Bishop Henrik Gerner (9 December 1629 - 14 May 1700) was a Dane who studied theology and travelled extensively in England. From 1656, at the age of 27, he became parish priest for Birkerød (north of Copenhagen) and in 1693 until his death was appointed bishop of Viborg.

Captivity

In 1659, during the

Second Northern War The Second Northern War (1655–60), (also First or Little Northern War) was fought between Sweden and its adversaries the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (1655–60), the Tsardom of Russia (Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658), 1656–58), Brande ...

, he was briefly imprisoned, tortured, held in chains and sentenced to death,Bricka - DBL
Vol 5 Page 609
/ref> by Swedish authorities for plotting the recapture of Kronborg - the sentence was not carried out after the Danish king Frederick III threatened reprisals. He was instead held imprisoned for eighteen weeks and had to pay a hefty fine before release.Salmonsen 2 Ed. Vol 9 page 634 On release he took his 36 pound chains with him to Birkerød church where it is now displayed. The scars from his treatment in prison were a constant reminder for the rest of his life. One of his fellow participants,

Oluf van Steenwinckel Oluf van Steenwinckel (died 1659) was a Denmark, Danish building master and engineer, probably the son of Hans van Steenwinckel the Younger. Biography In the 1640s he worked at Nykøbing Castle among other places and from 1651 to 52 he was Copenh ...

, was not so lucky!

Intellectual interests

A man of lively literary interests, he published two works in Latin in 1662 promoting a form of social ethics. He translated the works of the Greek poet

Hesiod Hesiod (; grc-gre, Ἡσίοδος ''Hēsíodos'') was an ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. He is generally regarded by western authors as 'the first written poet i ...

and several lesser poets. He was in disagreement with his fellow priest

Peder Syv Peder Pedersen Syv (also spelled Siuf) or in Latin Petrus Petri Septimius (22 February 1631 – 17 February 1702) was a Danish philologist, folklorist and priest, known for his collections of Danish proverbs and folksongs, and his contributions to ...

's attempts at spelling reform of the Danish language, and an avid opponent of the use of foreign words in the Danish language. He also contributed to Peder Lauridsen Kylling's botanical work ''Viridarium Danicum''.

Commemoration

The street Henrik Gerners Vej in Birkerød was named in honour of Gerner. A granite bust of Gerner created by the sculptor Johannes Kragh was installed opposite Birkerød Church in 1917. A modern church extension housing the church administrative offices plus meeting rooms and a memorial hall was completed in 1979. A copy of Gerner's shackles hangs near the entrance and is used in historic reenactments.Bistrup

References

Citations in Danish

Salmonsens konversationsleksikon (under Projekt Runeberg)
Both Gerners appear on the same page! *Bricka, C F in Projekt Runeberg, Dansk Biografisk Lexikon. Vol 5 Page 607 - 614

*Bistrup Kirke (Birkerød
Gerner building

External links