Mogens Lauritssøn, also known as Magnus Lauretii (died 3 October 1542, Antvorskov Monastery,

Zealand Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 Januar ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

), was the 27th and last

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Bishop of Hamar.

Background

Nothing is known about the origins of Mogens Lauritssøn. But he is known to have graduated from the

University of Rostock The University of Rostock () is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in continental northern Europe and the Baltic Se ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

on 17 April 1494 with a degree of magister, that is, doctor. He later became a

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

and, by 1497, the

archpriest The ecclesiastical title of archpriest or archpresbyter belongs to certain priests with supervisory duties over a number of parishes. The term is most often used in Eastern Orthodoxy and the Eastern Catholic Churches and may be somewhat analogo ...

of the

Cathedral Chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

of Oslo. On 28 January 1513, he was already mentioned as the ''Electus'' so the election of the new Bishop of Hamar must have happened either in late 1512 or early 1513. He was still the ''Electus'' on 15 July 1513, when he attended a meeting in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, but, 12 days later, on 22 July, he was the Bishop. Apparently his

consecration Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

must have been performed in Copenhagen between 15 and 22 July 1513.Hansen, ''Hamar og dets Biskopper''
page 23

The Bishop of Hamar

Of Mogens Lauritssøn, Anton Christian Bang, the Norwegian historian, gave him only a short paragraph in his 1912 book, ''Den Norske kirkes historie'' (''The History of the Norwegian Church''), and remarked:

"He apparently was not without zeal in his office; at any case, he seemed to have frequently gone out on his visitations in his sprawling diocese. He also seemed to be a good man and an ordinary administrator. But, by nature, he was weak and, concerning his abilities, he had certainly not done in this way anything out of the ordinary." (''Han synes ikke at have været uden nidkjærhed i sit embede, ialfald sees han hyppig at have væaret ude paa visiatser i sit vidtstrakte bispedømme. Han synes ogsaa at have været en god mand og almindelig afholdt. Men af karakter var han svag, og havd dygtighed angaar, da hævede han sig i denne henseende vistnok ikke over det almindelige.'')

But the Bishop of Hamar did have a part in the history of the centuries-long struggle for Norwegian independence. the Archbishop of Niðaros,

Olav Engelbrektsson Olav Engelbrektsson (, Trondenes, Norway – 7 February 1538, Lier, Belgium, Lier, Duchy of Brabant, Habsburg Netherlands) was the 28th Archdiocese of Nidaros, Archbishop of Norway from 1523 to 1537, the List of Norwegian monarchs, Regent of Norwa ...

, the Primate of all Norway, and the ''

Riksråd Riksrådet (in Norwegian and Swedish) or Rigsrådet (in Danish or English: the Council of the Realm and the Council of the State – sometimes translated as the "Privy Council") is the name of the councils of the Scandinavian countries that ...

'' (National Council of Norway) wanted the new King of Denmark and Norway, Frederick I, to respect the independence of Norway so, if he wished to be elected as the King of Norway, he would have to sign their agreement. But, to draft the agreement themselves, they needed his permission to have their meetings in Norway. So, in 1524, the Archbishop sent Lauritssøn to

to negotiate with the King. The Bishop was successful. A few months later, the King read and signed the agreement. He was elected as the King of Norway on 5 August 1524, two days before he was formally crowned as the King of Denmark in Copenhagen. But Frederick I and most of his governors did not respect the agreement, especially in the face of the incoming

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

. Eventually, the campaign for the independence of Norway withered until only Lauritssøn remained at the side of the Archbishop. Together, they supported Christian II against the latter's uncle, Frederick I, in the War of the Two Kings (1531–1532) and against Frederick's son, Christian III, in the

Count's Feud The Count's Feud (), sometimes referred to as the Count's War, was a Danish war of succession occurring from 1534 to 1536, which gave rise to the Reformation in Denmark. In the broader international context, it was a part of the European wars of ...

(1534–1536) Willson, ''History of the Church''
page 346
but Christian II lost each time. So the Bishop had to pay a hefty fine of 3,000 ''lodd'' ( 106 lbs. or 48 kg. ) of

silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

. Then the Reformation came.

