CHAP. XII.Of the Government of theLaplanders.
We come now to their secular affairs, which are either public or private: we will treat first of the public, to which belong the form and constitution of their Government. This in former times, before they were namedLaplanders, was in this manner; they were subject to no neighbouring Country, but were governed among themselves yet so as to be subject to a King, they chose out of their own Nation. Most of them, or at least those which bordered onNorway, and dwelt near the Sea, were under this kind of Government, in the time ofHarauld HarfagerKing ofNorway, cotemporary withEricusthe Conqueror, King of theSwedes, this was 900 years after Christ; he conquered the greatest part ofNorway, except theseFinlanders. The King that reigned over them at that time,was namedMottle. This account was questionless taken fromHaraldsexpedition intoBiarmia, and his ruining all that Countrey, except the part belonging to theseFinlanders. In those times the name ofLaplanderswas neither used, nor known, as I have shewn elsewhere, but they retained that of their ancestours, which was also common to all of the same extraction.
Their condition was not much altered, after that they took this name; which was when they first sent out Colonies into the inland Countries, on the farther part of the mountains, which divideSwedlandfromNorway. For they that went out had certainly some Leader, whom without doubt they chose for King, after they had taken possession of those Countries; and I believe they would scarcely submit to any other power whilst that he was living; and this seems the more probable, because no one in those daies would undertake the conquest of a company of poor beggarly fugitives, who dwelt among Woods and Deserts, in continual snow and the greatest extremity of cold. This was theMoscovitesopinion of them, who tho they dwelt near them, scarcely knew their nature and disposition, and thought it madness to set upon them with a small party, and an adventure of little profit, and less honour to raise an Army against a Country already distressed by poverty. For this reason theLaplandersenjoied their own customs for a long time. The first King ofSwedenthat had any thoughts of conquering them wasLadulausthe great, who florished about the year 1277, who because it seemed difficult to bring them under the Crown ofSweden, promised those that would undertake the conquest, the government over them. He thought it too expensive to make a public war upon them, when they were to be dealt with as wild beasts; yet however could not endure that a neighbouring People, dwelling almost in the heart of his Country, for they possessed at that time as far as the Bay ofBothnia, should refuse obedience to his Kingdom. Wherefore he thought upon the before mentioned project, and proposed great advantages to private persons, upon which theBirkarli, their neighbours, readily engaged themselves, and effected their enterprize no less successfully. In this design, the plot of a particular person was most remarkable, as is related byEricus, and recorded byJohn Buræus. One single man of theBirkarliwent towardsLaplandto way-lay theLaplandersin their return fromBirkala, (at this time no one inhabited on the North side of that allotment) and ordered his wife to cover him over with snow, in the middle of the way where theLaplandersmust necessarily pass over him. They came in the night time, and by their passing over him he knew there were fifteen, which were the chief among them, and to whom the rest were in subjection; when they were gone, he immediately arose out of the snow, and going some shorter way, set upon them at unawares, as they passed by, one by one, which is their usual way in travelling, and slew them one after another. None of those that followed perceived the first men slain, it being in the night time, and each of them at some distance from the others; till the last man finding his fellows killed, made a stout resistance, but theBirkarlaby the assistance of his wife got the victory, and slew him likewise. Thus the most powerfull of them being slain, the rest readily submitted. Some think theBirkarlideluded them by a pretended truce, andthat before it was expired, they assaulted them, not suspecting then the least danger, and killing several, subdued the Countrey, as far as the Northern and Western Oceans. We may easily collect from the truce mentioned here, that before their subjection to theSwedesby theBirkarli, there was some kind of war betwixt both: besides, it was shewn above, thatLadulauscould not bring them under his Crown. This perhaps may beZeiglersmeaning, when he describes them as a warlike People, and free for a great time, that they also withstood the Arms ofNorwayandSweden, till they were forced at last to