| Notater |
- Bornholm historian Dr. M.K. Zarthmann (published in 1931) relates that Otte Pedersen Uf can be found mentioned in records dating from 1493 and 1497 in which he is mentioned as the owner of the "frig?rd" Skovsholm in Ibsker parish. He also owned the "frig?rd" Simleg?rd, in Klemensker parish. The document of 1493 which mentions "Otte Wff" can be found in "Den Arnamagn?anske Samling" published in K?benhavn. It is also printed in "Suhms Samling".
The document of 1497 concerns the sale of Torbern ?dbernsen's wife's vornedeg?rd in Poulsker parish to Peder Lang of "Vall?se" (Vollsj?) in Sk?ne. The witnesses to the transaction were: chief justice Jacob Splid, Otte Uf and his son Oluf Ottesen.
Otte Pedersen Uf is known to have had at least four children: 1) Peder Uf, a Canon (Kannik) in Sk?ne, 1505; 2) Anders Uf, mentioned as "fr?nde" to Anders Galen in 1511 [and known to have been alive in 1533?]; 3) a daughter, given name unknown, married to Oluf Tuesen; 4) Oluf Ottesen, Chief Justice (Landsdommer) of Bornholm from 1508 to 1522. (The word "fr?nde" can mean either friend or relative.)
Otte's son Anders Uf was admitted to the University of Greifswald on November 26, 1499 under the name: "Andreas W de Bornholm". Previously he had received his education in Lund; on the same day another young commoner-son from Lund was admitted to the university: "Ticho Nicolai de civitate Lundensi", who received his "baccalaureus" in 1500.
In the "testamente" (will) dating from 1511, of an Anders Galen of Lund, Sk?ne (see: Thiset, Danish State Archives), can be found mention of the two brothers: "Peder W" and "Anders W". That Peder and Anders Uf are named as "fr?nde" and heirs in the 1511 "testamente" (will) of Anders Andersen Galen of Lund (who died in 1522), leads to the conclusion that their mother is the sister of Anders Galen, and thus the daughter of Anders (Tuesen) Galen of Herrestad in Sk?ne.
After the death of Anders Galen in 1522, his will of 1511 was contested by the children from his sister's first marriage: J?rgen Hals (born circa 1464) of ?stermarie and his sisters Anne and Else. Evidently n.n. Andersdatter Galen had eloped with Peder Hals, and her brother Anders refused to recognize the marriage as legitimate, and as a result disinherited her children from that marriage. The case was not settled until 1530, about 18 years later!
That Oluf Ottesen (Uf) and his sister (Margrethe?) are not mentioned in the will, nor in the court settlement of 1530, naturally brings the conclusion that they are not the children of n.n. Andersdatter Galen. Rather that they are the children of Otte Pedersen (Uf) from a second marriage. It is suggested that this second wife's patronym was "Olufsdatter"; however, I know of no evidence to support this. Possibly it is based on the fact that they had a son named Oluf?
It is also known that Gunhild (wife of Mads Kofoed), Mogens Uf (died 1565), and Hans Olufsen (Uf) (-1542-) of Simleg?rd in Klemensker, are descendants of Otte Pedersen (Uf). What is far from certain are which of Otte Pedersen's children are the parents of Gunhild and Mogens Uf. Hans Olufsen (Uf) is known to be the son of "Landsdommer" Oluf Ottesen (Uf).
The "Landbohistorisk Selskab" has the following entries for the surname Uf:
1) Uf (I), Anders Ottesen, (lever 1511), gift med Anne, datter af landsdommer Sevid Nielsen; (2 Oct. 1546 - 13 Aug. 1547) utrykt 1546-286b; utrykt 1549-190b; utrykt 1550-075b. (Note: this is incorrect, Anders Ottesen Uf (-1511-) was not married to Anne Sevidsdatter; she was married to the Anders Uf (-1469-died c.1487), who was probably the uncle of the younger Anders Uf. - Norman Madsen)
2) Uf (I)?, Gunhild/Gunild (Hansdatter?), adelig hustru, Otte Pedersens (Uf I)'s arving, mon gift med Mads Kofoed, frimand p? Bornholm?; 1547-338d.