The Reformation

In April 1537, to turn Norway into a

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

province/client kingdom, the new King of Denmark, Christian III, sent an army across the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

. His troops arrived at the Bergenhus Fortress in

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

on 1 May 1537. Led by Truid Ulfstand, they headed for Niðaros but the Archbishop had already fled to exile in the

Habsburg Netherlands Habsburg Netherlands were the parts of the Low Countries that were ruled by sovereigns of the Holy Roman Empire's House of Habsburg. This rule began in 1482 and ended for the Northern Netherlands in 1581 and for the Southern Netherlands in 1797. ...

. So they went after the remaining Bishops. One of them was the Bishop of Hamar. According to Thomas Benjamin Willson, the British historian, Lauritssøn was ready to make a last stand so he had his palace prepared for a siege but, when he saw the forces of Ulfstand, he lost his courage. After an interview with the commander, the Bishop agreed to surrender so, on 23 June 1537, he left as a prisoner. Willson then narrated the "truly pathetic" scene of the departureWillson, ''op. cit.'', page 347. with the English translation of Anton Christian Bang's Danish quotation:Bang, ''op. cit.'', page 322.

"As Herr Truid and the bishop went together to Strandbakken, he fell on his knees and thanked God in heaven for every day he had lived. Then he bid good-night to the canons and the priests, then to his cathedral and cloister, then to his chief men, to the common people, both townsmen and ''bønder'' (landowners), entreating them all to pray heartily for him, and said he hoped he would soon come to them again. But added, 'O God our Heavenly Father, if not before, grant that we may meet one another in heaven.' This prayer he uttered with many tears and added, ''Vale! Vale! Vale!'' ('Farewell! Farewell! Farewell!')"

The Bishop never saw

Hamar Hamar is a List of cities in Norway, town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet Counties of Norway, county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Hedmarken. ...

again. He was taken to Denmark, where he was kept as a prisoner, under medium security, at the Antvorskov Monastery. He died there on 3 October 1542. Even at the end of his life he still had a few loyal followers. One of them, Karine Alvsdatter, a sister of

Knut Alvsson Knut Alvsson (1455 – 18 August 1502) was a Norway, Norwegian nobleman and landowner. He was the country's foremost Norwegian-born noble in his time and served as fief-holder in southern-central Norway. He was heir of the Sudreim claim to t ...

and the heiress of the Grefsheim farm at Næs in

Hedmark Hedmark () was a Counties of Norway, county in Norway from 1 January 1919 to 31 December 2019, bordering Trøndelag to the north, Oppland to the west, Akershus to the south, and Sweden to the east. The county administration is in Hamar. Hedmar ...

, tried to give, with a deed of gift, the Grefsheim farm with all its accessories to the Bishop but by then he was already dead so he was unable to accept the gift. Today, 1271 yards (1162 meters) east of the ruins of the Hamar Cathedral and running to the shore, there is a street named ''Mogens gate'' (Mogens Street) in the memory of the Bishop. Per-Øivind Sandberg, "
Gatenavn i Hamar
' (Street Names of Hamar)", ''Hamar commune'' (''Municipality of Hamar''), page 20, retrieved 17 January 2014.

References

Bibliography

* A

ton Ton is any of several units of measure of mass, volume or force. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. As a unit of mass, ''ton'' can mean: * the '' long ton'', which is * the ''tonne'', also called the ''metric ...

Chr

stian Stian ronounce: Steejjańis a given name for males, originating from Norway. It is the modern form of the Old Norse name ''Stígandr'', which means "wanderer". Another translation given is "swift on his feet". Another modern derivation of th ...

Bang, ''Den Norske kirkes historie'' (''The History of the Norwegian Church''), Kristiania ow Osloand Copenhagen: ''Gyldendalske Boghandel Nordisk Forlag'' (Gyldendal Bookshop & Nordic Publishers), 1912
page 307
* J. M. Hansen, ''Hamar og dets Biskopper'' (''Hamar and Its Bishops''), Hamar: Th. A. Hansens Bogtrykkeri, 1866
page 23
* acob Rudolph Keyser, ''Den norske kirkes historie under katholicismen, Andet Bind'' (''The History of the Norwegian Church Under Catholicism, Second Volume''), Christiania ow Oslo Chr. Tønsbergs Forlag, 1858
page 613
* Thomas B njamin Willson, ''History of the Church and State in Norway from the Tenth Century to the Sixteenth Century'', (

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

: Archibald Constable & Co., Ltd., 1903)
pages 346-347
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mogens Lauritsson 1542 deaths History of Hamar 16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Norway University of Rostock alumni Year of birth unknown