| Notater |
- The "Landbohistorisk Selskab" has the following entries for the surname Uf:
(Margrethe?) Ottesdatter Uf (I), gift med Oluf Tuesen (Uf II) af Krashave, og mor til Mogens Uf (II); (October 2, 1546-August 13, 1547) utrykt 1546-286b; (utrykt 190b) 1549-000; (utrykt 75b) 1550-000; (utrykt 146h) 1550-000.
Oluf Tuesen Uf (II), af Krashave, (er d?d 1547), gift med (Margrethe?) Ottesdatter Uf (I); 1547-338d.
According to Sigvard Mahler Dam, in "De bornholmske v?bnersl?gter Uf og Splid - noget nyt om deres v?bener" (pub. in Heraldisk Tidsskrift, 1982), a sister of Chief Justice Oluf Ottesen (Uf) (19) married freeman Oluf Tuesen of Store Krashaveg?rd in Klemensker; she possibly inherited "Rogsholmsgaarden" (aka Store Frig?rd), 4 Vdg. ?stermarie. As far as we know they only had one son; maybe because Oluf Tuesen was killed by Christiern von Haffn, the archbishop's commander at Hammershus. Oluf Tuesen's farms and land were taken by the greedy archbishop Birger to be added to Hammershus fortress' lands while Oluf's son was still underage (20). He took his mother's family-name - "Mogens W" - and he probably grew up on the Sparre-Uf farm.
In 1525 a very unfortunate happening for the Bornholmers took place: their island was mortgaged away to L?beck for 50 years. The Danish king "put wind in the sails' of several courageous freemen and they served as trouble-makers against the L?beck'ers; among them was Mogens W, who fought to retrieve his father's farms and land, and in 1533 he managed to retrieve part of his property. Two years later he joined the Bornholm-uprising against L?beck, but the peasants and the few freemen were no match against the seasoned soldiers of L?beck's army. The freemen had to flee to Sk?ne. While Mogens W stayed there, he received the nomination to become chief justice for Bornholm from the Danish king, and he was issued a document stating his right to his farms and land on Bornholm without any conditions (21). But let us leave history behind and return to the heraldic. We know Mogens W's seal from 1533 - the shield is the wrong way round compared to Storck's drawing in "Danske Adelsv?bener".
Mogens Uf's arms displays three acorns (in Danish: agern); his helmet-emblem has two horizontally divided vesselhorns, one red/blue, the other blue/red; the top of the helmet sprouts a yellow twig with 3 acorns. ("Vesselhorns" look like two curved horns sprouting from the top a helmet.) This is identical to coat of arms of his father Oluf Tuesen.
(19) Oluf Ottensen (Uf) whose seal is the very first to carry a helmet-design. He has been erroneously mentioned in "Danske Adelsv?bener" to be the last man in his family, but Hans Olufsen (Uf), mentioned in note 11, was the last.
(20) The letter regarding this is printed in H?bertz, nr. 83. Original on paper of 1533 in State Archives with Mogens W's seal.
(21) To be found in H?bertz, nr. 87. Contrary to common belief this family is not from Sk?ne, but is an old Bornholmer noble-family. That Mogens W is connected to Oddersberg in Sk?ne, is due to his marriage to Berete (Kyrning/Myre).
* * * * *
The following has been extracted from a translation of the article "Landet Borringholm: Bornholmsk-sk?nske sl?gtskredse", part 2, by Sigvard Mahler Dam, published in SAXO, 1986:
The Murder of Freeman Oluf Tuesen:
The Agern-Ufs make their dramatic entrance: the scene is Simleg?rd in Klemensker parish, where once in the 1490s the sound of horse-hooves echoed through the farmyard. Nothing unusual there, except that the young rider Oluf, Tue's son from nearby Krashaveg?rd, came courting Otte Uf's daughter Margrethe(?), and they managed to get married after a while. Even though old Otte would have liked to see this daughter married to one of the large landholders. Soon they had a baby boy, named Mogens after Otte's deceased brother. (Note: Sigvard Mahler Dam now speculates her name might have been Kirsten, named after Otte Pedersen's first wife. - Norman Lee Madsen, October 18, 2011.)