3) Uf (I)?, Karine (Ottesdatter?), adelig hustru, Rasmus Henningsens efterleverske i Landskrona; (2 Oct. 1546 - 13 Aug. 1547) utrykt 1546-286b; utrykt 1549-190b; utrykt 1550-075b.
4) Uf (I), (Margrethe?) Ottesdatter gift med Oluf Tuesen (Uf II) af Krashave og mor til Mogens Uf (II); (2 Oct. 1546 - 13 Aug. 1547) utrykt 1546-286b; (utrykt 190b) 1549-000; (utrykt 75b) 1550-000; (utrykt 146h) 1550-000.
5) Uf (II), Mogens Olufsen til Odersberga, havde Bornholm len (d?d mellem 1563-66) gift med Berete Poulsdatter Kyrning; 1533-110; 1535-203; 1535-217; 1536-094; 1536-098; 1537-472; 1537-472a; v 1543-310; (3 Apr. 1546) ridemand 1544-072; ridemand 1546-105; (2 Oct. 1546 - 13 Aug. 1547) utrykt 1546-286b; 1547-338d; utrykt 1549-190b; utrykt 1550-075b; utrykt 1550-146h.
6) Uf (I), Oluf Ottesen, landsdommer p? Bornholm (lever 1522, er d?d 1546-47); 1516-010; brevudsteder 1516-013; (2 Oct. 1546 - 13 Aug. 1547) utrykt 1546-286b; utrykt 1549-190b; utrykt 1550-075b; utrykt 1550-146h.
7) Uf (II), Oluf Tuesen af Krashave (er d?d 1547) gift med (Margrethe?) Ottesdatter Uf (I); 1547-338d.
8) Uf (I), Peder Ottesen, mester, kannik i Lund domkirke (lever 4 April 1520); 1516-040; utrykt 1516-126; 1518-065; utrykt 1520-046; (2 Oct. 1546 - 13 Aug. 1547) utrykt 1546-286b; utrykt 1549-190b; utrykt 1550-075b.
Sigvard Mahler Dam states (in "Landet Borringholm - Bornholmsk-skanske sl?gtskr?dse", part 2, published in SAXO, 1986) that Mogens Uf is the son of Oluf Tuesen and Otte Pedersen Uf's daughter from his second marriage. Also, that Gunhild is the daughter of Hans Olufsen (Uf) of Simleg?rd in Klemensker.
He further states (in "De bornholmske v?bnersl?gter Uf og Splid - noget nyt om deres v?bener", Heraldisk Tidsskrift, 1982) that "Otte W" carried a deviant emblem - and if we did not know any older emblems we might believe that the family had changed from their emblem to Shield and Helmet. Because he used a triangle with cross-bars over the two lower corners - looking like the "sparre" (truss) on a house. Possibly this is just a mistake, or a variation, since some people at that time called a "sparre" a "husgavl" (house-gable) or a "gavl-sparre" (gable-truss).
The first member of the noble Uf-family to appear in Bornholm's historical records was Hans Uf, who was appointed commander of Hammershus fortress by his mother's brother Niels Joensen, who was Archbishop of Lund from 1361-1379. During a long winter stay at the fortress the Archbishop died on February 5, 1379. Two days previously he had written his testament, wherein he left to Hans Uf his large gilded silver-horn and two silver cups, also 40 Mark in silver to cover expenses for flour, malt, and other items used during his stay. As well he received the rights to six dwellings in Listed fishing-village, which he had had built for the Archbishop, and which brought in 6 Mark silver in yearly rent. The Archbishop also thought of Hans Uf's daughter Cecilie, leaving her a gold ring. She was later married three times, all of her husbands were noblemen from Sk?ne; she outlived them all. During Hans Uf's long term of office he acquired land in the region north-west of Svaneke.
In the middle-ages the peasants had been declared "vornedskabe" (bound), this meant that the descendants of tenured peasants could be forced to stay on the "vornedegaard" they were working, and it gave the owner of the farms the right to recall a dead peasant's heir to take over working the land. By the 1500s those tenured peasants who lived on manor-owned farms worked off a portion of their taxes by service in the manor's fields.
