Mogens Ulfeldt (22 April 1569 – 15 June 1616) 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 ance ...

naval officer and landowner. He served as

Admiral of the Realm Admiral of the Realm was a military and political title given to nobles in Denmark-Norway ( da, Rigsadmiral), Sweden ( sv, Riksamiral) and Holy Roman Empire (german: Reichsadmiral). Denmark-Norway and Sweden Almost at the same time in the 1570s, ...

from 1610.

Early life

Ulfeldt was born at Selsø Manor, the son of Jakob Ulfeldt (d. 1593) and Anne Jakobsdatter Flemming (1544–70). He was the elder brother of Jacob Ulfeldt. Mogens Ulfeldt studied in

Wittenberg Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon language, Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the Ri ...

(1582–86),

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a popu ...

(1583) and

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...

. Soon after his return to Denmark, he went on another journey to Austria, Hungary and Italy. He studied at the universities of

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

(1587) and

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

(1588) before continuing to

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

where he participated in the

Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

's battles against the Turks.

Career

Back in Denmark, Ulfeldt served as ''

hofjunker ''Valet de chambre'' (), or ''varlet de chambre'', was a noble court, court appointment introduced in the late Middle Ages, common from the 14th century onwards. Royal households had many persons appointed at any time. While some valets simply ...

'' in 1590–94. A favourite of the young Christian IV, in 1599 he was appointed vice captain of the king's ship on an expedition to the Arctic Sea. The following year, he was granted Kronborg as a

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an Lord, overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a for ...

. In 1604, Kronborg was exchanged for Kristianopel and Sølvitsborg. In 1602, Ulfeldt was appointed admiral of a fleet to Narva. In 1606, with the title of vice admiral, he participated on the king's voyage to England. In 1609–10, he was commander of the flotilla that defended the Danish ''

dominium maris baltici The establishment of a , . ("Baltic Sea dominion") was one of the primary political aims of the Danish and Swedish kingdoms in the late medieval and early modern eras. Throughout the Northern Wars the Danish and Swedish navies played a secondary ...

'' and successfully terminated the Swedish blockade of

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

. In March 1610, Ulfeldt was made a member of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

and appointed an Admiral of the Realm. He was granted Villands Herred as a replacement of his earlier fiefs in the same year. In February 1611, he was probably part of the Privy Council majority that condoled Christian IV's decision to declare war against Sweden. In March through September, he served as commander of a Danish fleet that operated at Kalmar and Gotland. In June 1612, Ulfeldt and Gert Rantzau gained control of

Öland Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area ...

. In the autumn, he headed the Danish fleet under Christian IV's command. In late 1612, he acquired the fief of Tranekær in exchange for Villands Herred.

Property

Ulfeldt inherited

Selsø Selsø (''Selsø Slot'') is a historic manor house located near Skibby, on the Hornsherred peninsula, Frederikssund Municipality, some west of Copenhagen, Denmark. The estate traces its history back to the 13th century. The current main buildi ...

, Tvis Kloster and Krogsdal in Western Jutland.

Personal life

On 7 August 1597, Ulfeldt was married to Anne Munk, a daughter of Christen Munk (c. 1520–79) and Dorthe Gyldenstierne (d. 1583). They had four children (1616–24): Corfitz Ulfeldt, Jacob Ulfeldt, Christian Ulfeldt and Anne Ulfeldt. An "action by his wife" prompted Ulfeldt to imprison her at Selsø Castle, with the king's permission. She was not given her full freedom until 1624. Ulfeldt fell ill and died in 1616.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulfeldt, Mogens 1569 births 1616 deaths Royal Danish Navy admirals Mogens