The House of Trolle (sometimes in Danish ''Trold'') is the name of a

Scania Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skån ...

n noble family, originally from

Småland Småland () is a historical province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means ''Small Lands''. The Latinized f ...

, in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

. The family has produced prominent people in the histories of

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

and in Sweden since the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and is associated with several estates in both countries.

Family history

Their historically attested male-line ancestors are known as far back as the 14th century. The earliest historical ancestor was the knight Birger Knutsson, also known as ''Birghe Trulle''. The earliest known generations held the estate of Bo in

, Sweden. Birger Birgersson Trolle, High Councillor of Sweden, inherited the castle Bergkvara from his half-brother Håkan Karlsson.

Arvid Birgersson Arvid Birgersson, Lord of Bergkvara (c. 1440 – 20 February 1505) was a Swedish magnate and politician in the last decades of Middle Ages. He was justiciar of Östergötland and then of Tiohärad, as well as a Lord High Councillor of Sweden, an ...

and

Eric Arvidsson Eric Trolle (or Erik Arvidsson) (c. 1460–1530) was elected regent of Sweden in 1512, during the era of Kalmar Union. He was Justiciar of Närke and a Lord High Councillor of Sweden from 1487. Biography Eric Arvidsson was born around 1460 into ...

were among mightiest in the country and both almost became Regents of Sweden in their time, in competition against the Sture family.

Gustav Trolle Gustav Eriksson Trolle (September 1488 – 1535) was Archbishop of Uppsala, Sweden, in two sessions, during the turbulent Reformation events. He was the son of Eric Arvidsson Trolle, a former regent of Sweden during the era of the Kalmar Union. ...

was

Archbishop of Uppsala The Archbishop of Uppsala (spelled Upsala until the early 20th century) has been the primate (bishop), primate of Sweden in an unbroken succession since 1164, first during the Roman Catholic Church, Catholic era, and from the 1530s and onward un ...

. The original Swedish line of the family died out in the late 16th century. Eric's younger half-brother Joachim (d 1546) had inherited Lilloe in

Skåne Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skån ...

from his mother and settled in Denmark. The Danish family line continued through his relatives, becoming an important house of high nobility. One of his sons was Danish admiral

Herluf Trolle Herluf Trolle (14 January 1516 – 25 June 1565) was a Danish naval hero, Admiral of the Fleet and co-founder of Herlufsholm School (''Herlufsholm Skole og Gods''), a private boarding school at Næstved on the island of Zealand in Denmark. ...

and one of great-grandsons Niels Trolle (''Nils Trolle til Trollesholm og Gavnø'') was Statholder of Norway.''Trolle – dansk slekt'' (Store norske leksikon)
/ref> Sweden again got a branch of the family when Niels Trolle's son Arvid Nielsen Trold, Lord of

Trollenäs Castle Trollenäs Castle ( sv, Trollenäs slott) is a castle in Eslöv Municipality, Scania, in southern Sweden. It dates from the 14th century, and has been in the ownership of only two families, Thott and Trolle. The current building goes back to 1559 ...

, swore loyalty to Sweden (and was in 1689 given the seat among Sweden's nobility) after Skåne, his native land, had become a permanent part of Sweden. The head of the house received in 1816 the primogeniturally hereditary title of baron in Sweden for the House. All currently extant branches of the House of Trolle descend from him, the remaining Danish branches are still alive and can be found in Denmark.

Coat of arms

The family name comes from the family coat of arms that depicts a headless

troll A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human ...

. According to tradition, the family had taken these arms on the basis of a legend that a common ancestor must have killed a troll and robbed a drinking horn, which was called ''Våxtorpshornet el''. Trolle coat of arms

Prominent family members

;Denmark *

(1516–1565), Danish naval hero * Niels Trolle, vice admiral *

Mette Trolle Mette Trolle (1637 – floruit 1679), was a Danish noblewoman, poet and Catholic convert, known for her unconventional life style. Biography She was the daughter of noble Niels Trolle (1599-1667) and Helle Rosenkrantz (1618-85), and was in ...

;Sweden * Eric Trolle (c. 1460–1530), Swedish Lord High Constable *

(1488–1535),

* Frederik Trolle (1693-1770) Owner of Trolleholms Castle * Nils Axel Arvid Carlsson Trolle (1859-1930), Baron of Trollenäs Castle * Ulf Trolle Managing Director of Trollenäs Gods AB

References

{{Reflist

External links

Trollenäs Castle official website

Family history

Coat of arms

Prominent family members

See also

References

External links