In 1497 the controversial Birger Gunners?n was appointed the archbishop for Lund Cathedral. He used intrigue to take Hammershus away from the former archbishop's brother, Hans Brostrup, and instead installed Christiern van Haffn as commander of Hammershus fortress. Now Hr. Birger, through Christiern van Haffn, ruled with an iron fist, confiscating property, and taking away privileges away from the lower nobility. Otte Uf was deceased by now and his heirs divided up his large estate, and following Bornholm's age-old inheritance law, "g?rd-dr?nten", dictating that the youngest son inherit the family's main farm, in this case Oluf Ottesen. Anders, Peder and Oluf Tuesen (on behalf of his wife) divided up the remainder peacefully.
One day, soon after, the commander of Hammershus and his men arrived at Krashaveg?rd, with the intent of imposing heavy taxes on Oluf Tuesen. What reasons he had for this is not known for sure, but likely it was based on an old law regarding what happens when a beholden man marries a freewoman: all their property, unfree and free, is taxable. Or it could have been based on a law proclaimed by the archbishop's man Jens Brostrup, and again later in 1501 by Birger Gunners?n (65):
"It has come to our attention that many of you have accumulated property, some have two, others three, but still only pay tax on one farmstead, and this causes great harm to our fortress, therefore we have ordered our official to go out and find out those who refuse to pay their taxes, and then confiscate the property. . ."
So when Command Christiern van Haffn demanded the tax from Oluf Tuesen, he was met with stubborn refusal. Was Oluf not a freeman having served his country, risking his very life? A skirmish ensued and swords were drawn, the archbishop's men overpowered Oluf and he was stabbed to death (66). All of his properties were confiscated, and there sat his widow with their small son. She went through hard times, but her brothers helped her prove to Commander van Haffn which of the farms were her own inheritance, and these were eventually given back to her. Her brothers helped with the management, but then a pivotal event took place, which later caused a devastating family feud over inheritance. Apparently Oluf Ottesen purchased some property from the widow, and in the later court case some letters and documents supposedly were proof thereof, but her son, Mogens Uf, maintained that the family had unlawfully confiscated said property.
The Resistance Fighter Mogens Uf:
In 1525 the Danish King had been forced to give Bornholm as a lien to L?beck for 50 years as compensation for L?beck's expenses entailed during the capture of Gotland. It did not take long before the Bornholmers retaliated against the harsh german oppression. It was the fate of Mogens Uf that he reach manhood exactly at the time of this crisis, and he became the first to intervene for the Danish Crown against L?beck. In 1533 he recovered R?gelundsg?rd plus an adjoining farm in Ibsker, probably by intervention from the King, these farms having belonged to his father "som biscop Byrgh? tha hand sisth ther paa landhet war effter nogle skatte b?nders witne, tha mijn fadher war d?dh, och ieg wor wmyndig och inthet forswar haffde, d?mdhe wthi skat. . ." (which Bishop Byrge was able to confiscate, because my father was dead and I was underage, unable to defend my rights. . .) (67).
The L?beck navy was defeated in a battle off Bornholm in 1535, and King Christian III decided to take advantage of the situation. He sent letters to Mogens Uf appointing him as chief justice for Bornholm, and freeing all his properties like all good men in Sk?ne have theirs (68). More importantly the king also sent letters to many other farmers pledging his assistance in getting rid of the L?beck occupation (69). Some time passed as the farmers egged each other on to get ready for the big battle. The L?beckers were getting suspicious about the sudden daring and impudent behavior of the peasants. Finally on September 6, 1536 the long awaited letter arrived from the king: the time is right and he is sending ships, men and horses to their aid (70). The farmers and the freemen gathered in the middle of the island on a field near ?kirkeby to await the king's men, who were to land in Nex?. Together they planned to ride to Hammershus and drive out the oppressors, but the king's army never arrived. Instead suddenly about 500 of the mercenaries from the Hammershus garrison appeared and quickly over powered the farmers, killing many, others fled: some to Sk?ne, others to K?benhavn.
The L?beckers continued their prosecution and imposed large fines on anyone seen to have only spoken with a member of the uprising (71). Furthermore the Bornholmers had to produce, as an apology to L?beck, five large, beautiful, and costly silver goblets with inscriptions. They were delivered in 1538 and even up to Laurids de Thurah's time (1756) they could be seen in the town hall (72).
