Battle of Sparrsätra The Battle of Sparrsätra , fought between the forces of King Eric XI of Sweden and rebels led by Holmger Knutsson , took place in 1247 near Enköping in Sweden . It occurred during a poorly documented period in Swedish history ; as a result , many details are uncertain and conjectural . Although it was not the end of the Folkung rebellion , many scholars consider it to have marked the end of the old order , leading to the Uppland Swedes ' loss of their semi - aristocratic status , and to the beginning of taxation by the King . Background . Since pre - historic times the Swedes of Uppland had elected the king of Sweden , and their responsibility towards him lay not in paying taxes , but in providing warriors and ships for the leidang organization . Many scholars consider the reasons for the battle to have been the abolition of the leidang organization and its replacement with monetary taxes . The people of Uppland also appear to have refused to pay tithes to the church . The Geats of Västergötland had begun to pay tithes in the late 12th century , a decision taken independently of the Swedes . It is not known if the Geats had ever had any leidang organization , but they had accepted paying taxes , a system which provided a more stable basis of power for the King . The main source for what was at stake during the battle is the " Annals of Sigtuna " , which relates that at Sparrsätra , in 1247 , the rural community of Uppland lost its freedom and was charged with paying taxes , including taxes on grain production and the right of laying up a ship : The archaeologist Mats G . Larsson has commented that it is hardly surprising that such fundamental changes in the structure of society would meet fierce resistance . Taking part in the royal war expeditions was considered to be a natural and glorious tradition from pagan times ; paying taxes to the King of Sweden , on the other hand , was likely seen as something done by defeated tributary nations - and beyond the pale for the people of Uppland . There may have been additional reasons why the battle took place in 1247 . The position of jarl in Sweden had passed from old Ulf Fase to his younger and more dynamic cousin Birger Jarl . Moreover , Holmger Knutsson had come of age , and , being a son of former king Canute II of Sweden , had his own aspirations to the throne . When Ulf Fase died , Birger Jarl may have felt it was time to deal with Holmger and his allies in Uppland . Location . The battle took place at Sparrsätra , which is located in Uppland , north of Enköping . According to tradition it was fought on waterlogged meadows west of the church of Sparrsätra , but it has been suggested that the rebels had their encampment several kilometres eastwards in Rönne , where there are remains of potentially strategic fortifications . Battle . One view holds that this was the first battle where heavy cavalry was used in central Sweden , although such cavalry had appeared a century earlier at the Battle of Fotevik in Scania . The professional heavy cavalry fielded by King Eric defeated Holmger ' s army , which consisted of a public levy . According to the 14th century Law of Södermanland a levied farmer was supposed to be equipped with sword , javelin , lance and helmet ; however , it is known that these conscript armies consisted largely of people who had little more than an axe or a sword to fight with . In Snorri Sturluson ' s kings ' sagas there are descriptions of battles where the combatants fought with stones . Aftermath . After the battle , Holmger fled north to Gästrikland , but he was soon arrested by the king and the jarl , who had him beheaded . The " Eric Chronicles " tell that the king took part in the funeral and walked him to the grave , which suggests that the old Norse code of honouring dead enemies was still alive , although such traditions would later change . Among Upplanders who had lost their leader , Holmger rose to the status of unofficial saint , and only a few years after his execution people would tell of miracles in his name as far south as Denmark . When the Papal legate William of Modena arrived in the same year , he stayed in the less turbulent district of Östergötland , where he met Birger Jarl . William reported home that he had offered to mediate in the conflict , and in March 1248 , he reported that a peace agreement had been reached . This was at the time when the meeting at Skänninge took place , in which Sweden was formally integrated into the Catholic community . The Swedes of Uppland , who since time immemorial had been divided into folkland s according to how many warriors they could provide , had lost their warrior status , and they had become taxpayers like the king ' s other subjects . The new taxes described in the Annals of Sigtuna would also appear in the later law of Uppland , and the king used the taxes to buy the services of heavy cavalry that he could use against his own people . It would be several decades before appeared in Sweden , and by then , exemption would be a privilege only afforded to the select few who could provide a knight in full armour . The outcome of the battle was notorious enough to be mentioned in both Icelandic and Danish chronicles , and elaborate legends would be told in Sweden until the 17th century . The Uppland Swedes had been transformed from a people that extorted tribute from other peoples , to one that paid taxes themselves .