Jørgen Thormøhlen ( – 25 December 1708) was a German-born Norwegian merchant, shipowner, slave trader and industrialist.

Biography

Thormøhlen was born in the

Duchy of Holstein The Duchy of Holstein (; ) was the northernmost state of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the present German state of Schleswig-Holstein. It originated when King Christian I of Denmark had his County of Holstein-Rendsburg elevated to a duchy ...

, at that time a hereditary possession of the

King of Denmark The monarchy of Denmark is a constitutional political system, institution and a historic office of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Kingdom includes Denmark proper and the autonomous administrative division, autonomous territories of the Faroe Is ...

as Duke of

Holstein-Glückstadt Holstein-Glückstadt or Schleswig-Holstein-Glückstadt is the historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein that were ruled by the Kings of Denmark in their function as dukes ...

. He was the son of Jürgen ther Möhlen, a German wine trader from

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 ...

. In 1664, he settled in

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

, where he married Giertrud Magers. She was the daughter of naturalized citizen Hendrich Magers, who was regarded as the wealthiest merchant in Bergen. Thormøhlen became the largest

ship-owner A shipowner, ship owner or ship-owner is the owner of a ship. They can be merchant vessels involved in the sea transport, shipping industry or non commercially owned. In the commercial sense of the term, a shipowner is someone who equips and expl ...

in Norway, trading fish from

Northern Norway Northern Norway (, , ; ) is a geographical region of Norway, consisting of the three northernmost counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainland. Some of the largest towns in Northern Norway (from south to no ...

and being involved in a number of other businesses. He made his fortune through overseas and domestic trade (including the Danish slave trade) and owning ships. He also developed an industrial site located at Vestre Sydnes. The property included a salt refinery, packing sheds, a deep-water harbour, and employee homes. Thormøhlen was the main owner of the Norwegian

slave ship Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting Slavery, slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea ( ...

''Cornelia'', which in 1673 sailed to

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

transporting a cargo of

liquor Liquor ( , sometimes hard liquor), spirits, distilled spirits, or spiritous liquor are alcoholic drinks produced by the distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar that have already gone through ethanol fermentation, alcoholic ferm ...

and trinkets which it exchanged for a number of

enslaved Africans Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were once commonplace in parts of Africa, as they were in much of the rest of the Ancient history, ancient and Post-classical history, medieval world. When t ...

; 103 slaves were transported to the island of Saint Thomas in the

Danish West Indies The Danish West Indies () or Danish Virgin Islands () or Danish Antilles were a Danish colony in the Caribbean, consisting of the islands of Saint Thomas with , Saint John () with , Saint Croix with , and Water Island. The islands of St ...

by the ''Cornelia''. In the next year, the ''Cornelia'' made another

triangular trade Triangular trade or triangle trade is trade between three ports or regions. Triangular trade usually evolves when a region has export commodities that are not required in the region from which its major imports come. It has been used to offset ...

voyage, again delivering 103 slaves to Saint Thomas. In 1682,

King Christian V Christian V (15 April 1646 – 25 August 1699) was King of Denmark and Norway from 1670 until his death in 1699. Well-regarded by the common people, he was the first king anointed at Frederiksborg Castle chapel as absolute monarch since the de ...

proclaimed him trade director. in 1695, he received royal permission to issue banknotes supported by a loan from the king. From 1685 to 1693, Thormøhlen owned the Kronstad Hovedgård manor house, which was located in the borough of Årstad (on the southern shore of the bay of

Store Lungegårdsvannet Store Lungegårdsvannet is a bay located in the city and municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The bay separates the city centre, located in the borough of Bergenhus, from the southern boroughs of the city, Årstad, Fana and Ytreby ...

) south of the city. However, heavy financial losses in overseas trade along with a major series of

structure fire A structure fire is a fire involving the structural components of various types of residential, commercial or industrial buildings, such as barn fires. Residential buildings range from single-family detached homes and townhouses to apartments ...

s at

Bryggen Bryggen (''the dock''), also known as Tyskebryggen (, ''the German dock''), is a series of Hanseatic heritage commercial buildings lining up the eastern side of the Vågen harbour in the city of Bergen, Norway. Bryggen has been on the UNESCO lis ...

in 1702 created difficulties for Thormøhlen, who eventually went bankrupt.

Personal life and legacy

He was married to Giertrud Magers, daughter of Hendrich Magers and Mægtele Lorentzen; the couple were the parents of a number of children. Thormøhlen was the great-grandfather of playwright, literary critic, editor and civil servant Claus Fasting. After his death, Thormøhlen's involvement in the

Atlantic slave trade The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...

had come under controversy. During the 2020

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality that began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020. The protests and civil unrest began in Minneapolis as Reactions to the mu ...

, there were calls to remove a statue of him in Bergen. A neighbourhood of the city,

Møhlenpris Møhlenpris (formerly Vestre Sydnes) is a neighbourhood in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is next to the Puddefjorden in the borough of Bergenhus Bergenhus is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway ...

, which was named after Thormøhlen has faced calls to be renamed. https://www.nrk.no/vestland/meiner-maleriet-i-bystyresalen-minner-om-drapet-pa-george-floyd-1.15045563

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thormohlen, Jorgen 1640s births 1708 deaths 17th-century Norwegian businesspeople 18th-century Norwegian businesspeople Businesspeople from Schleswig-Holstein Norwegian people of German descent Norwegian slave traders Emigrants from the Holy Roman Empire