Major Claus Enevold Paarss (18 February 1683 – 26 May 1762) was a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

military officer and official. Retired from service,Marquardt, Ole
"Change and Continuity in Denmark's Greenland Policy"
in ''The Oldenburg Monarchy: An Underestimated Empire?''. Verlag Ludwig (Kiel), 2006. he was appointed governor of Greenland by King Frederick IV between 1728 and 1730.Mirsky, Jeannette.
To the Arctic!: The Story of Northern Exploration from Earliest Times
'. Univ. of Chicago Press, 1998. Paarss was born in Thy in then

Denmark–Norway Denmark–Norway (Danish and Norwegian: ) was an early modern multi-national and multi-lingual real unionFeldbæk 1998:11 consisting of the Kingdom of Denmark, the Kingdom of Norway (including the then Norwegian overseas possessions: the Faroe I ...

in 1683 and commanded a Danish man-of-war and threeCranz, David & al.
The History of Greenland: including an account of the mission carried on by the United Brethren in that country
'. Longman, 1820. or four other ships to

Hans Egede Hans Poulsen Egede (31 January 1686 – 5 November 1758) was a Dano-Norwegian Lutheran missionary who launched mission efforts to Greenland, which led him to be styled the Apostle of Greenland. He established a successful mission among the Inui ...

's "Haabets Koloni" on

Kangeq Kangeq or Kangek ( Kalaallisut: "Promontory") is a former settlement in the Sermersooq municipality in southwestern Greenland. It is located on the same island that formed the first Danish colony on Greenland between 1721 and 1728. History As ...

, which he removed to the mainland opposite and fortified under the name "Godt-Haab", later known as

Godthåb Nuuk (; da, Nuuk, formerly ) is the capital and largest city of Greenland, a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the country's largest cultural and economic centre. The major cities from other coun ...

and then

Nuuk Nuuk (; da, Nuuk, formerly ) is the capital and largest city of Greenland, a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the country's largest cultural and economic centre. The major cities from other co ...

. His contingent of colonists consisted of twenty soldiers, three sergeants, and two officers from the Danish artillery corps, along with twelve military convicts, ten unmarried mothers, and two female convicts who were to be wed to one another according to lots. He also carried a dozen horses. After putting down a general mutiny, Paarss tried and failed twice to cross the island from the Ameralik Fjord in search of resources and a connection to the supposed location of the old Norse

Eastern Settlement The Eastern Settlement ( non, Eystribygð ) was the first and by far the larger of the two main areas of Norse Greenland, settled by Norsemen from Iceland. At its peak, it contained approximately 4,000 inhabitants. The last written record from t ...

. He also proposed a scheme to populate Greenland with fallen Danish aristocrats and their households on the model of the French colonies in Canada. Meanwhile, forty of his colonists died of scurvy and other complaints, leading to the abandonment of the colony even by the native Greenlanders. Paarss died in

Korsør Korsør is a town on Zealand, Denmark. It is located in Slagelse Municipality. Until 2007 Korsør was the seat of Korsør Municipality. The town is located west of Slagelse, north-west of Skælskør and connects to Nyborg through the Great Bel ...

in 1762.

References

1683 births 1762 deaths Danish emigrants to Greenland Governors of Greenland Norwegian emigrants to Greenland 18th-century politicians {{Greenland-politician-stub

See also

References