Sko Abbey

Sko Abbey (Swedish: Sko kloster), was a Cistercian nunnery in Sweden, in operation from 1230 until at least 1588. It was located in the Skokloster parish in Uppland. It was the predecessor of the famous Skokloster Castle.

Sko Abbey was founded because an already existing convent, the Byarum Abbey, who was founded in about 1170, was moved from Vaggeryd Municipality to Sko in the 1230s, possibly in 1236.

Sko Abbey seem to have functioned as a school for daughters of the nobility, and the nuns often came from noble families.

In 1520, the sister of Gustav I of Sweden, Margareta Eriksdotter Vasa, was given refuge there during the Stockholm Bloodbath. During the Swedish Reformation in 1527, the Abbey was banned from accepting novices and its assets was confiscated by the crown. The members were free to leave or to remain supported by an allowance from the estates formerly belonging to the Abbey. In 1566, these rights were confirmed, at which point the nuns were apparently still managing their school for daughters of the nobility.

In 1577, only two nuns remained, and the last allowance to a nun of the Sko Abbey is recorded from 1588.

The building of the abbey itself was torn down in 1574, but the church of Sko Abbey is still used as the church of Skokloster abbey.

The property was given by the monarch to the Wrangel family in 1611, who had the famous the famous Skokloster Castle built at its place.

References

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