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MEMOIRS OF LEONORA CHRISTINA
Daughter of Christian IV. of Denmark
Written During Her Imprisonment in the Blue Tower at Copenhagen
1663-1685
Translated by F. E. Bunnett
London
Henry S. King & Co., 65 Cornhill
1872
London: Printed by
Spottiswoode and Co., New-Street Square
and Parliament Street
All rights reserved
PREFACE.
In placing the present translation of LEONORA CHRISTINA ULFELDT'S
Memoirs before the English reading public, a few words are due from
the Publishers, in order to explain the relation between this edition
and those which have been brought out in Denmark and in Germany.
The original autograph manuscript of Leonora Christina's record of
her sufferings in her prison, written between the years 1674 and
1685, belongs to her descendant the Austrian Count Joh. Waldstein,
and it was discovered only a few years ago. It was then, at the
desire of Count Waldstein, brought to Copenhagen by the Danish
Minister at Vienna, M. Falbe, in order that its authenticity might be
thoroughly verified by comparison with documents preserved in the
Danish archives and libraries, and known to be in the hand-writing of
the illustrious authoress. When the existence of this interesting
historic and literary relic had become known in Denmark, a desire to
see it published was naturally expressed on all sides, and to this
the noble owner most readily acceded.
Thus the first Danish edition came to light in 1869, promoted in
every way by Count Waldstein. The editor was Mr. Sophus Birket-Smith,
assistant librarian of the University Library at Copenhagen, who
enriched the edition with a historical introduction and copious
notes. A second Danish edition appeared a few months later; and in
1871 a German translation of the Memoir was edited by M. Ziegler,
with a new introduction and notes, founded partly on the first Danish
edition, partly on other printed sources, to which were added
extracts from some papers found in the family archives of Count
Waldstein, and which were supposed to possess the interest of
novelty.
The applause with which this edition was received in Germany
suggested the idea of an English version, and it was at first
intended merely to translate M. Ziegler's book into English. During
the progress of the work, however, it was found preferable to adopt
the second Danish edition as the basis of the English edition. The
translation which had been made from M. Ziegler's German, has been
carefully compared with the Danish original, so as to remove any
defects arising from the use of the German translation, and give it
the same value as a translation made direct from the Danish; a new
introduction and notes have been added, for which the Danish editor,
Mr. Birket-Smith has supplied the materials; and instead of the
fragments of Ulfeldt's Apology and of an extract from Leonora
Christina's Autobiography found in the German edition, a complete
translation of the Autobiography to the point where Leonora's Memoir
of her sufferings in prison takes up the thread of the narrative, has
been inserted, made from the original French text, recently published
by Mr. S. Birket-Smith. As a matter of course the preface of Count
Waldstein, which appears in this edition, is the one prefixed to the
Danish edition. The manuscript itself of the record of Leonora
Christina's sufferings in prison was commenced in 1674, and was at
first intended to commemorate only what had happened during the
preceding ten years of her captivity; it was afterwards extended to
embrace the whole period down to 1685, and subjected to a revision
which resulted in numerous additions and alterations. As, however,
these do not seem to have been properly worked in by the authoress
herself, the Memoir is here rendered, as in the Danish edition, in
its original, more perfect shape, and the subsequent alterations made
the subject of foot notes.
PREFACE
TO
THE DANISH EDITION.
When, in the summer of 1858, I visited the graves of my Danish
ancestors of the family of Ulfeldt, in the little village church at
Quaerndrup, near the Castle of Egeskov, on the island of Fyn, I
resolved to honour the memory of my pious ancestress Leonora
Christina, and thus fulfil the duty of a descendant by publishing
this autograph manuscript which had come to me amongst the heirlooms
left by my father.
It is well known that the last male representative of the family of
Ulfeldt, the Chancellor of the Court and Realm of Her Majesty the
Empress Maria Theresia, had only two daughters. One of them,
Elizabeth, married Georg Christian, Count Waldstein, while the
younger married Count Thun.
