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- Note (Norman Lee Madsen)
The first time he is mentioned is in 1547: "Hans Berrildsen i Ocker sogen paa Borringhollum" and "Tegnelse over alle Lande" - he was probably living at Bjergegård, 24 Vdg. in Åker parish. (Source: "Danske Magazin",1864, page 306) According to Kure's farm-list he owned Store Halsegård(later called Gadebygård) and Lille Halsegård (later called Halsegård) in Østermarie parish, which either his wife inherited, or he himself purchased from his wife's father's sister (faster) Anne Pedersdatter Hals.
Also known as Hans Berendsen, the names Berild/Berel,Berend/Berrett/Beritz are variants of the name Bernhard. According to Sigvard Mahler Dam's article "Landet Borringholm", part 2 (published inSAXO, 1986), Hans Berildsen/Berendsen may possibly be the son of a Bornholmer "Væbner" (arms carrier) named Bernhardus Joensen mentioned in documents dated 1486 and 1490.
Records show that Hans Berildsen (aka Hans Berendsen) was appointedCo-Chief Justice (Meddommer) for Bornholm on October 19, 1551, along withHans Reymer and Peder Gagge. He was mentioned in 1551 as "bisiddendedommer" (assessor judge) under Henning Gagge. Hans Rømer only held theposition for a couple of years, and was dead by 1553. Peder Gagge andHans Berildsen are recorded as jointly holding the position of ChiefJustice in 1557. After Peder Gagge's death, circa 1559, Hans Berildsenheld the position of Chief Justice (Landsdommer) on his own. On July 9,1561 he was deprived of his justice position because of an incorrectjudgement in a theft case; he was later pardoned by King Fredrik III.The exact year of his death is not known, however he must have diedsometime between 1562 and 1572, as on September 5, 1572 a Jacob IversenBorringholm is recorded as being Bornholm's Chief Justice. HansBerildsen's arms (våben): an oak-branch with an acorn (en egegren med etagern). (Sources: Dr. Zarthmann, b. 1-144, Aage Kure, and Sigvard MahlerDam.)
During a meeting of the High-Court in København in the summer of 1553, afarmer named Hans Hintse of Rø parish presented a document, written andsigned by Co-Justices Peder Gagge and Hans Berildsen, to the effect thathe was granted ownership to a particular farm in question. This wasapproved by the court, even though Commander Boitin and Chief JusticeReymer had condemned Gagge's treatment of the case as highly improper anddefiant. Spokesmen for Lübeck's council laid a complaint about PederGagge during a meeting with King Christian III in Kolding in October of1553. Apparently the King must have put a stop to Gagge's monopoly ofdecision-making, as not much was later heard from him in council-matters- even though he carried on as co-justice until his death in 1559.
The Reformation had penetrated the Scandinavian countries in the early1500s; the introduction of Protestantism was supported by merchants andpeasants, and by devout priests who had become followers of MartinLuther. King Frederik I (reigned 1523-1533), who became quite religiousin his later years, strongly promoted the establishment of the LutheranChurch. He allowed the leading Danish religious reformer, Hans Tavsen,to preach in the church at Viborg and ordered many Catholic churches inthe region destroyed, despite violent protests.
It was King Christian III (reigned 1534-1559), son of Frederik I, whoestablished the state Lutheran Church in Denmark. With the support ofthe Rigsrad - his advising council of lay members - the king ordered allRoman Catholic property turned over to the crown, and declared theLutheran Church the national church of Denmark with the king as itshead. Henning (Jørgensen) Gagge was an Attendant at the Royal Court inKøbenhavn when King Christian III, on July 21, 1551, proclaimed him asmanager over all the property on Bornholm formerly owned by the RomanCatholic Church; this included the responsibility of looking after thepoor, and all the hospitals on Bornholm.
