Ove Gjedde[1] (27 December 1594 – 19 December 1660) was a Danish nobleman and Admiral of the Realm (Rigsadmiral). He established the Danish colony at Tharangambadi (Danish: Trankebar) and constructed Fort Dansborg as the base for Danish settlement. He was a member of the interim government that followed the death of King Christian IV and which imposed restrictions (Haandfæstning) on his successor King Frederick III.[2]
Early years
Gjedde was born at Tomarps (Tomarps Kungsgård) at Åstorp in Scania. He was the son of Brostrup Gjedde and Dorthe Pallesdatter Ulfeldt. He studied at Sorø Academy. He completed a tour to Germany and the Netherlands. Returning in 1616, he was appointed secretary of the Danish Chancellor.[3][4][5]
In March 1618, Gjedde commanded an expedition to India and Ceylon to establish a Danish colony that could be used as a base for the China and East Indies trade of the Danish East India Company. His fleet consisted of the Danish naval ships Elefanten and David, the yacht Øresund, and the merchant ships Kiøbenhavn and Christian.[6] He established Fort Dansborg at Tranquebar in 1620,[7] which would remain a Danish colony for 200 years. Gjedde returned in March 1622 and was appointed lord of Brunla len (now in Akershus). In 1637, he received Tønsberg len (now Vestfold).[8]
Gjedde acquired land properties in Norway, and was a central participant in the mining industry, and also became a partner in the silver mining venture of Kongsberg Sølvverk, which was founded in 1623 and formally established by royal resolution in the spring of 1624 when king Christian IV himself came to inspect the newly discovered silver deposits in Sandsvær. When the silver mine company was transformed into a private partnership in 1628, Ove Gjedde got a 25% share and from 1630 he was its director. In 1657, he established the iron foundry Ulefos Jernværk at Ulefoss in Nome, together with his brother in law Preben von Ahnen.[8]
In 1628, he was appointed Lieutenant Colonel of Akershus Regiment. He participated in the Torstenson War (1643–1645) as an admiral and in 1645 he was made Admiral of the Realm (Rigsadmiral). In 1648 he was granted the fiefdom of Helsingborg Castle.[9]
Later years
After the peace in Roskilde, Denmark lost Scania to Sweden. When king Charles X Gustav of Sweden broke the peace of 1658, Ove Gjedde was taken prisoner, during a visit to Helsingborg. He was first sent to prison in Helsingborg castle, and later sent to Malmö. In 1660 he was released during prisoner exchanges between Sweden and Denmark. At the time Gjedde was an old and physically weak man, but although he had already commissioned a grave monument in Helsingborg, because this had now become Swedish, when he died he was buried in the crypt of Roskilde Cathedral. The legend says that, "His bones after the Roskilde peace never found rest, after Scania became Swedish" (Danish: hans ben efter Roskildefreden fandt aldrig hvile, efter Skåne var blevet svensk).
Gjedde died at Copenhagen in 1660.[4]
Personal life
In 1622, Gjedde married Dorothy Knudsdatter Urne (1600-1667), daughter of Knud Axelsen Urne til Årsmarke (1564–1622) and Margrethe Eilersdatter Grubbe til Alslev (1568–1654). His wife was a sister of Christoffer Urne (1593–1663) who served as Steward of Norway. They were the parents of several children including Knud Ovessøn Gjedde and Brostrup Gjedde both of whom served as County governors in Norway.[8][10][11]