Out of special affection for her younger son Emanuel (my late
father), my grandmother bequeathed all that referred to the Ulfeldts
to him, and the manuscript which I now--in consequence of requests
from various quarters, also from high places--give to publicity by
the learned assistance of Mr. Sophus Birket-Smith, thus came to me
through direct descent from her father:
'Corfitz, Count of Ulfeldt of the holy Roman Empire, Lord of the
lordships Koeltz-Jenikau, Hof-Kazof, Broedlich, Odaslowitz, and the
fief Zinltsch, Knight of the Golden Vliess, First Treasurer of the
hereditary lands in Bohemia, Ambassador at the Ottoman Porte,
afterwards Chancellor of the Court and the Empire, sworn Privy
Councillor and first Lord Steward of his Imperial and Royal Majesty
Carolus VI., as well as of His Imperial Roman and Royal Majesty of
Hungary, Bohemia,' &c.
We add: the highly honoured paternal guide of Her Majesty the Queen
Empress Maria Theresia, of glorious memory, during the first year of
her government, until the time when the gifted Prince Kaunitz, whose
genius sometimes even was too much for this, morally noble lady,
became her successor.
I possess more than eleven imposing, closely written folio volumes,
which contain the manuscripts of the Chancellor of the Empire, his
negociations with the Sublime Porte, afterwards with the
States-General of the Netherlands, as well as the ministerial
protocols from the whole time that he held the office of Imperial
Chancellor; all of which prove his great industry and love of order,
while the original letters and annotations of his exalted mistress,
which are inserted in these same volumes, testify to the sincere,
almost childlike confidence with which she honoured him.
But this steady and circumspect statesman was the direct grandson of
the restless and proud
CORFITZ, first Count of Ulfeldt of the Roman Empire, High Steward of
the Realm in Denmark, &c., and of his devoted and gifted wife LEONORA
CHRISTINA, through their son
LEO, Imperial Count Ulfeldt, Privy Councillor, Field-marshal, and
Viceroy in Catalonia of the Emperor Carl VI., and his wife, a born
Countess of Zinzendorf.
I preserved, therefore with great care this manuscript, as well as
all other relics and little objects which had belonged to my Danish
ancestress, whose exalted character and sufferings are so highly
calculated to inspire sympathy, interest, and reverence. Amongst
these objects are several writings, such as fragments of poems,
prayers, needlework executed in prison (some embroidered with hair of
a fair colour); a christening robe with cap worked in gold, probably
used at the christening of her children; a very fine Amulet of
Christian IV. in blue enamel, and many portraits; amongst others the
original picture in oil of which a copy precedes the title page, &c.
&c.
Considering that the manuscript has been handed down directly from my
ancestors from generation to generation in direct line, I could not
personally have any doubt as to its genuineness. Nevertheless I
yielded to the suggestions of others, in order to have the
authenticity of the manuscript thoroughly tested. In what way this
was done will be seen from the Introduction of the Editor.
Though the final verdict of history may not yet have been given on
Corfitz Ulfeldt, yet--tempus omnia sanat--yon ominous pillar, which
was to perpetuate the memory of his crime into eternity, has been put
aside as rubbish and left to oblivion. Noble in forgetting and
pardoning, the great nation of the North has given a bright example
to those who still refuse to grant to Albert, Duke of Friedland--the
great general who saved the Empire from the danger that threatened it
from the North--the place which this hero ought to occupy in the
Walhalla at Vienna.
But as to the fiery temper of Corfitz and the mysterious springs
which govern the deeds and thoughts of mankind, it may be permitted
to me, his descendant, to cherish the belief, which is almost
strengthened into a conviction, that a woman so highly gifted, of so
noble sentiments, as Leonora appears to us, would never have been
able to cling with a love so true, and so enduring through all the
changes of life, to a man who was unworthy of it.
JOH. COUNT WALDSTEIN.
Cairo: December 8, 1868.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
INTRODUCTION 1
AUTOBIOGRAPHY 31
A RECORD OF THE SUFFERINGS OF THE IMPRISONED COUNTESS:--
PREFACE (TO MY CHILDREN) 87
A REMINISCENCE OF ALL THAT OCCURRED TO ME, LEONORA
CHRISTINA, IN THE BLUE TOWER, FROM AUGUST 8 OF THE
YEAR 1663, TO JUNE 11 OF THE YEAR 1674 102
MEMOIRS
OF
LEONORA CHRISTINA.
INTRODUCTION.
