black Death of the 14th century, which he calls the biggest event of the Middle Ages in Sweden. It killed a third of the population. And not leaving out the female half of the population, he devotes considerable space to Sweden's most famous saint, St. Bridget and Queen Margareta, who presided over the short-lived union of Kalmar, which covered Norway, Denmark, and Sweden back in the period 1397-1457, as well as constantly noting the effect various trends and practices would have had on women. Though a book of this kind necessarily leaves out as much as it puts in, I can recommend A HISTORY OF THE SWEDISH PEOPLE for its readability (though the translation is a bit weak at times), its humor and directness, its socialist idealism, and its interesting slant on the Swedish picture. In criticism I might say that he sometimes indulges his fancy for including information on whatever caught his attention. Lateral thinking is fine, but a little discipline....? The final word: every country should have its Moberg. Down with balloons !!
January 27, 2022
This has to be one of the most unique history books I've ever read. Rather than a dry tome on people and dates of events, instead there was a compelling narrative about the ancient people of Sweden themselves. I enjoyed the passages of (yngre) fornsvenska that were included in the later chapters; it gave me some practice with my Swedish away from Duolingo.
If anything, I was disappointed about the lack of length, but I think that may be due to the lack of recorded history that this volume aimed to tackle. I'm looking forward to reading the 2nd volume, which appears thicker than this one.
If anything, I was disappointed about the lack of length, but I think that may be due to the lack of recorded history that this volume aimed to tackle. I'm looking forward to reading the 2nd volume, which appears thicker than this one.
February 3, 2020
Vilhelm Moberg is like a predecesor to Howard Zinn un that he writes with obvious passion for those who are typically overlooked in histories. His prose are also so clear and elegant I could read it all day.
December 21, 2018
A bit more editorializing than one usually finds in a history, but Mr. Moberg's opinions, and his background do make this book more readable and less dry. I enjoyed reading it.
March 14, 2025
Vilhelm Moberg was an effective writer who is concerned about the common people. I've read several of his translated novels, each of which was great.
In this book, he maintains a similar voice. He admits that history, especially in the time period he's talking about here, is written about nobility but he still tries to talk about the common people too. Since that was one of my interests, I appreciate the focus.
At the same time, near the beginning, he discusses the Swedish history books he read in school growing up. He says they praised kings and imperialists to the exclusion of anyone ordinary. Since I'm an American trying to learn about my Swedish roots, I didn't read the history books Moberg did. In fact, this is the first book about Swedish history that I've read. Having no background in the subject means missing a lot of parts of the story that a Swede would probably already know.
In spite of that, this book still provides some grounding in Swedish history. It's the only English-language history of Sweden available in the US that I know of. Whether that history is accurate and complete, I have no way to know.
In this book, he maintains a similar voice. He admits that history, especially in the time period he's talking about here, is written about nobility but he still tries to talk about the common people too. Since that was one of my interests, I appreciate the focus.
At the same time, near the beginning, he discusses the Swedish history books he read in school growing up. He says they praised kings and imperialists to the exclusion of anyone ordinary. Since I'm an American trying to learn about my Swedish roots, I didn't read the history books Moberg did. In fact, this is the first book about Swedish history that I've read. Having no background in the subject means missing a lot of parts of the story that a Swede would probably already know.
In spite of that, this book still provides some grounding in Swedish history. It's the only English-language history of Sweden available in the US that I know of. Whether that history is accurate and complete, I have no way to know.
July 19, 2024
Rolig läsning! Det finns många kungar och historiska figurer som man endast har en vag aning om, och som man lärde sig om i skolan, som Moberg blåser liv i. Dessutom skriver han intressant om ”det sämre folket” t.ex. trälar och fattigfolk.
Moberg är ju i första hand en skönlitterär författare, vilket märks i verket. Hans skönlitterära författarskap förbättrar texten med ett luftigare och vackrare språk, men försämrar helheten då han ibland ägnar sig åt ovetenskapliga gissningar.
Man märker tydligt att han skriver i en viss tid, och är även bunden av den. Han ironiserar ofta över äldre historikers fåfänga påhitt om det svenska folket uråldriga frihet, renhet, och överlägsenhet. Det är förståeligt då han förmodligen läste dem i skolan, men för en modern läsare kan det bli tjatigt. Han slänger sig också något slentrianmässigt med vissa marxistiska tankefigurer, vilket självklart inte var ovanligt på 60- och 70-talet. Det drar däremot ned på den vetenskapliga gedigenheten i verket.
Sammanfattningsvis rekommenderar jag boken, särskilt till läsare utan djup kunskap i det svenska folkets historia. En perfekt present till din amerikanska släkting med svenska rötter, till exempel, eller till tysken som bara älskar det svenska landskapet.
Moberg är ju i första hand en skönlitterär författare, vilket märks i verket. Hans skönlitterära författarskap förbättrar texten med ett luftigare och vackrare språk, men försämrar helheten då han ibland ägnar sig åt ovetenskapliga gissningar.