yeild; but whatZeiglerimputes to their valour, proceeded only from the contemt they were then in, as is plain from the opinion theMoscovitesgave of them. And there is little reason to suppose theSwedeswere not of the same, since they were overcome only by the allotment ofBirkala; andLadulausdid not conquer them out of any fear he conceived of their forces, but by sleight, foreseeing the small advantages he should receive would not quit the charges of an Army. Thus theLaplanderswere brought in subjection by the subtilty and expence of private persons. About the year of our Saviour 1277, theBirkarlihad the autority over them; yet so as to acknowledg their dependance on the King ofSweden. Now whether all of them were thus overcome, as those that lived beyond the mountains ofNorway, near the Sea, which are theFinlanders, orLappofinni, is still in doubt, except we collect it from this, that all from the Northern and Western Oceans were certainly subjected. But whatever dispute may arise concerning that, it is manifest theSwedeswere the first Conquerours ofLapland, but afterwards theNorwegiansandMoscovitesfollowing their example, put in also for a part; thus they became subject to these three severall Princes. But to pass by the others, theSwedesenjoyed, for some former ages, half the dominions fromTidisfiordentoWalangar, over theLappofinni, or maritimeFinlanders. This was given byCharlesthe IX, in his instructions to his Embassadors, sent to the King ofDanemark, wherein he made it appear that theSwedeshad from former times, till then, enjoied half the rights, both sacred and civill, whether as to tributes, punishments, men, or fisherie, with the Crowns ofDanemarkandNorway. But theSwedeskept only a third part fromMalangertoWaranger, those ofNorwayandMoscovylaying claim to the other two, till in the year 1595, theMoscovites, by a League, delivered up their part, but theSwedesalwaies possessed the mountainous and more neighbouring places fromLadulaus’s time, for near four hundred years, and exercised their autority over them. The Government after the conquest was in the hands of theBirkarli, according to the grant given them byLadulaus, who ruled over those that dwelt near the Bay ofBothnia, imposed taxes, trafficked with them, and received all the profit of the Salmon fishing, and all other advantages arising from them; but in acknowledgement to the King, as Supreme, they paid a certain number of gray Squirrils skins. TheLaplanders, by common consent, received and honored theBergchara, that is men of the mountains, orBirkarli, as their Governours, and paid them very rich skins, and severall sorts of fish, both for their tribute to the King ofSweden, and their own proper uses. Neither were there any other commissioned by the King in those times to govern them, as will appear afterwards. He, that was their Governor washonored by them with the title of King, his autority was confirmed by the Crown ofSweden, he wore a red robe, as the token of his Roialty; now from this sort of garment, by which theBirkarliwere distinguished from others, it is evident they were the first rulers in those parts; and perhaps only one governed them, whilst they dwelt near the Bay ofBothnia, but when they enlarged their possessions farther into the Land, and were divided into severall Counties, each division had its particular Governor. And that it was so, is manifested from the Letters ofGustavusthe first, where he divides theBirkarliintoLuhlians,Pythians, andTornians, over which accordingly there were severall Governors. It may perhaps now be a dispute, who theseBirkarliwere, by whom theSwedessubduedLapland;Buræussaies they were the Inhabitants of the allotment, ofBirkala, butOlaus Magnusis of a different opinion, and calls themBergchara, that is, men of the mountains, fromBergamountain, andChararorKararmen. What grounds he hath for this, he neither declares, nor can I easily imagine. But I think them so small that they will find little credit any where; for from whence, or from what mountains should they be thus called? not from those ofNorway, when at that time no body inhabited there; neither are there any other mountains besides these, from whence they should take this name: moreover, theBirkarliwere subjects to theSwedes, and conversed commonly with theLaplanders. The public records also contradict this opinion, for in them there is no mention ofBergcharli, butBirkarleboa. It is yet clearer also from the Letters ofCnute Joanson, written in Latine, in the year 1318, where he saies in the Parliament held atTelge, betwixt theHelsingersandBirkarleboain his presence, there was issued out this Placart,&c.This serves to confuteOlaus. It is more evident that they came fromBirkala, an allotment inTavastia, and described in the Mapps. Next, as toGustavusthe first