Amongst the women celebrated in history, LEONORA CHRISTINA, the
heroine as well as the authoress of the Memoirs which form the
subject of this volume, occupies a conspicuous place, as one of the
noblest examples of every womanly virtue and accomplishment,
displayed under the most trying vicissitudes of fortune. Born the
daughter of a King, married to one of the ablest statesmen of his
time, destined, as it seemed, to shine in the undisturbed lustre of
position and great qualities, she had to spend nearly twenty-two
years in a prison, in the forced company--more cruel to her than
solitary confinement--of male and female gaolers of the lowest order,
and for a long time deprived of every means of rendering herself
independent of these surroundings by intellectual occupation. She had
to suffer alone, and innocently, for her husband's crimes; whatever
these were, she had no part in them, and she endured persecution
because she would not forsake him in his misfortune. Leonora
Christina was the victim of despotism guided by personal animosity,
and she submitted with a Christian meekness and forbearance which
would be admirable in any, but which her exalted station and her
great mental qualities bring out in doubly strong relief.
It is to these circumstances, which render the fate of Leonora so
truly tragic, as well as to the fact that we have her own authentic
and trustworthy account before us, that the principal charm of this
record is due. Besides this, it affords many incidental glimpses of
the customs and habits of the time, nor is it without its purely
historical interest. Leonora and her husband, Corfits Ulfeldt, were
intimately connected with the principal political events in the North
of Europe at their time; even the more minute circumstances of their
life have, therefore, a certain interest.
No wonder that the history of this illustrious couple has formed, and
still forms, the theme both of laborious scientific researches and of
poetical compositions. Amongst the latter we may here mention in
passing a well-known novel by Rousseau de la Valette,[01] because it
has had the undeserved honour of being treated by a modern writer as
an historical source, to the great detriment of his composition.
Documents which have originated from these two personages are of
course of great value. Besides letters and public documents, there
exist several accounts written by both Corfits Ulfeldt and Leonora
referring to their own life and actions. Ulfeldt published in 1652 a
defence of his political conduct, and composed, shortly before his
death, another, commonly called the 'Apology of Ulfeldt,' which has
not yet been printed entirely, but of which an extract was published
in 1695 in the supplement of the English edition of Rousseau de la
Valette's book. Some extracts from an incomplete copy discovered by
Count Waldstein in 1870, in the family archives at the Castle of
Palota, were published with the German edition of Leonora's Memoir;
complete copies exist in Copenhagen and elsewhere. Leonora Christina,
who was an accomplished writer, has composed at least four partial
accounts of her own life. One of them, referring to a journey in
1656, to be mentioned hereafter, has been printed long ago; of
another, which treated of her and Ulfeldt's imprisonment at Bornholm,
no copy has yet been discovered. The third is her Autobiography,
carried down to 1673, of which an English version follows this
Introduction; it was written in the Blue Tower, in the form of a
letter to the Danish antiquarian, Otto Sperling, jun., who wished to
make use of it for his work, 'De feminis doctis.'[02]
[01] _Le Comte d'Ulfeld, Grand Maistre de Danemarc._ _Nouvelle
historique_, i.-ii. Paris, 1678. 8vo. An English translation, with
a supplement, appeared 1695: _The Life of Count Ulfeldt, Great
Master of Denmark, and of the Countess Eleonora his Wife._ Done out
of French. With a supplement. London. 1695. 8vo.
Another novel by the same author, called _Casimir King of Poland_,
is perhaps better known in this country, through a translation by
F. Spence in vol. ii. of _Modern Novels_, 1692.
[02] It is by a slip of memory that Mr. Birket Smith, in his first
Danish edition of Leonora Christina's memoir of her life in prison,
describes this work under the name of _De feminis eruditis_.
About a century ago a so-called Autobiography of Leonora was
published in Copenhagen, but it was easily proved to be a forgery; in
fact, the original of her own work existed in the Danish archives,
and had been described by the historian Andreas Hoeier. It has now
been lost, it is supposed, in the fire which destroyed the Castle of
Christiansborg in 1794, but a complete copy exists in Copenhagen, as
well as several extracts in Latin; another short extract in French
belongs to Count Waldstein. Finally, Leonora Christina wrote the
memoir of her sufferings in the prison of the Blue Tower from
1663-1685, of which the existence was unknown until discovered by
Count Waldstein, and given to the public in the manner indicated in
the Preface.
In introducing these memoirs to the English public, a short sketch of
the historical events and the persons to whom they refer may not be
unwelcome, particularly as Leonora herself touches only very lightly
on them, and principally describes her own personal life.