The following has been extracted from a translation of the article "Landet Borringholm: Bornholmsk-sk?nske sl?gtskredse", by Sigvard Mahler Dam, published in SAXO, 1986:
The Unfriendly Ufs:
Sometime between 1363, when Jakob Splittaf was commander, and 1379, Archbishop Niels needed to appoint a new commander at Hammershus. Like most people, the archbishop was fond of his own kin, and thus he installed his sister's son: Johannes Uf (47). It is possible Johannes had been serving as an officer under Commander Jakob Splittaf - maybe he had come to Bornholm as a young man with King Valdermar's men in 1362. Archbishop Niels had grown up in Jylland like his sister, who later married one of the leading estate-owners. Johannes' stated patronym of 1407 tells us that his father was a Lawe Uf. The Ufs are an old soldier-family, and as earlier mentioned his grandfather, "Johannes dictus Wff", was among the men in 1299 who granted Archbishop Jens Grand free access to K?benhavn.
Johannes Uf junior must have been away travelling, for in an old tourney-book from the Duchy of Geldern (presently Holland) we find, amongst all the Knights of Europe, a couple of pages with coat of arms from the Nordic countries. First a magnificent rendering of King Valdemar's coat of arms: 3 blue lions (leoparde) on a golden background decorated with red sea-leaves; as well the royal flag with its white cross on red background. Next pages show the coat of arms of King Valdemar's noblemen, who probably accompanied him on his trip to meet with the record-taker and painter of coat of arms. Those men included: Henning Putbus, the Count of R?gen and confidant of the king; Mikkel Rud from Skjolden?sholm estate; Otte Nielsen of the Rosenkrantz-family; and last, far down from the above - so as to emphasize the class difference - can be found the coat of arms of "Joenz U", a red chevron on a white background. One and the same man as the above mentioned Commander Johannes Lawesen Uf, for the family went under the variants of U, W, Uf, Uff, and Ugh. It seems that this coat of arms was painted no later than 1375, and it fits with our guess that Johannes Uf during this period had been travelling abroad. A couple of years later he appears documented as the commander of Hammershus fortress on Bornholm.
So now the Uf-family enters through the gates of Hammershus fortress, and became an active participants in the history of the island for the next two centuries. Archbishop Niels made his "testamente" (will) while at Hammershus on February 3, 1379 (49), and died shortly afterwards. From it we learn that Johannes had been commander for sometime, and that he is married to Marine (possibly a daughter of Peder Munk?), and that they have a small daughter, Cecilie. Since Johannes Uf's son Peter is not mentioned, it must be that he has not been born yet. There are no other children mentioned. Also mentioned is that Johannes Uf had recently had built some buildings in "Lysta" (the present day fishing village of Listed) as per the wishes of the archbishop, either as a site to gather the "herring-tenth" (tax) from the fishermen, or for the salting of the fish.
In spite of several new archbishops Johannes kept his posting at Hammershus, and must have lived to an old age. The last time he exercises his office is on January 7, 1407 (50), and we now find that he has an assistant commander, Paul Degn. They are witnesses on the oldest Bornholm deed-document to have survived time's gnawing teeth. The deed concerns the widow of large landowner Peter Hals, one Marine Clawesdatter (Wiltfang?), together with her son "?dbj?rn Petersen kaldet Hals", transferring to her daughter Katharina a farm and mill in ?stermarie parish as her wedding dowry to Orm Herlichsen. The deceased Peter Hals must have left a huge inheritance, since the daughter's share consisted of both a farm and a mill. In this document Commander Uf is named as "Johannes Lawesson", under his name is affixed his seal: the coat of arms with a wide chevron as shown in the Geldern tourney-book, and again in 1379, had now, in 1407, been exchanged for a modern shield with a narrow chevron (51).
The Uf-Family Estates:
A characteristic of the family is that its members were never named in association with their family-farm, as was common with most other Bornholmer families. Furthermore, there are no farms by the name of "Uf-g?rd" to be used in pinpointing the family's residence. Such as is the case with the Raabuks at Rabecheg?rd and the Splitz-family with their Splitzg?rds (53).
