Christian Barnekow (24 January 1556 – 21 February 1612) was a Danish nobleman, estate holder and diplomat. He was noted for his extensive travels. He is remembered for sacrificing his own life in an effort to save that of

Christian IV Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years and 330 days is the longest in Scandinavian history. A member of the H ...

in the Battle of Skillingehed at

Varberg Varberg () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Varberg Municipality, Halland County, Sweden, with 35,782 inhabitants in 2019. Varberg and all of Halland are well known for their "typical west coast" sandy beaches. In Varberg th ...

Halland Halland () is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap''), on the western coast of Götaland, southern Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Småland, Skåne, Scania and the sea of Kattegat. Until 1645 and the Second Treaty of Br ...

. He is thus credited with giving his horse to the king with the words "I give my horse to the king, my life to the enemy and my soul to God". His holdings included Birkholm (now Løvenborg) and Tølløsegård at

Holbæk Holbæk () is a town in Denmark and the County seat, seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 30,903 (1 January 2025).Kristen Bernikows Gade in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

is named after him. It is located on the site of his former city home.

Early life and education

Barnekow was a son of Pomeranian nobleman Hans Mortensen Barnekow of Birkholm (d. 1559) and Mette Johansdatter Oxe (d. 1582), sister of Danish finance minister and Steward of the Realm, Peder Oxe (1520–1575). His father had acquired Birkholm (now Løvenborg) from the Crown in 1547 at which time he was also ennobled. Barnekow spent nearly 16 years of his early life travelling throughout Europe and the Middle East, including a three-year journey in the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. He spent six years at the Universities of

Jena Jena (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 in ...

and

Ingolstadt Ingolstadt (; Austro-Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian: ) is an Independent city#Germany, independent city on the Danube, in Upper Bavaria, with 142,308 inhabitants (as of 31 December 2023). Around half a million people live in the metropolitan ...

and two years at the

University of Padua The University of Padua (, UNIPD) is an Italian public research university in Padua, Italy. It was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from the University of Bologna, who previously settled in Vicenza; thus, it is the second-oldest ...

Career

After his return to Copenhagen he became a diplomat for the Danish king, with further travels in Scotland, England, Poland and Brandenburg.

Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms * Queen B ...

gave him gifts of gilt plate weighing 850 ounces. Probably in 1591 he gave his autograph to Dietrich Bevernest, writing a Spanish proverb, ''Qui no ci cança, nunca alcança'', meaning "those who never grow weary will achieve". On 12 July 1594 he came to Scotland with Danish envoy

Steen Bille Steen Bille (1565–1629) was a Danish councillor and diplomat. He was the son of Jens Bille and Karen Rønnow, and is sometimes called "Steen Jensen Bille". His father compiled a manuscript of ballads, Jens Billes visebog. As a young man Bille ...

(1565-1629) for the baptism of Prince Henry at

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most historically and architecturally important castles in Scotland. The castle sits atop an Intrusive rock, intrusive Crag and tail, crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill ge ...

. When they arrived Queen

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), Annie a ...

left

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

for

Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, who took refuge there from political and religious turmoil of her times. Today it is under th ...

because

Holyrood Palace The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly known as Holyrood Palace, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood has s ...

was not magnificent enough. King

James VI James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

had an audience with them on 15 July, and after a few days arranged for them to lodge in private houses in

Lothian Lothian (; ; ) is a region of the Scottish Lowlands, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills. The principal settlement is the Scottish capital, Edinburgh, while other signific ...

because he could not afford to host them. Barnekow and his colleague Steen Bille brought necklaces for Queen Anne and Prince Henry, and King James gave them gold chains, which were heavier than those made for the ambassadors from the dukes of

Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin, Neubrandenburg, Wismar and Güstrow. ...

and Brunswick. In March 1595, the Scottish Jesuit Father James Myreton, brother of the Laird of Cambo, was detained at

Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...

and brought to King James VI. He said he was sent from

Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII (; ; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 January 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born in Fano, Papal States to a prominen ...

and Cardinal Cajetan. He brought a jewel from the Cardinal that depicted the Crucifixion made of gold, crystal, and bone, which King James gave to Queen Anne. The incident was of some significance and was reported to Barnekow, who commented that James VI did not have strong links with Rome. In September 1597, Barnekow and

Arild Huitfeldt Arild Huitfeldt (Arvid) (11 September 1546 – 16 December 1609) was a Danish historian and state official, known for his vernacular Chronicle of Denmark. Life Huitfeldt was born on 11 September 1546, into an aristocratic family from Scania, pa ...

(1546–1609) were envoys to London and lodged in

Fenchurch Street Fenchurch Street is a street in London, England, linking Aldgate at its eastern end with Lombard Street and Gracechurch Street in the west. It is a well-known thoroughfare in the City of London financial district and is the site of many cor ...

in the house of Alderman Houghton or the Customer Master Smith. Their mission concerned the Sound tolls. They returned the insignia of the Order of Garter that had belonged to King

Frederick II of Denmark Frederick II (1 July 1534 – 4 April 1588) was King of Denmark-Norway, Denmark and Norway and Duke of Duchy of Schleswig, Schleswig and Duchy of Holstein, Holstein from 1559 until his death in 1588. A member of the House of Oldenburg, Fre ...

. At

Theobalds Theobalds House (also known as Theobalds Palace) in the parish of Cheshunt in the England, English county of Hertfordshire, north of London, was a significant stately home and (later) royal palace of the 16th and early 17th centuries. Set in ex ...

made a joke at their expense on her birthday, 7 September. After their audiences in London they came to Scotland. Christian Barnekow came to London with Christian IV in June 1606, and King James gave him a gold chain and a gold medallion. Barnekow was present at the Battle of Skillingehed at

. He was killed during the battle supposedly after giving his horse to the king with the words: "I give my horse to the king, my life to the enemy and my soul to God".

Personal life and property

Christian Barnekow inherited Birkholm after the death of his elder brother Johan Barnekow Birkolm in 1603. Barnekow acquired Vittskövle Castle (''Vittskövle Slot'') in

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

following his marriage to Margareta Brahe (1584-1617), daughter of Henrik Brahe who had completed the castle in 1577. He acquired Tølløsegård (''Tølløse Slot'') jointly with his brother Jens Barnekow, in 1592 from the estate of Mette Rosenkrantz (1533-1588), widow of Peder Oxe. Christian Barnekow died in 1612 during the

Kalmar War The Kalmar War (1611–1613) was fought between Denmark–Norway and Sweden. Though Denmark-Norway soon gained the upper hand, it was unable to defeat Sweden entirely. The Kalmar War was the last time Denmark-Norway successfully defended its '' ...

against Sweden after which his widow, Margrethe Brahe, took over his estates together with their two still underage sons Hans Barnekow (b. 1601) and Ove Barnekow (b. 1608). Hans Poulsen Resen (1561-1638), Bishop of the Diocese of Zealand held the funeral session for Barnekow on 26 March 1612 in Elsinore. He noted in his writings that Barnekow brought back with him many rare things, which he had found in foreign countries; unfortunately they have all disappeared.

References

Other Sources

*Olsen, Gitte Hou (2006) ''Danish castles and manors'' (Gudrun Publishing) {{DEFAULTSORT:Barnekow, Christian 1556 births 1612 deaths People from Region Zealand Danish diplomats Danish explorers People of the Kalmar War Ambassadors of Denmark to Scotland Ambassadors of Denmark to England Barnekow family People from Denmark–Norway