That same year the King also proclaimed Henning Gagge's brother PederGagge as Co-Justice (Meddommer), together with Hans Berildsen, forBornholm's "Landsting" (provincial congress), an institution which nolonger exists). He made this move in response to the Lübeck authoritiesappointing their own man, mayor Hans Rymer (aka Rømer) of Rønne, asBornholm's chief justice (landsdommer). As the King's faithful men, thetwo brothers built up strong legal defenses against Hanseatic League cityof Lübeck; which had gained "temporary" legal control of Bornholm for 50years, starting in 1525, as a result of Christian III's father FrederikI's inability to pay debts he owed to that city. They had the right tolevy taxes upon the inhabitants, this they did unmercifully - i.e. in1555 Lübeck was forced to return 4,000 units of silver it had obtainedthrough over-taxation. The Bornholmers are recorded to have groanedunder the Hansa's rule, and declared "they would rather be under theTurks, than under the German, Christian, imperial free-city."
With King Christian III as their ally, the two brothers made considerablegains protecting the legal rights of the inhabitants, and in maintainingthe right of ownership the danish crown had on Bornholm, during theirdealings with the learned scholar in Roman Law and Lübeck representative:Herman Boitin, commander of Hammershus fortress. In fact Peder Gagge'sbehaviour was so aggressive that Commander Boitin complained to theLübeck council that Peder Gagge wished to decide all matters his own way,and further more insited the people to disobey and riot against Lübeckand its representatives on Bornholm.
Extracted from "Landsdommer-Patriciatet på Bornholm, Del II" (The ChiefJustice Patriciate on Bornholm, Part II), by: Sigvard Mahler Dam (SAXO,1988):
Hans Reimer, Hans Berendsen, Peder Gagge:
On the 19th of October 1551 the king appoints "os elskelige Hans Reymer iRønne at være Landsdommer paa vort land Bordingholm, og os elskeligePeder Gagge og Hans Berrettsen vore mænd og tjenere med hannem at sideudi dom og ret" (our beloved Hans Reymer in Rønne to be chief justice ofBornholm, and our beloved Peder Gagge and Hans Berrettsen, our men andservants, to assist him in his office). This is a completely newsituation! All 3 men to sit on the judge's seat! However, this quicklyturned out to be too crowded. The king wished to regain control over hisisland, and he had support from the later two of these men, whorepeatedly provoked the Lübeck regime. As previously mentioned HansReimer a supporter of Lübeck - his name even suggests German origins -which suggests that by naming 2 assistant judges the king was attemptingto obtain balance. There is not very much information on Hans Reimer, ashe only held office for 2 years before he died.
In 1553 a large meeting was held in Kolding, with the king on one sideand the Lübeck council on the other, wherein numerous complaints were putforward by the peasants against the Lübeck's bailiff at Hammershus. Ofthe 117 complaints against the bailiff only one was turned down! Duringthis meeting the bailiff described the intolerable situation he was upagainst in Bornholm's Landsting (Parliament), it would seem the king'ssabotage was a success!
Here is the bailiff's statement: "The instalment, 2 years ago, by HisRoyal Majesty of Peder Gagge and Hans Berentsen as assistants to thechief justice and myself at the Landsting was unnecessary, as all freemenand important peasants attend the Landsting and help in passingsentences. Especially Peder Gagge is abusing this right, and he isperpetrating all forms of disobedience, obstinate behaviour and revolt. .. Peder Gagge is not content to have a say in the passing of a sentence,but insists in having everything done his way!"
Another complaint concerned Hans Skaaning against Hans Hintze in adispute over a farm in Rø parish. Wherein Hans Skaaning, who was marriedto a grand-daughter of the former owner, and Hans Hintze, who was marriedto a daughter of the former owner and also had the advantage of havinglived on the farm with his wife for 40 years. The Lübeck bailiff andChief Justice Hans Reimer defended Hans Skaaning's right to the farm,while Peder Gagge and Hans Berendsen favoured Hans Hintze. The bailiffis thoroughly miffed over not getting his way, and states: ". . .regarding Hans Skonning's case . . . the poor man has suffered aninjustice - probably because the councillors have been blinded by PederGagge's lies. (see note nr. 21)
Sharp words were exchanged between the judges, and tempers flared atevery Landsting - probably there was a full house with everybody comingto hear the latest exciting news. After their defeat in 1535, and thepunishments meted out in the following years, the peasants had yearnedfor revenge, and now they finally got it via the judiciary. Numeroussupporters followed Peder Gagge and Hans Berendsen's example and crossedthe Lübeckers at every opportrunity. All the "vornede-bønderne" (peasantfarmers on the freemen's estates) - who were very often related - actedlike freemen themselves and refused to pay taxes and deliver goods toHammershus; they traveled freely and gathered spoils from shipwrecksalong the beaches, and even hunted deer in the woods - which previouslyhad been the age-old prerogative of the king, and now, supposedly, solelythat of the Lübeckers.
