>* Botvid (1100)
> - Swedish layman, murdered by a Finnish slave he was about to set
>free
This is interesting. Is it possible to know more about Botvid and the
slave? As a researcher of Finnish *prehistory*, I do have some texts
of early Finnish history at my disposal, but none of them mention
Botvid. I suspect this is a Swedish story. Did it happen in Finland
or Sweden? The Swedes and the Finns sometimes have two different
perceptions of what really happened in a particular event. Not
surprising considering the political situation there of the early
medieval period. For example, concerning the martyrdom of Bishop
Henrik of Sweden, eventually St. Henrik the patron of Finland, the
explanations and stories seem to present two main themes:
a) The evil Finnish farmer Lalli murdered Henrik because of his
missionizing work.
b) The poor and temperamental Finnish farmer Lalli killed Henrik
because the bishop was insisting on excessive amounts of hospitality
for himself and his retinue.
I am not taking sides! Comments from Swedes, Finns, or anyone else on
the list--concerning either Botvid or Henrik--would be most
illuminating.
Deborah J. Shepherd
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(Post-Doc) Program for Interdisciplinary Archaeological Studies
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University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
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