Manderup Parsberg (24 December 1546 – 11 November 1625) was a Danish nobleman and politician who was member of the Royal Privy Council to King

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian mon ...

Student life

As a student at the

University of Rostock The University of Rostock (german: link=no, Universität 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 continen ...

, he participated in a duel against his third cousin,

Tycho Brahe Tycho Brahe ( ; born Tyge Ottesen Brahe; generally called Tycho (14 December 154624 October 1601) was a Danish astronomer, known for his comprehensive astronomical observations, generally considered to be the most accurate of his time. He was ...

in which he cut off most of his nose. The two later became good friends, and Parsberg married Tycho's distant cousin Anne Pedersdatter Brahe (1578–1633). Parsberg was lord to Hagesholm.

Politician and diplomat

Manderup Parsberg, Henrik Below and Nicolaus Theophilus were appointed ambassadors to Scotland in 1585 and arrived in June.

James VI James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

appointed Sir James Melville of Halhill,

William Schaw William Schaw (c. 1550–1602) was Master of Works to James VI of Scotland for building castles and palaces, and is claimed to have been an important figure in the development of Freemasonry in Scotland. Biography William Schaw was the second ...

, and the Laird of Segie to be companions to the Danish ambassadors. Melville described the events of the embassy. At

Dunfermline Palace Dunfermline Palace is a ruined former Scottish royal palace and important tourist attraction in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. It is currently, along with other buildings of the adjacent Dunfermline Abbey, under the care of Historic Environment ...

they discussed the disputed ownership of the Orkney Islands. It was also rumoured they discussed the king's marriage. They were not treated in the usual manner but had to pay their own expenses, and when they were to travel to St Andrews the promised horses were late. At St Andrews they suffered some abuse organised by supporters of the pro-French faction. A leading courtier,

James Stewart, Earl of Arran Captain James Stewart, Earl of Arran (died 1595) was created Earl of Arran by the young King James VI, who wrested the title from James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran. He rose to become Lord Chancellor of Scotland and was eventually murdered in ...

, who had served in Sweden was a ringleader. The English ambassador Edward Wotton helped them because England and Denmark were allies, and told them privately that James VI had criticised Danish customs and their king Frederick II. According to Melville, the Danish envoys considered leaving Scotland, but he persuaded them to continue and spoke to James VI in their favour. When the mission was concluded, the three Danish ambassadors were supposed to receive gifts of gold chains but these were not ready. The Master of Gray described the discussion in the

Parliament of Scotland The Parliament of Scotland ( sco, Pairlament o Scotland; gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba) was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland from the 13th century until 1707. The parliament evolved during the early 13th century from the king's council o ...

in July 1585 to give an answer to the Danish embassy regarding a league or peace treaty involving England. Parsberg was involved in a diplomatic discussion at Bremen in 1602, where English shipping, fishing issues, and access to the Sound toll were discussed. The other Danish negotiators were Jonas Charisius and Arnold Witfield. One of English diplomats,

Stephen Lesieur Stephen Lesieur or Le Sieur ( fl. 1575 –1640) was a Swiss-born English ambassador to Denmark, Florence, and the Holy Roman Empire. Career Lesieur was born in Geneva, came to England in 1575, and was first employed as a servant of Sir Philip Sidn ...

sent a portrait of

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

. When, in a funeral oration for Tycho Brahe, an allusion was made to an unfortunate duel, Parsberg protested and sought redress through King Christian, stating that they had been good friends from that time onward, and that the injury Brahe suffered had been accidental, in the course of a fair fight. On this basis he wished the reference to be removed from the oration."Manderup Parsberg" in the Great Danish Encyclopedia
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References

1546 births 1625 deaths 16th-century Danish people 16th-century Danish landowners Ambassadors of Denmark to Scotland Parsberg family {{Denmark-bio-stub