Jarlsberg was a former countship that forms a part of today's

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered th ...

county in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The former countships of Jarlsberg and

Larvik Larvik () is a List of cities in Norway, town and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality ...

were merged into a county in 1821. Jarlsberg and Larvik's County (''Jarlsberg og Larviks amt'') were renamed Vestfold in 1919. Created in 1673 as Griffenfeldt Countship (''Griffenfeld grevskap''), it was after a few years known as Tønsberg Countship (''Tønsberg grevskap'') until 1684, when the name became Jarlsberg. Dating to 1681, the countship was associated with members of the Dano- Norwegian noble family,

Wedel-Jarlsberg The Count of Wedel-Jarlsberg (also ''Wedel Jarlsberg'') is a title of the Norwegian nobility and of the Danish nobility. The family of Wedel-Jarlsberg is a branch of the larger family von Wedel, which comes from Pomerania, Germany. Family members ...

House of Griffenfeld

Jarlsberg was originally created as a countship in 1673 for

Peder Schumacher Griffenfeld Count Peder Griffenfeld (before ennoblement Peder Schumacher) (24 August 1635 – 12 March 1699) was a Danish statesman and royal favourite. He became the principal adviser to King Christian V of Denmark from 1670 and the ''de facto'' ruler of ...

, a Danish statesman and Chancellor of Denmark during the reign of King

Christian V of Denmark 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 ...

. Schumacher received in 1671 an armorial grant with name Griffenfeld. The creation involved that Count Griffenfeld, in addition to owning 14 percent of the countship's land, received large tax revenues and also the right to appoint all civil and ecclesiastical officials, including officers and judges, who would serve within the countship. * 1673-1676 Count Peder Schumacher Griffenfeld Count Griffenfeld coat of arms

House of
Gyldenløve Gyldenløve, was a surname for several illegitimate children of House of Oldenburg, Oldenburg kings of Denmark-Norway in the 17th century. Kings The surname Gyldenløve was given to the sons of the following Dano-Norwegian kings: * Christian I ...

After Griffenfeld's arrest in 1676, in the aftermath of the

Scanian War The Scanian War ( da, Skånske Krig, , sv, Skånska kriget, german: Schonischer Krieg) was a part of the Northern Wars involving the union of Denmark–Norway, Brandenburg and Sweden. It was fought from 1675 to 1679 mainly on Scanian soil, ...

, his properties and the countship was renamed Tønsberg Countship and were transferred by King Christian V to Ulrik Fredrik Gyldenløve, the Count of Larvik. Gyldenløve, an illegitimate son of King

Frederick III of Denmark Frederick III ( da, Frederik; 18 March 1609 – 9 February 1670) was King of Denmark and Norway from 1648 until his death in 1670. He also governed under the name Frederick II as diocesan administrator (colloquially referred to as prince-bi ...

, was the Viceroy (''Statholder'') of Norway. * 1676-1684 Count Ulrik Fredrik Gyldenløve

House of Wedel Jarlsberg

In 1683, Ulrik Fredrik Gyldenløve sold Tøsnberg countship to Gustav Frederik Wilhelm Wedel. Von Wedel was an ancient nobility from

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 ...

, which received naturalization patent in 1681 as

Friherre (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

von Wedel by king

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 ...

. Field Marshal Wedel, who had become commanding General in Norway in 1681, received the title

Lensgreve Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

patent with name ''Wedel af Jarlsberg'' in 1684 and introduced the name Jarlsberg, which means ‘Earl’s Hill’.Store norske leksikon: ''Wedel Jarlsberg''
/ref> * 1684-1718 Count Gustav Wilhelm von Wedel-Jarlsberg * 1718–1738 Count Frederik Anton Wedel Jarlsberg * 1738–1776 Count Frederik Christian Otto Wedel Jarlsberg * 1776–1811 Count Frederik Anton II Wedel Jarlsberg * 1811–1840 Count Johan Caspar Herman Wedel Jarlsberg * 1840–1893 Peder Anker Wedel Jarlsberg

References

Districts of Norway Norwegian nobility {{Norway-stub

House of Griffenfeld

House of Gyldenløve Gyldenløve, was a surname for several illegitimate children of House of Oldenburg, Oldenburg kings of Denmark-Norway in the 17th century. Kings The surname Gyldenløve was given to the sons of the following Dano-Norwegian kings: * Christian I ...

House of Wedel Jarlsberg

See also

References

House of
Gyldenløve Gyldenløve, was a surname for several illegitimate children of House of Oldenburg, Oldenburg kings of Denmark-Norway in the 17th century. Kings The surname Gyldenløve was given to the sons of the following Dano-Norwegian kings: * Christian I ...