mentioning theBirkarli, in the foresaid Letters, as belonging to severall marches,viz.Luhla,Pitha, andTornait was upon this account: theBirkarlithat descended from those ofTavastia, were placed in these severall Towns to govern theLaplanders, and because they only had the priviledge of commerce with them, they were called Merchants. They were used in the Summer to buy those commodities of the Merchants that came toBothnia, which were necessary for theLaplanders, and in the Winter, when the Rivers and Lakes were frozen over, they carried them up into the Countrey. This way of trafic was used by all the Inhabitants ofBothnia, but perhaps only at first by one allotment, which growing populous, severall of the Inhabitants removed farther into the Countrey, and retained the same priviledge that was first granted byLadulaus,viz.that no one, but they, should claim any priviledges over theLaplanders, either as to the Government, tribute, commerce, or any thing of this nature, which priviledges they for a long time enjoied, as is confirmed by the Letters wrote byCnute Joanson, in the time of KingSmecke, in which it was provided that theBirkarlishould not be molested either in their passage to or from theLaplanders. This priviledge they maintained tillGustavusthe first, who made a Contract with them atUpsalon the 4thofApril1528, concerning the yearly tribute they were to pay to the Crown, for the great advantages they received from theLaplanders. This tribute was only in respect of the priviledges theBirkarlihad fromLadulaus’s time till then, these were so largely granted, that they setled them as hereditary upon their children, and none but those descended from theBirkarlicould enjoy them. ThisGustavusalso confirmed according to the former grants made to their ancestors, but with this alteration that they should pay half as much more, as they did formerly. This Government theBirkarliexercised over theLaplanderswhich they got by subtility, had their autority from the King ofSweden, preserved it in their own family, and delivered it down to their children for near 300 years, tillGustavusthe first, by reason of their insulting over the common People, deprived them of this state; for when their riches encreased they oppressed the poorer sort, and extorted so much from them that they left them very little, but that which was worth nothing. Upon this, complaint was made toGustavus, who thereupon committedHenricus Laurentiito prison, and confiscated most of his estate, taking then the tribute from theLaplandersinto his hands, and granted to all People free trading with them. ThisHenricus Laurentiiwas without doubt in that time the head of theBirkarli, and I believe the brother ofDavid Laurentii, who, together withJonas Nicolas, concluded the Treaty withGustavusin the name of theBirkarli, in the year 1528, for setling the tribute, and other affairs. From hence we may collect they lost their priviledges, not long after this Contract; now it was not only just to deprive them of those priviledges, which they abused in oppressing others, but prudent, as well from the jealousy of too great a power granted to private persons over so large and populous a part of the Kingdome, as out of consideration of its wealth, which was more necessary to the Kings, for driving out the common enemy, ane establishing the Kingdomes liberty, then to maintain the pride of theBirkarli, who besides their injustice, were inconsiderable both in number and strength.Gustavusthe first having thus deposed theBirkarli, sent Deputies to gather the tribute, and manage all things in the Kings name; the Deputies are called by theSwedes,Lappfougder, by theLaplanders,Konunga Olmai, that is the Kings men; of these there is mention made in the patent granted byGustavusthe first to MrMichael, the first Priest inLaplandin 1559, the words are to this purpose,We commend all the Inhabitants ofLapland,as well Deputies, as others, &c. These had at first the charge of all public affairs, as will appear in the following Chapter, as for collecting taxes, as executing justice among them. But afterwards, whenCharlesthe ninth divided the Countrey into several parts, and formed it into better order, more were added to the former, for examining causes, convicting of criminals, and other such like things, till at last the state of Government was little different from what it is now. Next under the King, they have a Provincial Judge called by theSwedes,Lagman, under him one of the Senators,Underlagman, next an Interpreter of the Laws,Laglæsaren, and divers others which enquire into causes, and do justice; then they have a Governour of the Province,Landzhœfdingh, a head over theLaplanders,Lappafougten, their Officers who perform all other duties. In this manner theLaplandersare now governed by theSwedes.