Hans Reimer died around 1553. We do not know where he came from, butsome sources have it that he is the founding father of the BornholmRømer-family, which seems very likely. We do not know if he made the useof an arms or seal image, and none of his supposed descendants ever againbecame chief justice for Bornholm.
His two assistants carried on at the Landsting. Now Hans Berendsenbecame chief justice, which is mentioned in a royal letter dated the 5thof July 1559: "Hans Beritzen Lanzdomer paa Borneholm och Peder Gagge wormand og tienner" (Hans Beritsen, Chief Justice of Bornholm, and PederGagge, our man and servant). That letter is the last to mention of PederGagge, and his brother Henning Gagge died 3 years later on the 29th ofJune 1562, which was inscribed on a gravestone (now lost) in RønneChurch. The Gagge-family rule was over, in fact the king no longerneeded them, as the new Lübeck commandant was so co-operative that hesoon ran into trouble with his own bosses back home in Lübeck.
The Gagge-family is well known. The two Gagge brother's father, JørgenGagge, was the illegitimate son of a Skåne officer named Erik Gagge, andhis mother was the daughter of officer Hans Eriksen (from theJordeberga-family) who resided at the Bidstrup manor house in Jylland.Jørgen Gagge had been granted nobility by King Hans and given"Lehnsgaard" in Østerlars parish; his coat of arms displays hisillegitimacy: vertically divided, in the 1st half a silver chevron on ablack field, and in the 2nd half, attached to the partition, a black,half mill-wheel on a white field; and on the helmet: two vesselhorns.Which is the reverse of that of the legitimate Skåne Gagge-family coat ofarms. (see nr. 22) However, on Henning Gagge's gravestone his arms weredisplayed like that of the legitimate Gagge-family arms and helmet fromSkåne (mill-wheel in 1st, chevron in 2nd); as were Henning's grandsons(and possibly also that of his son Jørgen) - probably trying to avoid thetaint of illegitimacy! No other member of the family became a chiefjustice for the island; only Henning's son, Jørgen Gagge, married thedaughter of Chief Justice Peder Hansen Uf - her name was Margrethe.
Hans Berildsen continued on as the sole chief justice for another coupleof years. The High-Court in København met on July 8th 1561 regarding adispute between "bonde Adbjørn Hansen" and "Landsdommer Hans Beritsen"(Source: Judgment Book 8, folio 87R-87V). Hans Berildsen died sometimebetween the years 1562 and 1572. His patronymic can be found spelled ina several of different ways: Berendsen, Berrettsen, Beritzen; and sincethe given name Berild/Berl can be found among his male descendants forseveral generation, it seems likely that Berild is the Bornholmer versionof the (Germanic) given name Berendt. In other parts of Denmark the nameBerild can be found as a variation of the Germanic given name Bernhard(see nr. 23), and thus Chief Justice Hans Berendsen might be the son ofofficer Bernardus Joensen, who was mentioned in documents dating from1486 and 1490. Hans Berendsen resided at Bjerregård (24 Vdg.) in Åkerparish, a farm which remained in the family for several generations; hisgreat-grandson Berild Hansen (died 1668) resided there from 1650 through1662, he is recorded as being "Bornholm's last Freeman".
