Breide Rantzau (13 October 1556 10 January 1618) was a German nobleman in Danish-Norwegian service. He served as ''

stadtholder In the Low Countries, ''stadtholder'' ( nl, stadhouder ) was an office of steward, designated a medieval official and then a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and H ...

'' of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

from 1602.

Early life

He was born on 13 October 1556 at

Segeberg Segeberg (; frr, Segebärj) is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by (from the southwest and clockwise) the districts of Pinneberg, Steinburg and Rendsburg-Eckernförde, the city of Neumünster, the districts of Plön, Osthol ...

, the son of

Heinrich Rantzau Heinrich Rantzau or Ranzow (Ranzovius) (11 March 1526 – 31 December 1598) was a German humanist writer and statesman, a prolific astrologer and an associate of Tycho Brahe. He was son of Johan Rantzau. He was Governor of the Danish royal sh ...

, and the older brother of

Gert Rantzau Gert or Gerhard Rantzau (1558-1627) was a German nobleman in Danish service, soldier and Captain of the Palace and Castle of Kronborg and Flensburg. He was a son of Heinrich Rantzau, the King of Denmark's Lieutenant in Holstein. His older brother ...

(1558-1627).

Career

He was a councillor of the Danish realm in the minority of

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...

. In September 1589 he was chosen to accompany

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional fo ...

when she sailed to Scotland to join her husband

James VI James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

, with the

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

Peder Munk Peder Munk of Estvadgård (1534–1623), was a Danish navigator, politician, and ambassador, who was in charge of the fleet carrying Anne of Denmark to Scotland. The events of the voyage led to witch trials and executions in Denmark and Scotland ...

, Paul Knibbe, and

Niels Krag Niels Krag (1550-1602), was a Danish academic and diplomat. Krag was a Doctor of Divinity, Professor at the University of Copenhagen, and historiographer Royal. Mission to Scotland In August 1589 the Danish council decided that Peder Munk, Breide ...

. The voyage was interrupted by storms and they rested at

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

where James VI joined them. After returning to Copenhagen and

Kronborg Kronborg is a castle and stronghold in the town of Helsingør, Denmark. Immortalized as Elsinore in William Shakespeare's play ''Hamlet'', Kronborg is one of the most important Renaissance castles in Northern Europe and was inscribed on the UNES ...

, Breide Rantzau came to Scotland in May 1590, as one of the ambassadors with Peder Munk and Steen Brahe accompanying James VI and Anna of Denmark. He had some family connection with Sophia Kaas (or Koss), who was staying with his wife when she was called to be a lady in waiting to Anna of Denmark. Kaas became a favourite in Scotland, and with another gentlewoman, Katrine Skinkel, wore hats that matched the queen's. After the coronation of Anna of Denmark, the town of Edinburgh held a banquet for the Danish ambassadors on 23 May 1590 with musicians and a guard of honour armed with polearms. On 26 May the Danish ambassadors embarked on their ships, and the king gave them gold chains and gifts worth 4,500 crowns. One ambassador was given a gold chain worth 500 crowns paid for from the queen's dowry. James VI and Anna rode on the sands of Leith in view of their ships lying at anchor.''Calendar State Papers Scotland'', vol. 10 (Edinburgh, 1936), pp. 305-6.

Property

In addition to Rantzausholm, he owned a number of estates, including Mogenstrup in Scania and Hellerup on

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

, which he bought in 1599 from Eiler Brockenhuus. He inherited Hindemaegaard manor located south of Ullerslev, on Funen in 1605. Breide Rantzau died in 1618.

Marriages and children

He married Sophie Rosenkrantz (1560-1593), a daughter of the respected and wealthy councillor Erik Ottesen Rosenkrantz (1519-1575) of Kjærstrup, on 1 March 1579 at

Koldinghus Koldinghus is a Danish royal castle in the town of Kolding on the south central part of the Jutland peninsula. The castle was founded in the 13th century and was expanded since with many functions ranging from fortress, royal residency, ruin, mus ...

, at the court of

Frederick II of Denmark Frederick II (1 July 1534 – 4 April 1588) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1559 until his death. A member of the House of Oldenburg, Frederick began his personal rule of Denmark-Norway at the age of ...

. After his first wife died on 29 December 1593, he married 7 May 1598 Karen Gjøe, daughter of Absalon Gjøe. After her death in 1599, on 26 July 1601 he married Christence Viffert, daughter of Corfits Viffert and widow of Henrik Bille of Mogenstrup; she died in 1604.

References

External links

RANTZAU, BREIDE (SSNE 698), Scotland, Scandinavia and Northern European Biographical Database

Breide Rantzau
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rantzau, Breide 16th-century German people 17th-century German people 17th-century Danish landowners 1556 births 1618 deaths Breide Ambassadors of Denmark to Scotland People of the Kalmar War Emigrants from the Holy Roman Empire to Denmark-Norway