Claus von Ahlefeldt (1614–74) was a member of the Ahlefeldt noble family of

Holstein Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...

, who married the King of Denmark-Norway's natural daughter and rose to become a

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

in Danish-Norwegian service.

Early career

Ahlefeldt began his military career by serving as a

page Page most commonly refers to: * Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to: Roles * Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation * Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...

and an officer in

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

service, and as an officer in

Wallenstein Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von Wallenstein () (24 September 1583 – 25 February 1634), also von Waldstein ( cs, Albrecht Václav Eusebius z Valdštejna), was a Bohemian military leader and statesman who fought on the Catholic side during the Th ...

's army. He later became a groom of the bedchamber to King

Christian IV 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 ...

of Denmark-Norway. His first wife having died, he was in 1643 betrothed to the King's natural daughter with

Vibeke Kruse Vibeke Kruse (died 1648) was the official mistress of King Christian IV of Denmark between 1629 and 1648 and the mother of one of his three acknowledged, illegitimate sons, Ulrik Christian Gyldenløve. She was described as influential. Life Not ...

, Elisabeth Sofie Gyldenløve, although she was only ten; they finally married five years later.Bricka, C.F. (1887-1905). ''Dansk Biografisk Lexikon''. Kjøbenhavn, Gyldendalske Boghandels Forlag, vol. 1, pp. 127-131
Heiberg, Steffen. "Claus Ahlefeldt". ''Den Store Danske.'' Gyldendal.
Retrieved 2016-11-30. Wengel, Hans Peter. ''Claus von Ahlefeldt, a.d.H. Gelting von 1614 - 1674''
Retrieved 2016-11-30.

Senior officer

When the war with Sweden began in 1643, Ahlefeldt became first a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, and soon enough a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

, of

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

. After the death of Christian IV, he was persecuted by

Corfitz Ulfeldt Count Corfits Ulfeldt (10 July 1606 – 20 February 1664) was a Denmark, Danish politician, statesman, and one of the most notorious traitors in Danish history. Early life Ulfeldt was the son of the chancellor Jacob Ulfeldt (1567–1630), ...

, who had him dismissed from his posts and sent to

Glückstadt Glückstadt (; da, Lykstad) is a town in the Steinburg district of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is located on the right bank of the Lower Elbe at the confluence of the small Rhin river, about northwest of Altona. Glückstadt is part of the ...

commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

. Ahlefeldt supported Frederick III in his struggle with Ulfeldt, and became ''

Generalfeldwachtmeister ''Generalfeldwachtmeister'' is a historical military rank of general officer level in the armies of the German and Scandinavian countries, corresponding to the rank of ''maréchal de camp'' in France. A Generalfeldwachtmeister ranked above a brig ...

'' in 1653. In 1659, Ahlefeldt, by now a

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

, successfully defended the western front 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 ...

against desperate Swedish attacks during the siege of Copenhagen. He then commanded all Danish forces in

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

, and took Frederiksodde from the Swedes. In 1660 Ahlefeldt became commander-in-chief of the

Norwegian army The Norwegian Army ( no, Hæren) is the land warfare service branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces. The Army is the oldest of the Norwegian service branches, established as a modern military organization under the command of the King of Norway ...

, as well as ''

Amtmann __NOTOC__ The ''Amtmann'' or ''Ammann'' (in Switzerland) was an official in German-speaking countries of Europe and in some of the Nordic countries from the time of the Middle Ages whose office was akin to that of a bailiff. He was the most seni ...

'' of

Bergenhus len Bergenhus len was an administrative division of the Kingdom of Norway that existed from 1503 to 1662, with the Bergenhus Fortress in Bergen as its administrative center Norwegian administrative division. The ''len'' was changed to an ''amt'' (distr ...

. As such he commanded the Danish-Norwegian forces during the

Battle of Vågen The Battle of Vågen was a naval battle between a Dutch merchant and treasure fleet; and an English flotilla of warships in August 1665 as part of the Second Anglo-Dutch War. The battle took place in Vågen (meaning "the bay, voe" in Norweg ...

, having refused the bribes offered him by the English. During the reign of

Christian V Christian V (15 April 1646 25 August 1699) was king of Denmark and Norway from 1670 until his death in 1699. Well-regarded by the common people, he was the first king anointed at Frederiksborg Castle chapel as absolute monarch since the decree ...

, he had the rank, but not the command, of a

field-marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

, and was in practice retired to the governorship of Nyborg Slot, and the amtmannship of Nyborg amt.Liljefalk, A. (1915-1928). "Ahlefeldt, Claus". ''Salmonens konversationsleksikon''. København: J. H. Schultz Forlagsboghandel, vol. 1, p. 331.
Retrieved 2016-11-30.

Personal life

Ahlefeldt was married three times. His first wife, Catharina von Qualen, died in 1639. His second wife, the King's daughter, died in 1654. With her he had a daughter. With his third wife, Anna Hedwig Buchwald, he had five children that reached adult age. He managed his many estates wisely, and acquired great wealth.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahlefeldt, Claus 1614 births 1674 deaths Danish soldiers 17th-century Danish people House of Ahlefeldt County governors of Norway