Niels Ebbesen (1308 – 21 November 1340) 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 a ...

squire In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Use of the term evolved over time. Initially, a squire served as a knight's apprentice. Later, a village leader or a lord of the manor might come to be known as a ...

and

national hero The title of Hero is presented by various governments in recognition of acts of self-sacrifice to the state, and great achievements in combat or labor. It is originally a Soviet-type honor, and is continued by several nations including Belarus, Ru ...

, known for his killing of

Gerhard III, Count of Holstein-Rendsburg Gerhard III of Holstein-Rendsburg ( – 1 April 1340), sometimes called Gerhard the Great, and in Denmark also known as ''Count Gert'' or ''den kullede greve'' ("the bald count"), was a German prince from the Schauenburg family who ruled Hol ...

in 1340. From 1332 to 1340, Count Gerhard was the lord of both

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

and

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

. His death meant the end of Holstein rule in Denmark.

Biography

Little is known of Ebbesen's background. He seems to have belonged to the

gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest c ...

. Like many other of his class, he probably supported the Holstein occupiers during the years of chaos, but later turned against them and when Count Gerhard campaigned in

in 1340, Ebbesen supported the Jutland

guerrillas Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hit-and-run tacti ...

. On 1 April 1340, Ebbesen and 47 of his warriors entered

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).River Guden. Svend Trøst, one of Ebbesen's men, had weakened the bridge, and as soon as Ebbesen and his followers had crossed, they pulled the bridge down and made their escape, losing just a single man. Huitfeldt, Arild. Danmarks Riges Krønike During the following rebellion, Niels Ebbesen played a main role in the resistance but he was killed the same year during a fight against the Germans. 2000 Danes laid siege to

Skanderborg Skanderborg is a town in Skanderborg municipality, Denmark. It is situated on the north and north eastern brinks of Skanderborg Lake and there are several smaller ponds and bodies of water within the city itself, like Lillesø, Sortesø, Døj S ...

Castle in April 1340. A relief force of 600 German knights and a simultaneous attack from the castle drove the Danes back into their

wagon fort A wagon fort, wagon fortress, or corral, often referred to as Circle the wagons (idiom), circling the wagons, is a temporary fortification made of wagons arranged into a rectangle, circle, or other shape and possibly joined with each other to pro ...

ress on Nun Hill. The ring of wagons was breached, and Ebbesen and his men were surrounded and butchered by the Germans.

Legacy

Traditionally, Niels Ebbesen has been regarded one of the great heroes of medieval Danish history and one of the symbols of Danish nationality. His actions marked the beginning of the

liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...

of Denmark. Yet others disapproved of his act, regarding it as simply

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

. Whether his motives were purely national or partly private is impossible to know. This has not prevented both romantic Danish poetry and modern ballads from praising him as a freedom fighter. A memorial to Niels Ebbesen and his followers was first erected in 1878 at

. The Visbycross of stone with a bronze sword was designed by the sculptor

Louis Hasselriis Louis Hasselriis (12 January 1844 – 20 May 1912) was a Danish sculptor known for his public statuary. Early life and education Hasselriis was born in Hillerød, the son of Herman Edvard Louis H (1815–1907) and Sophie Frederikke Schondel ( ...

(1844–1912) A statue of Niels Ebbesen was erected in 1882 at

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).German occupation of Denmark At the outset of World War II in September 1939, Denmark declared itself neutral. For most of the war, the country was a protectorate and then an occupied territory of Germany. The decision to occupy Denmark was taken in Berlin on 17 December ...

in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, a play about Ebbesen's rebellion was written by the dramatist Kaj Munk (1898–1944). The Nazi occupiers banned the play and murdered its playwright. A ballad (

DgF ''Danmarks gamle Folkeviser'' is a collection of (in principle) all known texts and recordings of the old Danish popular ballads. It drew both on early modern manuscripts, such as Karen Brahes Folio, and much more recent folk-song collecting activi ...

156, "Niels Ebbesen") dealing with the killing of Count Gerhard by Ebbesen was translated into English in Alexander Gray's ''Historical Ballads of Denmark'' (Edinburgh University Press, 1958).

References

Other sources

*''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon'', vol. 4, Copenh. 1980. *''Politikens Danmarkshistorie'', vol. 4 by Erik Kjersgaard, Copenh. 1962. *''Jyske Krønike'', transl. by Rikke Agnete Olsen. Aarhus, 1995.

External links

Carley's English translation of Kaj Munk's play
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ebbesen, Niels 1340 deaths Year of birth unknown 14th-century Danish people Danish assassins Danish military personnel killed in action 1308 births