Mogens Gøye (surname also spelled Gøje
at Lollands-Herregaarde.dk or Gjøe) (ca. 1470 – 6 April 1544) was a Danish statesman and Steward of the Realm, whose enormous wealth earned him the derogatory nickname "the King of Northern Jutland". Gøye was the Royal councillor of Danish Kings

John I John I may refer to: People Religious figures * John I (bishop of Jerusalem) * John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople * John I of Antioch (died 441) * Pope John I of Alexandria, Coptic Pope from 496 to 505 * Pope John I, P ...

, the feuding

Christian II A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Ch ...

and

Frederick I Frederick I or Friedrich I may refer to: * Frederick of Utrecht or Frederick I (815/16–834/38), Bishop of Utrecht. * Frederick I, Duke of Upper Lorraine (942–978) * Frederick I, Duke of Swabia (1050–1105) * Frederick I ...

, and

Christian III Christian III (12 August 1503 – 1 January 1559) reigned as King of Denmark from 1534 and King of Norway from 1537 until his death in 1559. During his reign, Christian formed close ties between the church and the crown. He established ...

. He was a key supporter of the Reformation in Denmark-Norway and Holstein. Often lauded by elder Danish historians as a knightly,

social liberal Social liberalism is a political philosophy and variety of liberalism that endorses social justice, social services, a mixed economy, and the expansion of civil and political rights, as opposed to classical liberalism which favors limited g ...

upper-class idealist, Gøye is today viewed as a realist statesman understanding the need of a government and a moderate political attitude of the

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

. He was the son of ''marsk''

Eskild Gøye Eskil is a masculine given name mainly in use in Scandinavia. In Danish and Norwegian it may be spelled Eskild. The name may refer to: *Saint Eskil, 11th century Anglo-Saxon monk and missionary * Eskil Brodd (1885–1969), Swedish diver *Eskil Br ...

, and brother of Royal councillor Henrik Gøye.Mogens Gøye
at Gyldendals Encyklopædi Mogens Gøye was the father of

Birgitte Gøye Birgitte Gøye (1511 - 26 July 1574) was a Danish county administrator, lady in waiting, landholder and noble, co-founder and principal of Herlufsholm School. Biography She was the daughter of Mogens Gøye and Mette Bydelsbak and the sister of ...

, who married admiral

Herluf Trolle Herluf Trolle (14 January 1516 – 25 June 1565) was a Danish naval officer, 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 co-founded

Herlufsholm School Herlufsholm School () is a private day and boarding school by the River Suså in Næstved, about south of Copenhagen. Herlufsholm was founded in 1565 as a boarding school for "sons of noble and other honest men" on the site of a former Benedict ...

. He was the grandfather of statesman

Peder Oxe Peder Oxe (''Peder Oxe til Nielstrup''; 7 January 1520 – 24 October 1575) was a Danish finance minister and Steward of the Realm. Background At the age of twelve he was sent abroad to complete his education, and resided at the principal univ ...

Biography

Belonging to a very wealthy and influential

Jutland Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische Halbinsel'' or ''Jütische Halbinsel'') is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). It ...

magnate family and educated abroad, Mogens Gøye was already an outstanding man in the times of King

(Hans). He amassed large tracts of lands through inheritance, marriage, and large-scale buys, and became one of the richest men in Danish history. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

in 1501, and became a member of the Royal '' Rigsraadet'' council of King John I in 1503.

Bricka, Carl Frederik Carl Frederik Bricka (10 July 1845 – 23 August 1903) was a Danish archivist, historian and biographer. Biography Carl Bricka was born in Copenhagen, Denmark. His father, Frederik Vilhelm Theodor Bricka (1809–79), was a medical doctor. He ...

