Ulrik Fredrik Valdemar baron Løvendal (; 25 September 1660 – 4 June 1740), was a Danish-Norwegian

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

, civil servant, and military officer. He served as Governor-general of Norway from 1710 to 1712, serving under King Frederick IV. He also served as

Commanding General The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

during the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

, and later as a high-ranking politician in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

Early life

Ulrik Fredrik Valdemar Løvendal was born in

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

on 25 September 1660 to

Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve, Landgrave of Laurvig (20 July 1638 – 17 April 1704) was the illegitimate son of Frederick III of Denmark-Norway. A good relationship to his half brother, Christian V, secured him a position as one of the leading stat ...

and his first wife Sophie Urne, daughter of

marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used fo ...

Jørgen Knudsen Urne Jørgen Knudsen Urne (17 October 1598 – 19 February 1642) was a Denmark, Danish noble who served as ''Rigsmarsk (Denmark), Rigsmarsk'' from 1632 to 1642. Biography The son of Knud Axelsen Urne and Margrethe Eilertsdatter Grubbe, Jørgen Knud ...

. He was born into the

House of Oldenburg The House of Oldenburg is a Germans, German dynasty whose members rule or have ruled in Danish Realm, Denmark, Kingdom of Iceland, Iceland, Kingdom of Greece, Greece, Norway, Russian Empire, Russia, Sweden, United Kingdom, the United Kingdom, King ...

as his father was an illegitimate son of King Frederick III. Løvendal was born with a twin brother, Carl, who died in 1689.

Career

Early military career

Løvendal started his military career in 1679 in the Blue Guards of the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

, where he eventually achieved the rank of

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

. In 1682, Løvendal and his brother Carl were both awarded the title of Baron von Løvendal. In 1683, Løvendal served as an imperial guard colonel, equivalent to the rank of

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

, during the

Battle of Vienna The Battle of Vienna took place at Kahlenberg Mountain near Vienna on 1683 after the city had been besieged by the Ottoman Empire for two months. The battle was fought by the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarchy) and the Polish–Li ...

. Following this, he entered Danish military service as a Lieutenant Colonel and an adjutant general in

. In 1684 he was promoted to the rank of

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

and assigned commander of a new

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat wi ...

regiment which was garrisoned in

Holstein Holstein (; ; ; ; ) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider (river), Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost States of Germany, state of Germany. Holstein once existed as the German County of Holstein (; 8 ...

. He was promoted again in 1699 to

Brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

, and after distinguishing himself with his service in the

in 1700, he was promoted to Major General. After his promotion to Major General, Løvendal settled in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

where he became a merchant.

Early political career in Dresden

His wife Dorothea died in 1706, causing to him to move to

. There, he gained favor with high ranking-politicians with the assistance of his late wife's cousin, the Countess of Cosel. This led to his employment in the court of

Augustus II Augustus II the Strong (12 May 1670 – 1 February 1733), was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the H ...

in 1707, where he was Chamber President and Chief Mining Director. While in Dresden, he gained favor with King Frederick IV of Denmark-Norway.

Governor-general of Norway

He returned to Denmark in 1710 and was promoted to Commanding General of Norway. He was also given the title of Director-General of Civil Service, making him the governor-general of Norway. Resuming his leadership of the Danish-Norwegian troops in Norway during the Great Northern War, Løvendal led an invasion of

Bohuslän Bohuslän () is a Provinces of Sweden, Swedish province in Götaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the ...

in 1711 to prevent Sweden from sending troops to Germany. The incursion failed, however Løvendal garnered widespread support for Norway among the population of Bohuslän. Løvendal encouraged public anger towards Swedish king

Charles XII Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII () or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.), was King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of the House of ...

by pointing out the king's friendliness towards the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

and the

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic of Turkey * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic lang ...

. Because of this, he was awarded the

Order of the Elephant The Order of the Elephant () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry and is Denmark's highest-ranked honour. It has origins in the 15th century, but has officially existed since 1693, and since the establishment of constitutional monarchy in ...

when he returned to Denmark in 1712.

Later political career in Dresden

Shortly after returning to Denmark, Løvendal left the Danish military and returned to Dresden to replace August II's chief court marshal who had died. He was also appointed to August II's Privy Council, and later became a

cabinet minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ' prime minister', ' p ...

in 1717. In 1721, Løvendal was awarded the Order of the White Eagle. He continued to serve his political positions until his death in 1740.

Personal life and death

Løvendal married Dorothea Margrethe Brockdorff of the Holsteiner

Brockdorff The Brockdorff family is a Schleswig-Holsteiner old noble house that belonged to German and Danish nobility. History It first appeared in a document from 1167 where Eilwardus de Bruchthorp was mentioned by Duke Henry the Lion of Saxony. Membe ...

family in 1687. They had two children together, Hedevig and

Ulrich Friedrich Woldemar von Löwendal Ulrich Friedrich Woldemar Graf von Löwendal (, tr. ; 1700–1755) was a German officer and statesman. Life Graf von Löwendal served first under German Emperor Charles VI in the Imperial Army. He joined the Danish Army for a short time, the ...

. After the death of his first wife, he remarried to Benedicte Margrethe Rantzau of the

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

Rantzau family in 1709. They had four children together, however none of them survived infancy. Løvendal owned three estates in

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

throughout his life. He first purchased the Schloss Elsterwerda manor in

Elsterwerda Elsterwerda (; Lower Sorbian: ''Wikow'') is a town in the Elbe-Elster district, in southwestern Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the Black Elster river, 48 km northwest of Dresden, and 11 km southeast of Bad Liebenwerda. Histor ...

in 1708. In 1716, he purchased two additional manors at in

Lauchhammer Lauchhammer (, ) or Łuchow is a town in the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district, in southern Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the Black Elster river, approx. 17 km west of Senftenberg, and 50 km north of Dresden. History From 1815 to ...

and Schloss Saathain in

Röderland Röderland is a municipality in the Elbe-Elster district, in Brandenburg, Germany. History From 1952 to 1990, the constituent localities of Röderland were part of the Bezirk Cottbus of East Germany. On 26 October 2003, the municipality of Röderl ...

. After encountering financial troubles, Løvendal sold his manor at Schloss Elsterwerda to August II in 1727. Løvendal died in Dresden on 4 June 1740.

References

{{Governors-general of Norway 1660 births 1740 deaths Governors-general of Norway 17th-century Danish nobility 18th-century Danish nobility 18th-century Norwegian military personnel Politicians from Dresden