_Leonora Christina_ was a daughter of _King Christian IV._ of Denmark
and _Kirstine Munk_. His Queen, Anna Catherine, born a princess of
Brandenburg, died in 1612, leaving three princes (four other children
died early), and in 1615 the King contracted a morganatic marriage
with Kirstine Munk, a lady of an ancient and illustrious noble
family. Leonora was born July 18 (new style), 1621, at the Castle of
Fredriksborg, so well known to all who have visited Denmark, which
the King had built twenty miles north of Copenhagen, in a beautiful
part of the country, surrounded by smiling lakes and extensive
forests. But little is known of her childhood beyond what she tells
herself in her Autobiography. Already in her eighth year she was
promised to her future husband, Corfits Ulfeldt, and in 1636 the
wedding was celebrated with great splendour, Leonora being then
fifteen years old. The family of Ulfeldt has been known since the
close of the fourteenth century. Corfits' father had been Chancellor
of the Realm, and somewhat increased the family possessions, though
he sold the ancient seat of the family, Ulfeldtsholm, in Fyen, to
Lady Ellen Marsvin, Kirstine Munk's mother. He had seventeen
children, of whom Corfits was the seventh; and so far Leonora made
only a poor marriage. But her husband's great talents and greater
ambition made up for this defect. Of his youth nothing is known with
any certainty, except that he travelled abroad, as other young
noblemen of his time, studied at Padua, and acquired considerable
proficiency in foreign languages.[03] He became a favourite of
Christian IV., at whose Court he had every opportunity for displaying
his social talents. At the marriage of the elected successor to the
throne, the King's eldest son, Christian, with the Princess Magdalene
Sibylle of Saxony, in 1634, Corfits Ulfeldt acted as marechal to the
special Ambassador Count d'Avaux, whom Louis XIII. had sent to
Copenhagen on that occasion, in which situation Ulfeldt won golden
opinions,[04] and he was one of the twelve noblemen whom the King on
the wedding-day made Knights of the Elephant. After a visit to Paris
in 1635, in order to be cured of a wound in the leg which the Danish
physicians could not heal, he obtained the sanction of the King for
his own marriage with Leonora, which was solemnised at the Castle of
Copenhagen, on October 9, 1636, with as much splendour as those of
the princes and princesses. Leonora was the favourite daughter of
Christian IV., and as far as royal favour could ensure happiness, it
might be said to be in store for the newly-married pair.
[03] La Valette's account of his participation in the Thirty Years'
War is entirely fictitious, as almost all that he tells of
Ulfeldt's travels, &c.
[04] See _Caroli Ogerii Ephemerides sive, Iter Danicum, Svecicum,
Polonicum, &c._ Paris, 1656. 8vo. p. 36, 37, 40, by D'Avaux's
secretary, Ogier.
As we have stated, Ulfeldt was a poor nobleman; and it is
characteristic of them both that one of her first acts was to ask him
about his debts, which he could not but have incurred living as he
had done, and to pay them by selling her jewels and ornaments, to the
amount of 36,000 dollars, or more than 7,000_l._ in English
money--then a very large sum. But the King's favour soon procured him
what he wanted; he was made a member of the Great Council, Governor
of Copenhagen, and Chancellor of the Exchequer.
He executed several diplomatic missions satisfactorily; and when, in
1641, he was sent to Vienna as special Ambassador, the Emperor of
Germany, Ferdinand III., made him a Count of the German Empire.
Finally, in 1643, he was made Lord High Steward of Denmark, the
highest dignity and most responsible office in the kingdom. He was
now at the summit of power and influence, and if he had used his
talents and opportunities in the interests of his country, he might
have earned the everlasting gratitude of his King and his people.
But he was not a great man, though he was a clever and ambitious man.