It is not until the 1500s that we encounter their family-farm Simleg?rd - which farm had never been mentioned previously. It is conveniently situated near Hammershus and is still to this day one of the largest farms on the island. And is close by Klemensker Church, where the family had their own funeral-chamber in the crypt. The abundance of rune-stones in the vicinity bear witness to the fact that in very early times a nobleman's estate had been situated there. Perhaps it is one of the twelve Bornholmer king's-farms told of in the Knytlinge Saga (52). Maybe it was even built by Commander Johannes Uf?
Other traces lead the family to "Rodne Herret" (R?nne county). A deed-document (54) dated March 29, 1416 shows that "Splyt v?bner paa Bornholm" (arms carrier Mr. Splid, a descendant of Commander Jacob Splid) sold a piece of land worth 5 silver Mark in ?by, Nyker parish, to the recently knighted nobleman Peter Bosen, who later became the chief justice of Bornholm. Since it was a piece of land being sold it seems that Peter Bosen then built his family-farm there, maybe the present ?byg?rd? Near ?by is situated the large, and long established, farm of Vellingsg?rd, where "Splyt" could have lived and sold off 5 Mark worth of land. An interesting witness to this sale of land was the commander's son, Peter Uf, now the head of the family. Possibly he and his known sister, Cecilie, had grown up in Nyker parish, which is located near the thriving town of commerce: R?nne. Maybe they spent their childhood at the large freeman's estate of Kyndeg?rd in Nyker.
An ancient silver chalice still rests in Nyker Round-church - on its base is a coat of arms with an inscription: "Fru Cecilia sk?nkede denne kalk til Alle Halgens Menighed" (Lady Cecilia donated this chalice to All Saints Congregation). The National Museum has dated this chalice to the second half of the 1400s (55), but looking at the shield-design a person may alter-chalice dates back towards the time-period 1390-1420, in that period the shield-design was very round, and later there were alterations.
Commander Johannes Uf was the father of the above mentioned Cecilie, who was mentioned in the archbisphop's will of February 3, 1379: "Item filie Johannis Uf virgini Cecilie. . .". Later in an important inheritance proceeding concerning Harebjerg (Hardeberga) manor in Torne county, Sk?ne, we find that Cecilie was married three times. First married to "Tue Pethers?n", known from 1380, and dead by November 16, 1391. On August 26, 1387 both Johannes Uf and Tue Pedersen of Harebjerg are witnesses in an inheritance proceeding, father-in-law and son-in-law! Cecilie and Tue had only one child: a son named "Pether Tues?n". Tue left Harebjerg manor to Cecilie to own forever, not to his son - which was allowed in Sk?ne as long as the gift did not exceed one half of the estate.
Next Cecilie married the well-known Abraham Bordersen's stepson Bent Pik of Roser?d (Rossared) mentioned in documents for 1392 to 1407. He had a son from a previous marriage, and had two daughters with Cecilie, named Bodil and Christine. Bent died too, probably soon after 1407. She found her third husband far from Sk?ne: on island of Fyn! This was to Hr. Harvig Limbek of Nebbe, who had previously been married to Grete Ottesdatter Skinkel of Fyn From that marriage a son Henneke Limbek was born, Cecilie survived her third husband as well, but by then she had enough children to look after her so she never re-married.