Mogens Uf had been taken prisoner, which was unknown to the king when he, with some embarrassment, sent a letter to Mogens and the Bornholmers thanking them for their and giving assurances of continued support. A rather empty promise considering what had just happened. The king claimed he had sent four naval vessels, which unfortunately got battered and separated by a vicious storm, and thus failed to arrive on time. But the king stated that if the Bornholmers still would continue fighting against the L?beck regime, they were to follow the recommendations of Mogens Uf (73). It seems that Mogens Uf still was able to perform his duties as chief justice (74); even as a prisoner it apparently helped to have rank as nobility.
On September 8, 1555 there was a court case between the L?beck bailiff Bernt Knop and Jes Str?gess?n of Ibsker, who complained that Knop taxed all his belongings because he had accompanied Mogens Uf to Sk?ne as first officer on his ship. Bernt's reply was that Jes automatically became his enemy when he followed Mogens to Sk?ne, and he had right to tax him. Jes then retorted that Bernt himself had allowed Mogens to leave Bornholm for Straslund, but once at sea Mogens had forced Jes to set sail for Sk?ne to see his betrothed (75). With a white lie, and perhaps with the promise of money to Bernt Knop, Mogens Uf played a dirty trick by escaping to Sk?ne. By breaking his oath, he lost his honor as a nobleman, something that haunted him for the rest of his life. This had happened at the end of 1536 or the beginning of 1537.
At about this same time Bernt Knop wrote a letter to the L?beck officials sent to K?benhavn to protest against the Bornholmer uprising; you can almost imagine Bernt Knop hitting his fist on the table in Hammershus fortress, foaming with rage (76):
(In the original old Danish)
"Mogens Wff, Per Andersen og nogle flere, som formedelst deres ops?tsige og forr?deriske forhold under opr?ret ere landflygtige fra Bornholm, vill nu bruge deres l?gnagtige praktiker i K?benhavn, da de vide, at jeg ikke kan forsvare mig der."
(Which modernized reads in English approximately as follows)
"Mogens Uf, Peder Andersen and several others, which on account of their insubordination and treacherousness in rebellion have run from Bornholm, will now employ their mendacious practices in K?benhavn, where they know that I can not defend myself."
From now on we find Mogens Uf implicated in many court cases both in K?benhavn and Sk?ne, often together with Sti Pors and Mattes Torberns?n of Hesleholm. Soon Mogens married his betrothed, Berete Kyrning, and through her received Sk?ne properties, among them Oddersbierg (now called Odersberga).
The Break-Up of the Uf-Family:
In 1547 Mogens Uf, still exiled from Bornholm, came to blows with his own family and took them to the highest court in the land:
(In the original old Danish)
"Mogens W til Odersbiergh citat hustru Gunildt, Mattis Kofoedt paa Bornholm med deres medarvinger for noget jordegods som de g?r dem forhindring paa smst. efter Oluf Tuesens d?d smst."
The case concerns Mogens Uf's inheritance from his mother, against Gunhild, who must be a descendant of his mother's brother, Oluf Ottesen. Gunhild's husband, Mads Kofoed, sailed to K?benhavn on behalf of his wife and her co-heirs (who were under-aged). Mads won the case and returned home able to keep the deeds to the farms contested by Mogens Uf. But in 1552 Mogens Uf is back again to haunt Gunhild's family (78):
(In the original old Danish)
"Oluff Hansz paa sine egne og metarfvingers Otte Persz arfvinger vegne, beretter at Mogens W forf?lger dem for noget jordegods og skifte, og de have forfulgt sagen og bragt den for Rigets Kantsker, og til den ende afsendt Mads Kofoedt med deres breve og beviser, men han er drunknet paa veien og Brevskaberne forkomne, hvorfor det paal?gges landsdommeren Hans Reymer, at han er dem behj?lpelig til endnu engang at faa beskrevet hvad der er gaaet for sig i sagen."
Mogens had sued Oluf Hansen and Otte Pedersen's heirs for some property and Mads Kofoed had again been sent to K?benhavn with documents. Sadly, Mads drowned underway and the documents were lost.