He accumulated enormous wealth, bought extensive landed estates,
spent considerable sums in purchasing jewels and costly furniture,
and lived in a splendid style; but it was all at the cost of the
country. In order to enrich himself, he struck base coin (which
afterwards was officially reduced to its proper value, 8 per cent.
below the nominal value), and used probably other unlawful means for
this purpose, while the Crown was in the greatest need of money. At
the same time he neglected the defences of the country in a shameful
manner, and when the Swedish Government, in December 1643, suddenly
ordered its army, which then stood in Germany, engaged in the Thirty
Years' War, to attack Denmark without any warning, there were no
means of stopping its victorious progress. In vain the veteran King
collected a few vessels and compelled the far more numerous Swedish
fleet to fly, after a furious battle near Femern, where he himself
received twenty-three wounds, and where two of Ulfeldt's brothers
fell fighting at his side; there was no army in the land, because
Corfits, at the head of the nobility, had refused the King the
necessary supplies. And, although the peace which Ulfeldt concluded
with Sweden and Holland at Broemsebro, in 1645, might have been still
more disastrous than it was, if the negotiation had been entrusted to
less skilful hands, yet there was but too much truth in the
reproachful words of the King, when, after ratifying the treaties, he
tossed them to Corfits saying, 'There you have them, such as you have
made them!'
From this time the King began to lose his confidence in Ulfeldt,
though the latter still retained his important offices. In the
following year he went to Holland and to France on a diplomatic
mission, on which occasion he was accompanied by Leonora. Everywhere
their personal qualities, their relationship to the sovereign, and
the splendour of their appearance, procured them the greatest
attention and the most flattering reception. While at the Hague
Leonora gave birth to a son, whom the States-General offered to grant
a pension for life of a thousand florins, which, however, Ulfeldt
wisely refused. In Paris they were loaded with presents; and in the
Memoirs of Madame Langloise de Motteville on the history of Anna of
Austria (ed. of Amsterdam, 1783, ii. 19-22) there is a striking
_recit_ of the appearance and reception of Ulfeldt and Leonora at
the French Court. On their way home Leonora took an opportunity of
making a short trip to London, which capital she wished to see, while
her husband waited for her in the Netherlands.
If, however, this journey brought Ulfeldt and his wife honours and
presents on the part of foreigners, it did not give satisfaction at
home. The diplomatic results of the mission were not what the King
had hoped, and he even refused to receive Ulfeldt on his return. Soon
the turning-point in his career arrived. In 1648 King Christian IV.
died, under circumstances which for a short time concentrated
extraordinary power in Ulfeldt's hands, but of which he did not make
a wise use.
Denmark was then still an elective monarchy, and the nobles had
availed themselves of this and other circumstances to free themselves
from all burdens, and at the same time to deprive both the Crown and
the other Estates of their constitutional rights to a very great
extent. All political power was virtually vested in the Council of
the Realm, which consisted exclusively of nobles, and there remained
for the king next to nothing, except a general supervision of the
administration, and the nomination of the ministers. Every successive
king had been obliged to purchase his election by fresh concessions
to the nobles, and the sovereign was little more than the president
of an aristocratic republic. Christian IV. had caused his eldest son
Christian to be elected successor in his own lifetime; but this
prince died in 1647, and when the King himself died in 1648, the
throne was vacant.
As Lord High Steward, Ulfeldt became president of the regency, and
could exercise great influence on the election. He did not exert
himself to bring this about very quickly, but there is no ground for
believing that he meditated the election either of himself or of his
brother-in-law, Count Valdemar, as some have suggested. The children
of Kirstine Munk being the offspring of a morganatic marriage, had
not of course equal rank with princes and princesses; but in
Christian IV.'s lifetime they received the same honours, and Ulfeldt
made use of the interregnum to obtain the passage of a decree by the
Council, according them rank and honours equal with the princes of
the royal house.
But as the nobles were in nowise bound to choose a prince of the same
family, or even a prince at all, this decree cannot be interpreted as
evidence of a design to promote the election of Count Valdemar. The
overtures of the Duke of Gottorp, who attempted to bribe Ulfeldt to
support his candidature, were refused by him, at least according to
his own statement. But Ulfeldt did make use of his position to extort
a more complete surrender of the royal power into the hands of the
nobility than any king had yet submitted to, and the new King,
Fredrik III., was compelled to promise, amongst other things, to fill
up any vacancy amongst the ministers with one out of three candidates
proposed by the Council of the Realm. The new King, Fredrik III.,
Christian IV.'s second son, had never been friendly to Ulfeldt. This
last action of the High Steward did not improve the feelings with
which he regarded him, and when the coronation had taken place (for
which Ulfeldt advanced the money), he expressed his thoughts at the
banquet in these words: 'Corfitz, you have to-day bound my hands; who
knows, who can bind yours in return?' The new Queen, a Saxon
princess, hated Ulfeldt and the children of Kirstine Munk on account
of their pretensions, but particularly Leonora Christina, whose
beauty and talents she heartily envied.
