Jöran Persson

Who was Jöran Persson?

Jöran Persson, alternatively Göran Persson, was King Eric XIV of Sweden's favorite, most trusted, counsellor and head of the King's network of spies. He was widely seen as a Machiavellian figure, and of holding too much influence over Eric. On both occasions that the King was removed from power Persson was quickly arrested by the nobility; the second time he was executed shortly after his arrest.

Persson was born in Sala, the son of a local priest, in about 1530. During the early 1550s he studied at the University of Wittenberg, where he proved to be a very gifted student and, according to legend, was highly regarded by the eminent theologian Philipp Melanchthon, who, on his journey back to Sweden in 1555, sent with him a recommendation letter to King Gustav I. Upon his return to Sweden he was given an annual pension and employment in the King's service, a year later he became personal secretary to the King and was given a castle in Vyborg. In 1558 he received another important commission from the king, namely being put in charge of the King's inspectors in Västergötland in order to establish a register of the estates, which, to the detriment of the Crown, remained loyal to Rome. To be entrusted with such an important matter showed that Persson, even at this early stage in his career, had made himself known in prominent circles as a man capable of getting difficult tasks done. Following the completion of his mission in Västergötland, Gustav allowed Persson to become personal secretary to his eldest son, Eric.