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King Gustavus Vasa (1523-60) in many ways laid the foundation of the modern Swedish state. He launched a rebellion against the Danes who were widely seen as abusing and over taxing by many Swedes. On the church green in Mora, Gustav Vasa urged the men of the town take up arms and free Sweden from Danish rule (1520). The resulting conflict is known variously as the Swedish War of Liberation, The Liberation War, Gustav Vasa's Rebellion, or the Swedish War of Secession. It was central event Swedish history. Gustav Vasa, a nobleman not in the royal line, led a rebellion against Danish King Christian II who also held the Swedish crown. The war resulted in the deposition of King Christian II from the throne of Sweden, effectively ending the Kalmar Union that had united Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. The conflict played a central role in shaping Sweden's national identity. Vasa became Gustavus I of an independent Swedish Kingdom. Gustavus became an hereditary monarch and in addition to achieving independence, reshaped the political ad social structure of Sweden. He significantly limited the power of the nobility. He nationalized the Church and seized its extensive estates. At the time agriculture was the backbone of the economy and monasteries and other church estate an important part of it. This occured just as Luther had inadvertently launched the Protestant Reformation in Germany (1517). This was a few years before King Henry VIII in England dissolved the monasteries for different reasons (1536-41). Although for both it meant access to vast wealth. Gustavus enthusiastically joined he Protestant Reformation which in effect legitimized his action against the Roman Church. Breaking with the Church could have been dangerous on his own, but the spread of Protestantism in Northern Europe made this a safe and profitable step, helping to enhance Gustavus' authority. Gustavus concentrated power in the hands of the hands of a hereditary monarchy. And Sweden would become the powerhouse of northern Europe.
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