Nevertheless Ulfeldt retained his high offices for some time, and in
1649 he went again to Holland on a diplomatic mission, accompanied by
his wife. It is remarkable that the question which formed the
principal subject of the negotiation on that occasion was one which
has found its proper solution only in our days--namely, that of a
redemption of the Sound dues. This impost, levied by the Danish Crown
on all vessels passing the Sound, weighed heavily on the shipping
interest, and frequently caused disagreement between Denmark and the
governments mostly interested in the Baltic trade, particularly
Sweden and the Dutch republic.
It was with especial regard to the Sound dues that the Dutch
Government was constantly interfering in the politics of the North,
with a view of preventing Denmark becoming too powerful; for which
purpose it always fomented discord between Denmark and Sweden, siding
now with the one, now with the other, but rather favouring the design
of Sweden to conquer the ancient Danish provinces, Skaane, &c., which
were east of the Sound, and which now actually belong to Sweden.
Corfits Ulfeldt calculated that, if the Dutch could be satisfied on
the point of the Sound dues, their unfavourable interference might be
got rid of; and for this purpose he proposed to substitute an annual
payment by the Dutch Government for the payment of the dues by the
individual ships. Christian IV. had never assented to this idea, and
of course the better course would have been the one adopted in
1857--namely, the redemption of the dues by all States at once for a
proportionate consideration paid once for all. Still the leading
thought was true, and worthy of a great statesman.
Ulfeldt concluded a treaty with Holland according to his views, but
it met with no favour at Copenhagen, and on his return he found that
in his absence measures had been taken to restrict his great power;
his conduct of affairs was freely criticised, and his enemies had
even caused the nomination of a committee to investigate his past
administration, more particularly his financial measures.
At the same time the new Court refused Leonora Christina and the
other children of Kirstine Munk the princely honours which they had
hitherto enjoyed. Amongst other marks of distinction, Christian IV.
had granted his wife and her children the title of Counts and
Countesses of Slesvig and Holstein, but Fredrik III. declined to
acknowledge it, although it could have no political importance, being
nothing but an empty title, as neither Kirstine Munk nor her children
had anything whatever to do with either of these principalities.
Ulfeldt would not suffer himself to be as it were driven from his
high position by these indications of disfavour on the part of the
King and the Queen (the latter was really the moving spring in all
this), but he resolved to show his annoyance by not going to Court,
where his wife did not now receive the usual honours.
This conduct only served to embolden those who desired to oust him
from his lucrative offices, not because they were better patriots,
but because they hoped to succeed him. For this purpose a false
accusation was brought against Ulfeldt and Leonora Christina, to the
effect that they had the intention of poisoning the King and the
Queen. Information on this plot was given to the Queen personally, by
a certain Dina Vinhowers, a widow of questionable reputation, who
declared that she had an illicit connection with Ulfeldt, and that
she had heard a conversation on the subject between Corfits Ulfeldt
and Leonora, when on a clandestine visit in the High Steward's house.
She was prompted by a certain Walter, originally a son of a
wheelwright, who by bravery in the war had risen from the ranks to
the position of a colonel, and who in his turn was evidently a tool
in the hands of other parties. The information was graciously
received at Court; but Dina, who, as it seems, was a person of weak
or unsound mind, secretly, without the knowledge of her employers,
warned Ulfeldt and Leonora Christina of some impending danger, thus
creating a seemingly inextricable confusion.
At length Ulfeldt demanded a judicial investigation, which was at
once set on foot, but in which, of course, he occupied the position
of a defendant on account of Dina's information. In the end Dina was
condemned to death and Walter was exiled. But the statements of the
different persons implicated, and particularly of Dina herself at
different times, were so conflicting, that the matter was really
never entirely cleared up, and though Ulfeldt was absolved of all
guilt, his enemies did their best in order that some suspicion might
remain. If Ulfeldt had been wise, he might probably have turned this
whole affair to his own advantage; but he missed the opportunity.
Utterly absurd as the accusation was, he seems to have felt very
keenly the change of his position, and on the advice of Leonora, who
did not doubt that some other expedient would be tried by his
enemies, perhaps with more success, he resolved to leave Denmark
altogether.