, ''Dansk Biografisk Lexikon'', vol. VI erson - H. Hansen 1892. Entry: "Gjøe, Mogens", pp.75-84
Available online
/ref> During the reign of

, Gøye was a leading Royal councillor, and performed diplomatic and special assignments for the King. In 1514, he was chosen as the substitute replacement of Christian II at the King's marriage to

Isabella of Austria Isabella of Austria (''Isabel''; 18 July 1501 – 19 January 1526), also known as Elizabeth, was born an Archduchess of Archduchy of Austria, Austria and Infanta of Castile from the House of Habsburg, and subsequently became List of Danish consor ...

in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. After the marriage, Gøye was appointed the ''marsk'' of Denmark. In 1516, he sold the house to Christian II, in which the King's mistress Dyveke and her mother

Sigbrit Willoms Sigbrit Willoms (also spelled Villoms or Villums), (possible date of death 1532), was a Danish-Norwegian politician from Amsterdam, mother to the mistress of King Christian II of Denmark, Dyveke Sigbritsdatter, and advisor and de facto minister ...

were to reside, and in 1517 he arrested

Torben Oxe Torben Oxe (died 29 November 1517) was a Danish nobleman and a member of an aristocratic family. Early life Oxe was the son of Johan Oxe of Tordsø and Inger Torbensdatter Bille. Both his father and grandfather had served as Danish Councillors ...

, the suspected assassin of Dyveke. Though a representative of the great landowners himself, and an avid opponent of the

bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and Aristocracy (class), aristocracy. They are tradition ...

influence of Sigbrit, Gøye and Christian II seemed to maintain loyalty towards one another. Gøye even accepted some of the Royal reform plans, while trying to moderate them and to damp the dissatisfaction of his social peers. Sigbrit coined Gøye's derogatory nickname "the King of Northern Jutland", attempting to cast his loyalty to the Christian II in doubt. Gøye initially supported Christian II during the 1522 nobility and clerical rebellion, but left him in March 1523 apparently under threat, accepting the accession of

. During the reign of Frederick I, Gøye had his real golden age. He was made Steward of the Realm in 1523, a post he retained until his death in 1544.Danske rigshofmestre
at RoskildeHistorie.dk Gøye again acted as a balancing force, curbing the vengeful attitudes of the nobility towards the

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasan ...

supporters of Christian II."Gads Historie Leksikon", 3rd edition, Copenhagen, 2006. Entry: ''Gøye, Mogens'', Paul Ulff-Møller, p.241 He was instrumental in averting a peasant rebellion in Viborg in 1531. In religious matters he became an eager

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

, openly supporting the work of

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

reformer

Hans Tausen Hans Tausen (Tavsen) (1494 – 11 November 1561) nicknamed the “Danish Luther” was the leading Lutheran theologian of the Danish Reformation in Denmark. He served as Bishop of Ribe and published the first translation of the Pentateuch in ...

, in opposition to most of ''Rigsrådet'', which earned him hostility from the

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

clergy. In spite of all efforts, he did not succeed in damping the social clash of interests. After the death of Frederick in 1533, Mogens Gøye tried in vain to get Frederick's Lutheran son Prince Christian,

Duke of Schleswig-Holstein The following is a list of rulers (usually dukes) who ruled both Duchy of Schleswig, Schleswig and Duchy of Holstein, Holstein, starting from the first Holstein count who received Schleswig, until both territories were annexed by the Kingdom of P ...

elected king under the name

Christian III of Denmark Christian III (12 August 1503 – 1 January 1559) reigned as King of Denmark from 1534 and King of Norway from 1537 until his death in 1559. During his reign, Christian formed close ties between the church and the crown. He established ...

. At the outbreak of the ensuing

Count's Feud The Count's Feud (), sometimes referred to as the Count's War, was a Danish war of succession occurring from 1534 to 1536, which gave rise to the Reformation in Denmark. In the broader international context, it was a part of the European wars of ...

civil war, Gøye forced through the nobility's

Election of Christian III An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated s ...

in Jutland in 1534, and was a most loyal supporter of Christian III for the rest of the war. After the victory of Christian III and the Reformation in Denmark-Norway and Holstein in 1536–1537, Gøye continued as Steward during the new government, but he was weakened by ill health, and was gradually overshadowed by Johan Friis.

Biography

References

Further reading