On February 21, 1423 she sold some of her inheritance from her second husband, in this document she is referred to as "Frw Cecilia jens ufs dotther i harabj?ghe h. hartwik limbeks efthe l?uerne" (Lady Cecilie, Jens Uf's daughter in Hardeberga, Hr. Hartwig Limbek's widow). Her seal shows exactly the same coat of arms as is on the chalice in Nyker Church. It is very peculiar that Cecilie, who married two Sk?ne and one Fyn nobleman, and for most of her life lived at Hardeberga manor near Lund in Sk?ne, would donate such a silver chalice to a small church on Bornholm. Why not to Lund Cathedral, where all the memebers of the congregation could be reminded of her generosity every time they took communion at the Altar? The answer must be that Nyker county is where she grew up. The donation took place after she was married, any time after 1387, but what were the circumstances? Was it a present given by her at her first wedding in Nyker Church? However, it was not generally the custom for brides to donate gifts on their wedding day. Could it be a gift to commemorate the soul of her first husband, who loved her so dearly that he gave her the family manor to own for life? Though wouldn't she donate the chalice to his parish church in Lund, where no doubt he was buried? The most likely scenario seems to be that she donated the chalice to commemorate her father after his death. A father by whose name she is always remembered, never mind all the noblemen she later married. Jens Uf was an important man, he was remembered for many years. Even a hundred years after her birth, in 1479 when the Hardeberga inheritance was before the king's court in K?benhavn, she was remembered as "Cecilie Jens Hwss Datter i Harebergh gaard".
The Uf Male-Line:
A great span of time follows the March 23, 1416 document in which time Peder Uf, then between 30-35 years old, acted as a witness at a land-transaction in Nyker. It is not until 1493 that his son "Otte Pedersen Wff" appears in the Bornholmer records, as an older man with adult sons from two marriages. Where have they been during that time? The records are silent, and a person is prone to provide a reason for the gap in the documentation, for there should not be so few entries for a man with such an occupation. He should be found mentioned in the island's written documents rather more frequently, this was quite prevalent with other Bornholmer families (57).
Above it was suggested that Peter Uf might have been married to a woman from Fyn, and an odd occurance of chance supports this hypothesis. In the first half of the 1400s a Tue Pedersen lost his seal in N?rrek?s Harbour, north of R?nne; which was recovered in a later century. He is not the Tue Pethers?n of the Rani family, which we know had Harebjerg manor, for his coat-of-arsm displays the Bild/Strangesen's transversed shield - therefore of the same family as the Archbishop Niels Joensen, Johannes Ufs mother's brother. His father may be Peder Strangesen. The latter's brother lived only on Fyn: Otte Strangesen recorded in 1377 and 1397! Possibly Tue Pedersen came to Bornholm looking to found kinship, and stood at the gunwale of the ship and fumbled with his seal, so it fell into the sea? Was Peter Uf married to Otte Strangesen's daughter, and so came the name Otte in this way into the Uf-family? A name which otherwise was entirely unknown on Bornholm in that social circle. Did the family move to Fyn after this marriage, allowing their adscript peasants to run their Bornholmer farms? Was Cecilie Uf visiting her brother Peter Uf after her second husband's death, and while there she met Hr. Hartvig Limbek, her third husband? Is this the reason for the relative lack on Bornholm of written documents mentioning Peder Uf?
Otte Uf's his first marriage was with a widow of Sk?ne origin, namely Anders Galen's daughter from Sk?ne, and perhaps it is this connection that eventually brought him back to Bornholm. Their two sons inherited from their mother's brother, Anders Galen the younger, who died childless in Lund in 1522 - he had written a will in 1511 (58), where his heirs are mentioned: "Mister Peder W, Cannik in Lund, my dear Relative. . . . Item my dear Relative Anders W."
Cheated Heirs:
Otte Uf's wife had previously been married to a Bornholmer, and that is how she came to live on Bornholm. It appears that she had run away with the "V?bner" (arms carrier) Peder Hals against the wishes of her family, for Anders Galen in Lund refused to acknowledge her children from her first marriage! She had at least three children (1 son and 2 daughters) when she married Otte Uf. Anders Galen's will caused great controversy and the probate proceedings to 21 years to be finalized! Otte's first wife died around 1480 and he married for the second time to an unnamed daughter of Oluf (any evidence for this? - Norman Madsen), and they had a son, Oluf Ottesen, and a daughter, who became the founder of the second Bornholm Uf-family line. The youngest son, Oluf Ottesen appears as a witness in a document from 1497 and borrows his father's seal (there are two identical seals on the document), so he must have been very young. Oluf and his sister were not named in Anders Galen's will of 1511, so therefore their mother is not his sister.