After having sent away the most valuable part of his furniture and
movable property, and placed abroad his amassed capital, he left
Copenhagen secretly and at night, on July 14, 1651, three days after
the execution of Dina. The gates of the fortress were closed at a
certain hour every evening, but he had a key made for the eastern
gate, and ere sunrise he and Leonora, who was disguised as a valet,
were on board a vessel on their way to Holland. The consequences of
this impolitic flight were most disastrous. He had not laid down his
high offices, much less rendered an account of his administration;
nothing was more natural than to suppose that he wished to avoid an
investigation. A few weeks later a royal summons was issued, calling
upon him to appear at the next meeting of the Diet, and answer for
his conduct; his offices, and the fiefs with which he had been
beneficed, were given to others, and an embargo was laid on his
landed estates.
Leonora Christina describes in her Autobiography how Ulfeldt
meanwhile first went to Holland, and thence to Sweden, where Queen
Christina, who certainly was not favourably disposed to Denmark,
received Ulfeldt with marked distinction, and promised him her
protection. But she does not tell how Ulfeldt here used every
opportunity for stirring up enmity against Denmark, both in Sweden
itself and in other countries, whose ambassadors he tried to bring
over to his ideas. On this painful subject there can be no doubt
after the publication of so many authentic State Papers of that time,
amongst which we may mention the reports of Whitelock, the envoy of
Cromwell, to whom Ulfeldt represented that Denmark was too weak to
resist an attack, and that the British Government might easily obtain
the abolition of the Sound dues by war.
It seems, however, as if Ulfeldt did all this merely to terrify the
Danish King into a reconciliation with him on terms honourable and
advantageous to the voluntarily exiled magnate. Representations were
several times made with such a view by the Swedish Government, and in
1656 Leonora Christina herself undertook a journey to Copenhagen, in
order to arrange the matter. But the Danish Government was
inaccessible to all such attempts.
This attitude was intelligible enough, for not only had Ulfeldt left
Denmark in the most unceremonious manner, but in 1652 he published in
Stralsund a defence against the accusations of which he had been the
subject, full of gross insults against the King; and in the following
year he had issued an insolent protest against the royal summons to
appear and defend himself before the Diet, declaring himself a
Swedish subject. But, above all, the influence of the Queen was too
great to allow of any arrangement with Ulfeldt. The King was entirely
led by her; she, from her German home, was filled with the most
extravagant ideas of absolute despotism, and hated the free speech
and the independent spirit prevailing among the Danish nobility, of
which Ulfeldt in that respect was a true type. Leonora Christina was
compelled to return in 1656, without even seeing the King, and as a
fugitive. It is of this journey that she has given a Danish account,
besides the description in the Autobiography.
It may be questioned whether it would not have been wise, if
possible, to conciliate this dangerous man; but at any rate it was
not done, and Ulfeldt was, no doubt, still more exasperated. Queen
Christina had then resigned, and her successor, Carl Gustav, shortly
after engaged in a war in Poland. The Danish Government, foolishly
overrating its strength, took the opportunity for declaring war
against Sweden, in the hope of regaining some of the territory lost
in 1645. But Carl Gustav, well knowing that the Poles could not carry
the war into Sweden, immediately turned his whole force against
Denmark, where he met with next to no resistance. Ulfeldt was then
living at Barth, in Pommerania, an estate which he held in mortgage
for large sums of money advanced to the Swedish Government. Carl
Gustav summoned Ulfeldt to follow him, and Ulfeldt obeyed the summons
against the advice of Leonora Christina, who certainly did not desire
her native country to be punished for the wrongs, if such they were,
inflicted upon her by the Court.
The war had been declared on June 1, 1657; in August Ulfeldt issued a
proclamation to the nobility in Jutland, calling on them to transfer
their allegiance to the Swedish King. In the subsequent winter a most
unusually severe frost enabled the Swedish army to cross the Sounds
and Belts on the ice, Ulfeldt assisting its progress by persuading
the commander of the fortress of Nakskov to surrender without
resistance; and in February the Danish Government had to accept such
conditions of peace as could be obtained from the Swedish King, who
had halted a couple of days' march from Copenhagen. By this peace
Denmark surrendered all her provinces to the east of the Sound
(Skaane, &c.), which constituted one-third of the ancient Danish
territory, and which have ever since belonged to Sweden, besides her
fleet, &c.