None of Hans Berendsen's descendants ever became chief justice. His sonBerild Hansen was the bailiff for Hammershus fortress, which was the lasthigh public office held by the family - thereafter they were just"ordinary freemen". The above mentioned last freeman, Berild Hansen,married into one of Bornholm's chief justice families, and he hadinherited Vallegård (15 Vdg.) in Nyker parish, which had previouslybelonged to the freeman-estate Kyndegård, which might indicate that hisfirst wife, Margrethe, who died during the plague of 1653-1654 hailedfrom Kyndegård. The childless chief justice Jens Kofoed (see below)resided at Kyndegård until his death in 1625; and on the 22nd of March1628 his heirs sold the freeman-estate to his brother's son, CaptainJacob Kofoed and his wife Margrethe Olufsdatter, who then joined theranks of the freemen. Berild Hansen's wife might have been a daughter oftheirs, and indeed she named a son Jens Berildsen in honour of thechildless Jens Kofoed. (Note: I believe these suppositions to beentirely incorrect. Berild Hansen is known to have been married to thesister, named Margrethe?, of clergyman Rasmus Andersen Bleking, whoresided at Kyndegård between 1654 and 1671. Evidently Berild got intofinancial troubles and borrowed money from the very wealthy RasmusAndersen Bleking. In order to redeam his debts Berild Hansen surrenderedLille Halsegård to Rasmus in 1664. As he no longer owned a freeman'sfarm Berild Hansen lost the right to freeman status. It seems likelythat Berild Hansen had obtained Vellensgård from his brother-in-law circa1655, and his son Michel Berildsen would later inherit the farm. Also,records show that Berild Hansen had two son's: Lars and Michel, andprobably a third names Hans; no known record of a Jens! - Norman LeeMadsen)
Hans Berendsen's seal is well known as there are many survivingdocuments: an oak-branch with one acorn. In an odd manner we get to knowthe colours, as the emblem was erroneously placed in an armourialregistry (see nr. 24) under the Uf-family: a green oak-branch with 3golden acorns on a white field; and on the helmet: 2 white vesselhorns.
At the time of Berild Hansen's death in 1668 his heirs were unable toaquire most of his farms, as the era of the freeman had passed and hisdescendants were not to be found among the wealthy peasants. Later on wecan follow this family on Bornholm via the unusual name "Berild", thoughnot everyone with that name can trace their ancestry back to this freeman.
Notes:
Nr. 21) Henning Gagge of Almegård (Knudsker) and Spidlegård (Åker) was acourtier at the king's castle until 1551, after which he was appointedchief bailiff for Bornholm (see note 5), this coincided with his brother,Peder Gagge, being appointed as assistant-judge in the "Landsting" (UpperHouse of Parliament).
Nr. 22) A. Thiset's "Danske Adelige Sigiller" shows Jørgen Gagge's seal(from the 22nd of May 1522) and Henning Gagge's (from the 16th of July1550 and the 10th of September 1555) in H.xxxv, nr. 4 and 5; both are inmirror image of a "normal" Gagge coat of arms. A description of JørgenGagge's coat of arms (Henning Gagge's son) suggests it to be him, 3generations after the illegitimate birth, who reverses the coat of arms:"Sigvard Gagge, hvis Vaaben var: et Halvt Gangehjul paa et Sejerværk oget Gafflspænde, som det ses udi Aa Kirke paa en Stol 1597" ("SigvardGagge, whose coat of arms was: a Half Mill-wheel fixed upon a Partitionand a Chevron, which one can see on a Pew dated 1597 in Aa Church"), asdescribed in "Rasmus Ravns Borringhoms Krønike 1671", pub. Rønne, 1926,page 157. The above mentioned Sigvard was a son of Jørgen, and was notborn until 1598, therefore it must be the father's coat of arms in thechurch. Sigvard/Sivert Gagge, and his brother Claus, also carried the"normal" coat of arms, which can be seen on the coronation documents of1648 (Claus) and 1650 (Claus), and also in the bestowal document,affirming Bornholm's freemen, from the king dated the 19th of Janury 1659(Sivert) - all 3 in RA.
Nr. 23) On the 23rd of June 1531 "Hans Beridssenn fik livsbrev paaThorøe uden for Assens" (Frederik I's danske registrandter), he was theson of the mayor of Assens, Beril Pedersen (Mormand). In 1510 a "PetrusBernhardi" was matriculated at København's University, as a student fromFyn; he was buried Peder Berildsen (Mormand), clergyman in Assens, died1537, and was a son of the above mentioned mayor (as described in"Studenter ved Københavns Universitet", held in the Royal Library,København).
Nr. 24) Uldall'ske Samlinger 479-4 "Frederik Rostgaards Vaabenbog",folio 122.
This database researched and compiled by Norman Lee Madsen, Toronto,Ontario, Canada, 12 Jun 2016. [2]
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Anebasen — Ole Thyge Plannthin
ca. 1500 - ca. 1570 (70 år)
