[gothic-l] Scandinavian Origin of theGermanic Peoples; Gutiska or Gautiska?

[sig]

Dear compatriot Tore!

What is your agenda??

Tore Gannholm wrote:

> Gotland and Sweden are two different cultures.

That's plain [male cow's manure].

> Gotland had nothing to do with Sweden until it became a Swedish colony in 1679.

Worse still. Statehood as we know it, i. e. administrative controle over some defined territory,never existed up till
or beyond viking times. Most scholars seem to agree that the former petty kingdoms of Westergotland (Västergötland),
Eastergotland (Östergötland) and the suetjodinar (the sueoni peoples on the shores of Lake Mälaren and the plains of
Uppland plus more) were united in much the same way as Wessex, Essex, Northumbria in England under one king and the
former lesser kings reduced to earls (=jarls in Scandinavia). With time power shifted and the kingship alternated
between the feuding constituent dynasties of the federation.
Archeological finds from neolithic times witness to the fact that Gotland and Sweden were in close contact and
Gotland was indeed one of the most important trading places in the Baltic through "roman iron age". During viking
times the Swedes opened up an important trade route between the "Orient" (Caspian and Black Sea cultures), which
innumerable coin hordes testify to. Part of this trade was the trading station of Gutenhof in Novgorod that was run
from Gotland.
In the course of time Gotland became more and more involved in Swedish affairs and, finally it became an integral
part of Sweden in the 13th century but was already since the 12th century under the diocese of Linköping in
Ostergotland (and still remains).
It is true that Gotland had its own Gutalag and its own jurisdiction but so had Westergotland and
Eastergotland too!
It was the Danish king Atterdag who laid seige to Visby and seized the island 1361
In 1394 the piratical Vitalii Brotherhood were able to oust the Danes out of Visby but the German Order were able to
free it four years later 1398.
Sweden entered a volontary union with Denmark and Gotland was returned under Queen Margareta 1408 but then the whole
island was impoverished and the Visby Castle became a center for outright sea piracy even under the succeeding Erik
of Pomerania.
The Swedes revolted under Gustav Vasa and broke up the union with Denmark. It proved however difficult to gain
Gotland back and Gotland had even to be formally ceded to Denmark in the treaty of Stettin 1470.
It was not until 1645 and the treaty of Brömsebro that Gotland was returned to Sweden.
In subsequent times Gotland has been the site of renewed attempts of invasions such as 1676-1679 by the Danes and
1808 by the Russians.

Seigmund



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