The freeman J?rgen Hals of ?stermarie and his two sisters felt cheated when they were read Anders Galen's will, in which they figured only thus:
(In the original old Danish)
"Item J?rgen Hals X Mark, 1 wpret Segn, 1 Gryde, Anne J?rgen Halses S?ster ligeledes, meth saadan Skell, ath the skwlle ey ydherre beg?re ath ?rffwe mig."
(Which modernized reads in English approximately as follows)
"Item: J?rgen Hals, ?stermarie, 1 complete Bed, 1 Cooking-pot, J?rgen Hals' sister Anne receives the same, with the understand that they will inherit nothing more."
From the choice of above words we can see there was no love lost between Anders Galen and the Hals-family. He even forgot to include the other sister! Did he not wish to acknowledge the relationship? Is it that at the time they were not the best of friends, or was there a more sinister reason? Why acknowledge the two Uf children, and not the three older Hals? A clue can be found in the following declaration given by the Commander of Hammershus in 1522 (59):
(In the original old Danish)
"Jag Niels Jiebsen (Bryske). . . g?r vitterligt for alle med dette mit obne Breff, at denne Breffwisere J?rgen Hals er Anders Gallens som d?de udi Lund. . . rette ecte S?sters?n med ogsaa twenne S?stre som f?rnavnte J?rgen Hals hafwer paa Borindholm, og hafwer jag spurgt I sandignen at f?rn?vnte Anders Gallen igen n?rmere rette arvinger hafwer end disse forn?vnte. . ."
(Which modernized reads in English approximately as follows)
"I, Niels Ibsen (Bryske). . . . declare to all by means of this open Letter that the Plaintiff J?rgen Hals is Anders Galen's - who died in Lund. . . . rightful Sister's son, as are his two Sisters whom the aforementioned J?rgen Hals has in Bornholm, and I have inquired about the truth that the aforementioned Anders Galen has no closer heirs than the aforementioned. . . ."
This was not considered to be sufficient proof, perhaps the commander was not considered to be a knowledgeable enough witness, since he had not been on Bornholm very long and could not have known of the details first hand, he must have had to ask around. Therefore the case was put before the "Landsting" (provincial congress) in ?kirkeby on May 22, 1522. The details were discussed, witnesses were heard, and finally a document was drawn up and sealed by the most important officials on Bornholm: 1) the Commander of Hammershus, Niels Ibsen; 2) J?rgen Hals' step-brother Chief Justice Oluf Ottesen (Uf); 3) J?rgen Gagge, who had been made a freeman 20 years previously and was an illegitimate born member of the Gagge-family of Sk?ne; 4) Hans Borgeby of Bierreg?rd; 5) Anders Kos in Ibsker parish (of K?seg?rd); 6) and the invaders from L?beck, Peder Kofoed, 7) and Morten Lassen, both mayors in R?nne; 8) Lauritz Jul from an old an distinguished family and a bailiff in ?stermarie parish; 9) Hans Pedersen from the same parish, who later married J?rgen Hals daughter; 10) and finally the document was signed by the bailiff for ?ker parish, Peder Munck. The document reads as follows (60):
(In the original old Danish)
". . . wor skicket for os och for menige Almue. . . beskenden mand J?rgen Hals, hvilken gik frem. . . och bespurgte sig om det var dem vitterligt, om han og hans s?skende er ?gte og rette f?dte baade af fader och moder, og om det var dem vitterligt at de h?rte Anders Gallen til der d?de i Lund, Gud naade hans sj?l, eller om de burde staai arv efter samme Anders Gallen for ?gtheds skyld, og arve ham deres d?de fr?nde og sl?gtning som loven udviser som er ?gte og rette baade af fader og moder. Der til svarede alle m?nd som deraf vidste og bad dem Gud til hj?lp, at de ikke andet vidste med forn?vnte J?rgen Hals og hans syskende end at de er ?gte og ?gtef?dte og b?r saavel arve deres del efter forn?vnte Anders Gallen med lige og rette saa meget som dem rettelig kan tilfalde efter loven."
