Tønne Huitfeldt (20 November 1625 – 12 September 1677) was a Norwegian military officer and landowner. He is best known for leading the defense of

Halden Halden (), between 1665 and 1928 known as Fredrikshald, is both a List of cities in Norway, town and a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Østfold Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The municipality borders Sarpsborg to the northwest, R ...

, during the

Second Northern War The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of ...

. He was a signatory of the 1661 Sovereignty Act, the new constitution of Denmark-Norway, as one of the representatives of the noble estate.

Career

Tønne Huitfeldt was born in

Hurum Hurum was a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. As of 1 January 2020 Hurum has merged with the municipalities of Røyken and Asker to form the new Asker Municipality located in the newly formed Viken county. The administrative centre of th ...

Buskerud Buskerud () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Innlandet, Vestland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Hardanger ...

. In 1644, he was appointed lieutenant governor by Hannibal Sehested, Governor-general of Norway. In 1657, Huitfeld was promoted to lieutenant colonel and chief of the Norwegian soldiers who were sent to Denmark. In 1651, he was appointed captain in the Båhusiske Regiment at

Bohus Fortress Bohus Fortress lies in Kungälv, Bohuslän, Sweden, north east from Hisingen where the Göta river splits into two branches ( north of Gothenburg). It commands the surrounding area from a cliff high, with the river forming a natural moat arou ...

. In 1659, Huitfeld was appointed a colonel and commander of the defense of

. Situated at the mouth of the Tista River on the

Iddefjord Iddefjord ( or Idde Fjord; ); ) is a classic fjord with a narrow watercourse and steep natural formations on both sides. It runs along the Sweden-Norway border, Norwegian-Swedish border from the Singlefjord ().''A Brief Geographical and Hydro Gra ...

, Halden is located near the southernmost border crossing between Norway and Sweden. In 1660, the town and fortress came under attack by Swedish army under Field Marshal

Lars Kagg Lars Kagg (1 May 1595 – 19 November 1661) was a Swedish count and military officer. He was a political ally of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, a member of the Privy Council of Sweden and Field Marshal during the Thirty Years' War. Kagg was b ...

. Huitfeld successfully led the defense of the city along with Lieutenant General

Jørgen Bjelke Jørgen Bjelke (2 June 1621 – 17 June 1696) was a Dano-Norwegian or Norwegian officer and nobleman. He was born at Elingaard Manor on Onsøy near Fredrikstad, in Østfold County, Norway, and died in Kalundborg, Denmark. Early and personal lif ...

. Concurrently, Huitfeldt began construction of fortifications at Fredriksten Fortress which was the citadel of the fortification system. Huitfeld owned several properties in the region of

Oslofjord The Oslofjord (, ; ) is an inlet in southeastern Norway. The fjord begins at the small village of Bonn in Frogn, Frogn Municipality and stretching northwards to the city of Oslo, and then curving to the east and then south again. It then flows s ...

. Among these were the farms Tronstad (''Tronstad gård'') at

and Tomb (''Tomb Herregård'') at

Råde Råde is a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Karlshus. The parish of ''Raade'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. The neighbouring municipalities are Vå ...

Østfold Østfold () is a county in Eastern Norway, which from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2023 was part of Viken. Østfold borders Akershus and southwestern Sweden (Västra Götaland County and Värmland), while Buskerud and Vestfold are on the other ...

. Huitfeld was married twice and was the father of Danish-Norwegian naval officer,

Iver Huitfeldt Iver Huitfeldt (5 December 1665 – 4 October 1710) was a Danish-Norwegian naval officer who was killed in action, when he commanded the ship '' Dannebroge'' during the Great Northern War. Biography Iver Huitfeldt was born in the Norwegian town ...

.''Tronstad gård'' (Hurumhistorie)
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References

Other sources

*Huitfeldt, Erik Tønne (1983) ''Grunnloven og injurievernet'' (Universitetsforlaget)

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Huitfeldt, Tonne 1625 births 1677 deaths People from Hurum Norwegian Army personnel Signatories of the Sovereignty Act Norwegian landowners 17th-century landowners Huitfeldt family