Valborg Joakimsdotter Fleming (died after 1542) was a Finnish

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa''), also known as a mother superior, is the female superior of a community of Catholic nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic ...

. She was the abbess of Nådendal Abbey in 1526–1531.

Biography

She was born before 1494 as the daughter of the ''

riksråd Riksrådet (in Norwegian and Swedish), 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 rule ...

'' nobleman Joakim Fleming and Elin Björnsdotter of Svidja, and the sister of ''

'' admiral Erik Joakimsson Fleming and

Ivar Fleming Ivar (Old Norse ''Ívarr'') is a Scandinavian masculine given name. Another variant of the name is Iver, which is more common in Norway. The Old Norse name has several possible etymologies. In North Germanic phonology, several of the elements c ...

, two of the most powerful men in Finland, and aunt of

Filippa Fleming Filippa Eriksdotter Fleming (died 1578) was a Finnish noble and landowner. Family She was born to Erik Fleming and Hebbla Siggesdotter, was the sister of Joakim Fleming and Klas Fleming, and niece of Valborg Fleming. She was the heir of a lar ...

. She was placed in Nådendal Abbey as a nun by her family, and was promoted abbess in 1526. This was one year before the

Swedish Reformation The Reformation in Sweden is generally regarded as having begun in 1527 during the reign of King Gustav I of Sweden, but the process was slow and did not end definitively until the Uppsala Synod of 1593 and the following War against Sigismund, with ...

. During the reformation, the convent was placed under pressure. The reformation allowed for the donors, or the families of former donors, to retract all donations made to convents, which placed all convents at financial risk: additionally, the convents were banned from accepting new members, and the existing were allowed to leave if they wished. These were problems Valborg had to attend during her tenure. Despite being the sister of the most powerful men in Finland, Valborg did not benefit in her struggle to protect the convent. Instead, her brothers took advantage of her difficult position, and they forced her to sign over a great amount of the convent's assets in exchange for their support and financial help. Valborg instead appealed directly to

Gustav I of Sweden Gustav I, born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family and later known as Gustav Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560, previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm ('' Riksföre ...

, and successfully asked for the convent to keep the property it owned upon its foundation from confiscation: she was in fact also granted two estates more for the abbey's upkeep (1530). This saved the convent financially (if temporarily) and made it possible to support their members. In 1534, Valborg left the convent and settled with her brother Erik on his estate Svidja in

Sjundeå Siuntio (; sv, Sjundeå) is a municipality of Finland located in the Uusimaa region in the province of Southern Finland. Its neighboring municipalities are Ingå to the west, Kirkkonummi, to the east, Lohja to the north-west, and Vihti to the n ...

parish.

References

Biografiskt lexikon för Finland 1. Svenska tiden (2008).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fleming, Valborg 16th-century Finnish nobility Bridgettine nuns Swedish Roman Catholic abbesses 15th-century births 16th-century deaths People from Naantali 16th-century Swedish nuns

Biography

See also

References