(Which modernized reads in English approximately as follows)
". . . the modest man J?ren Hals presented himself before us and asked if we would attest that he and his siblings are legitimate born both of father and mother, and further attest that they were relatives of Anders Galen who died in Lund, God bless his soul, and that they are the same Anders Galen's legitimate heirs. To his all the men with God's help answered that they were convinced the forenamed J?rgen Hals and his siblings are legitimate and therefore entitled to inherit their portion from the aforementoned Anders Galen in accordance with the just process of law."
This document finally saw the heirs receive more than the 10 Mark and a fully made-up bed! They received estate-property in Hyltebierg (Hylteberga, Skurup parish, Vemmenh?g district) in Sk?ne, to be divided into three parts. A deed dated July 2, 1523 documents (61) that J?rgen Hals ,and his nephew Axel Poulsen, and Axel's brother-in-law Oluf Due of ?stermarie, sold their inheritance to Mourids Jeps?n (Sparre) of Skurup - namely four farmsteads, with the request that he yearly supply the clergyman in Skurup with 1 Skilling worth of "grot" (produce?) for the souls of their parents. The sister Else did not sell her portion of the property, maybe she moved their, as after 1530 there is no mention of her.
The inheritance case was not quite over with! After the above mentioned sale of property, maybe from around 1530 there is another document. The clergymen Hr. Hans for ?stermarie and Hr. Hans for Vestermarie attest that J?rgen Hals, Poul Olsen's wife Anne, and ?dbern's wife Else are the legitimate heirs of Anders Galen, and that he ws the true brother of their mother. The clergymen along with several other good Danes swear on their Soul's Holiness that the above heirs had received no more property than that in Hyltebierg after Anders Galen. Next we learn that Hr. Skelm (Gyldenstjerne) was the dean of the clergy on Bornholm when J?rgen Hals and his two sisters were born and christened; he died in Lund and had been born in Blekinge. He had resided at Spidleg?rd in ?ker parish when he was the Dean for Bornholm.
We have no further information on J?rgen Hals affairs, so he had probably passed away and his heirs might have needed the above document attesting to their legitimacy. Maybe the document relates to J?rgen Hals widow, Anna, who from 1533 through 1537 was involved in a legal dispute with the heirs of her second husband. The clergymen from ?stermarie - J?rgen Hals home parish - and from Vestermarie, where Anna had her property, were involved as witnesses in the court case.
Skirmishes Between Otte Persen's Heirs:
Throughout history inheritance cases have occupied many families and given cause for much disappointment and even split some families into feuding amongst themselves endlessly, as well as providing interesting conversational fodder for those not directly involved. Not only did Otte Uf's stepchildren fight, but his own descendants kept on fighting over their inheritance for 40 years after his death! It might have something to do with a peculiar aspect of the Uf-family: with his children the family divided into three parts. The first branch did not make an important mark, as it died away quickly, namely the earlier mentioned older sons Anders Uf, married to Anna, daughter of Chief Justice Sevid Nielsen (incorrect, Anna was married to another Anders Uf, possibly brother of Otte Pedersen Uf? - Norman Madsen), and the Canon Peder Uf in Lund. Traditionally a Jesper/Esbern Uf appears in the family tree as a son of Anders Uf. However this is doubtful since he was killed in 1565 in the battle of Svarte?, while in Hak Holgers?n's company, during the Nordic Seven Years War. He was most likely a young nobleman, and could not possibly have been a son of Anders Uf who must have already been 45 years old in 1511 when he inherited from his mother's brother (63). (Meaning that Jesper/Esbern Uf was born circa 1535-45, and Anders Uf would have been at least 70 years old in 1540 - Norman Madsen.)
The second branch, the main branch, was continued through the youngest son, Chief Justice Oluf Ottensen, who rejected the family name Uf, and his descendants were known only by their patronym. We will refer to them under the name "Sparre-Uf" after their coat of arms.
The third branch was also rather short-lived, but made an indelible mark due to the fiery temperament of its members. This branch we will call "Agern-Uf" after their coat of arms, and it originates from the daughter of Otte Pedersen Uf who married the Bornholmer freeman Oluf Tuesen. Her son adopted the Uf-family name.
This database researched and compiled by Norman Lee Madsen, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 21 July 2015.
|
1435 - 1498 (~ 63 år)
[1]