That same day the king sent a letter to his bailiff on Bornholm, Henning Gagge, requesting that he quickly settle the case between Mogens Uf and Otte Pedersen's heirs. It had become bothersome to the king, the very men he depended upon to resist the L?beckers were about to destroy everything with their family feuding. How the court case ended is not known, but it seems that Mogens Uf lost again.
During his whole life Mogens Uf enjoyed the full protection of the king, but on his home island the L?beckers hated him. During a meeting in Kolding where Mogens complained about the L?beck occupation, the officials from L?beck retorted with the following jibe (79):
(In the original old Danish)
". . . hvad imidlertid angaar Mogens Uf selv, hvor forr?derisk og d?rligt han h?r handlet, det er kommet offentliget for dagen, og han fortjener ikke alene paa sit gods, snarere ogsaa paa sit liv at blive straffet. Hvordan han holdt slotsloven og svor overfor Bernt. . . det kunne han vel erindre!"
(Which modernized reads in English approximately as follows)
". . . as pertaining to Mogens Uf himself, it is now publicly known how treacherous and dishonest he is, breaking his word of honor to commander of the fortress Bernt. . . he deserves to be punished!"
His fellow Bornholmers did not feel too kindly towards him either (80):
(In the original old Danish)
"Mogens W har ingen autorite hos b?nderne, hvorfor han burde afs?ttes som foged."
(Which modernized reads in English approximately as follows)
"Mogens Uf carries no authority with the peasants, therefore he ought to resign his post as bailiff."
It looks like Mogens Uf had turned into a rather bitter man, who got involved in all sorts of rather dubious land quarrels. He spent the last years of his life in Sk?ne and died there at a very old age. Mogens and Berete Kyrning had no less than eight children. Four of them were sons, and until now it was believe that they had died childless; however, in the church registry for Vestermarie parish there is a record from January 3, 1745 of the burial of "gammel, fattig og arm mand" (old, indigent and poor man) Rasmus Jensen Uff (this kindly informed to us by Karin Mahler of R?nne), so apparently there are some buried descendants to be found on Bornholm some 150 years after the dramatic events described. (Note: My reading of this burial record is: "Rasmus Jensen Ulf, 72 aar gammel, fattig og armme." - Norman Lee Madsen)
The worst and roughest of Mogens Uf's children was his son Phillip Uf. On April 5, 1580 (81) the widow Berete complained to the king about her sons Hans and Phillip, who had imprisoned her daughter Sidsel on the farm Hammer (Hammar) near Christianstad in Sk?ne, for a debt they could not prove she owed, also that she had been "forset sig" (indiscreet), though she was later honorably married. The king ordered them to set her free, since they could take her to court to settle the case. She had married "ufri mand" (unfree man) Jens Niels?n, possibly of the Graa-family, a clerk in V? (82).
In March of 1581 the brothers Phillip and Esbern visited their brother-in-law Christen Clausen K?ller at Store Halleg?rd i Olsker parish, where they started quarreling over some documents. Phillip kills his brother and is injured himself. He admitted to his guilt while lying wounded at the scene, but later he accused his brother-in-law. On June 16, 1582 the highest court referred the case for a second hearing, but the outcome is unknown. However, there are no other records concerning Phillip Uf, while there are several accounts of his brother-in-law, so maybe Phillip was hanged as a murderer?
It faired better for the main branch of the Uf-family, the Sparre-Uf's. The youngest of Gunhild's brothers, Peder Hansen (Uf), became the chief justice of Bornholm, like his grandfather. And the eldest brother, Oluf Hansen's son Hans Olufsen (Uf) became the vassal of Vard?hus. Normally Hans Olufsen is considered to be the last male of the Uf-family, which is very likely, but there is a possibility that one branch of the Ufs, and of the Graa-family (through Sidsel Uf), also became freehold landowners on Bornholm.
Above we have followed how the Bornholm families down through the ages had connections to Sk?ne, and believe me, these are not the only ones. There was a constant back and forth of relationships, and many stories told, some more interesting than others. It is nice to know that, even if recent times have separated the countries, in those earlier times, the individuals on both sides of the water actually felt, thought and acted in the same manner. Something to make your Sk?ne-Bornholmer blood course more freely through your veins!
This database researched and compiled by Norman Lee Madsen, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 21 July 2015.
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1478 - 1537 (~ 59 år)
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