Man märker tydligt att han skriver i en viss tid, och är även bunden av den. Han ironiserar ofta över äldre historikers fåfänga påhitt om det svenska folket uråldriga frihet, renhet, och överlägsenhet. Det är förståeligt då han förmodligen läste dem i skolan, men för en modern läsare kan det bli tjatigt. Han slänger sig också något slentrianmässigt med vissa marxistiska tankefigurer, vilket självklart inte var ovanligt på 60- och 70-talet. Det drar däremot ned på den vetenskapliga gedigenheten i verket.
Sammanfattningsvis rekommenderar jag boken, särskilt till läsare utan djup kunskap i det svenska folkets historia. En perfekt present till din amerikanska släkting med svenska rötter, till exempel, eller till tysken som bara älskar det svenska landskapet.
July 20, 2018
För mig som inte är särskilt väl bevandrad i den svenska historien var detta en väldigt lärorik bok om Sveriges historia fram till och med drottning Margaretas död under tidigt 1400-tal. Det som utmärker boken är att den fokuserar på den svenska allmogen, dvs hela folket. Det läggs inte oproportionerligt mycket tid på överheten utan Moberg låter oss följa vanliga människor i deras strävan. Intressant och lättillgänglig!
November 21, 2018
Jag är inte så intresserad av historia generellt, men det här är en pärla; välskriven och med intressant slags motto: den svenska historien är dess allmoges. Centrerad kring relativt korta tematiska avsnitt rör den sig någotsånär med tidsaxeln genom Sveriges historia, alltid med viss skepticism mot överheten och en blick mot folket.
October 31, 2019
I regel bra men med en del löjliga åsikter och redogörelser
January 8, 2019
Good introduction to the times. Well written so easily read.
March 4, 2025
Starts very strong with detailing the life of early medieval peasants and "trälar" but descends into mediocrity when it starts detailing the back and forth of kings without much feel or deft storytelling.
December 31, 2013
If someone is interested in a "bottom up" approach to history then this book is definitely what one needs to explore Swedish history. Moberg integrates the lives of the Swedish peasant with their lords almost nonchalantly at times, which gives the reader a sense of authenticity. And, no doubt, he grew up in a poor family; so he seems to have first-hand experience with certain Swedish laws that have affected him and his parents alike. A couple of biases to remember though:
1. As a Social Historian he takes his ideology straight from the E. H. Carr school of interpretive history. Moberg admits that plenty of his data could be skewed because of that bias.
2. Moberg was a man of strong principles and morals. This book may sound "hippy" at times. If you are anything like me, then you like the nitty gritty scenes of bloody, gore, and destruction (I kid though I do not believe in hiding the truth).
3. If you want a concise history, then this is not the book you are looking for. It is a survey on the history of the peasant and the common man. A strong survey, but a survey nonetheless. If you are looking for something more concise, and with more empirical information, then this is not the history book for you.
Overall one of the best survey's I have read in any historical subject. Moberg is an extremely good writer, he is easy to understand, clear and overall makes his whole reading experience enjoyable. I recommend this for anyone hoping to learn more about Swedish is history, especially in the eyes of a peasant.
1. As a Social Historian he takes his ideology straight from the E. H. Carr school of interpretive history. Moberg admits that plenty of his data could be skewed because of that bias.
2. Moberg was a man of strong principles and morals. This book may sound "hippy" at times. If you are anything like me, then you like the nitty gritty scenes of bloody, gore, and destruction (I kid though I do not believe in hiding the truth).
3. If you want a concise history, then this is not the book you are looking for. It is a survey on the history of the peasant and the common man. A strong survey, but a survey nonetheless. If you are looking for something more concise, and with more empirical information, then this is not the history book for you.
Overall one of the best survey's I have read in any historical subject. Moberg is an extremely good writer, he is easy to understand, clear and overall makes his whole reading experience enjoyable. I recommend this for anyone hoping to learn more about Swedish is history, especially in the eyes of a peasant.
September 5, 2012
Even read in translation, and at a distance of several decades, the clear writing and succinct explanations given in this book of numerous significant episodes and personalities drawn from early Swedish history are well worth reading. I found it to be informative and interesting, a kind of People's History - drawn with a broad brush - of Sweden, with a distinct focus on the life of non-noble, ordinary people, where the historical record allows light to shine on their doings. I got the distinct impression that Moberg's emphases and interests departed widely from previously held notions, especially concerning the relative "goodness" of certain noble and royal personages. His concern was primarily for the consequences of monarchs' acts upon the lives of ordinary Swedes, not for their supposed "nobility" or lack thereof. Highly recommended for anyone who is interested in Swedish history.
April 17, 2013
A great foreign language book, which tells the history of Sweden in a clear and concise manner--that is, if you know the Swedish language. I am half Swedish and found it an excellent exercise in the language of my father's ancestors and a great way to learn a bit of our ancestral homeland's history as well. If you're Swedish or of Swedish ancestry and can read the language, I recommend it very highly. It'll guide you through the early days of a great and beautiful country.
October 19, 2010
Surprisingly readable so far for an "old-school" historian, bolstered of course by interest in my ancestors' history.
May 31, 2014
Riktigt fängslande bok om mina förfäders historia där Vilhelm Moberg försökte fånga folkets, allmogens, liv.
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