But the greatest humiliation was that the negotiation on the Swedish
side was entrusted to Ulfeldt, who did not fail to extort from the
Danish Crown the utmost that the neutral powers would allow. For
himself he obtained restitution of his estates, freedom to live in
Denmark unmolested, and a large indemnity for loss of income of his
estates since his flight in 1651. The King of Sweden also rewarded
him with the title of a Count of Solvitsborg and with considerable
estates in the provinces recently wrested from Denmark. Ulfeldt
himself went to reside at Malmo, the principal town in Skaane,
situated on the Sound, just opposite Copenhagen, and here he was
joined by Leonora Christina.
In her Autobiography Leonora does not touch on the incidents of the
war, but she describes how her anxiety for her husband's safety did
not allow her to remain quietly at Barth, and how she was afterwards
called to her mother's sick-bed, which she had to leave in order to
nurse her husband, who fell ill at Malmo. We may here state that
Kirstine Munk had fallen into disgrace, when Leonora was still a
child, on account of her flagrant infidelity to the King, her
paramour being a German Count of Solms. Kirstine Munk left the Court
voluntarily in 1629,[05] shortly after the birth of a child, whom the
King would not acknowledge as his own; and after having stayed with
her mother for a short time, she took up her residence at the old
manor of Boller, in North Jutland, where she remained until her death
in 1658.
[05] La Valette's account of a lawsuit instituted by the King
against Kirstine Munk, in which she was defended by Ulfeldt--of
Ulfeldt's duel with Hannibal Sehested, afterwards his
brother-in-law, &c.--is entirely fictitious. No such things took
place.
Various attempts were made to reconcile Christian IV. to her, but he
steadily refused, and with very good reason: he was doubtless well
aware that Kirstine Munk, as recently published diplomatic documents
prove, had betrayed his political secrets to Gustav Adolf, the King
of Sweden, and he considered her presence at Court very dangerous.
Her son-in-law was now openly in the service of another Swedish king,
but the friendship between them was not of long duration. Ulfeldt
first incurred the displeasure of Carl Gustav by heading the
opposition of the nobility in the newly acquired provinces against
certain imposts laid on them by the Swedish King, to which they had
not been liable under Danish rule. Then other causes of disagreement
arose. Carl Gustav, regretting that he had concluded a peace, when in
all probability he might have conquered the whole of Denmark,
recommenced the war, and laid siege to Copenhagen. But the Danish
people now rose as one man; foreign assistance was obtained; the
Swedes were everywhere beaten; and if the Dutch, who were bound by
treaty to assist Denmark, had not refused their co-operation in
transferring the Danish troops across the Sound, all the lost
provinces might easily have been regained.
The inhabitants in some of these provinces also rose against their
new rulers. Amongst others, the citizens of Malmo, where Ulfeldt at
the time resided, entered into a conspiracy to throw off the Swedish
dominion; but it was betrayed, and Ulfeldt was indicated as one of
the principal instigators, although he himself had accepted their
forced homage to the Swedish King, as his deputy. Very probably he
had thought that, if he took a part in the rising, he might, if this
were successful, return to Denmark, having as it were thus wiped out
his former crimes, but having also shown his countrymen what a
terrible foe he could be. As it was, Denmark was prevented by her own
allies from regaining her losses, and Ulfeldt was placed in custody
in Malmo, by order of Carl Gustav, in order that his conduct might be
subjected to a rigorous examination.
Ulfeldt was then apparently seized with a remarkable malady, a kind
of apoplexy, depriving him of speech, and Leonora Christina conducted
his defence. She wrote three lengthy, vigorous, and skilful replies
to the charges, which still exist in the originals. He was acquitted,
or rather escaped by a verdict of Not Proven; but as conscience makes
cowards, he contrived to escape before the verdict was given. Leonora
Christina describes all this in her Autobiography, according to which
Ulfeldt was to go to Lubeck, while she would go to Copenhagen, and
try to put matters straight there. Ulfeldt, however, changed his plan
without her knowledge, and also repaired to Copenhagen, where they
were both arrested and sent to the Castle of Hammershuus, on the
island of Bornholm in the Baltic, an ancient fortress, now a most
picturesque ruin, perched at the edge of perpendicular rocks,
overhanging the sea, and almost surrounded by it.
The Autobiography relates circumstantially, and no doubt truthfully,
the cruel treatment to which they were here subjected by the
governor, a Major-General Fuchs. After a desperate attempt at escape,
they were still more rigorously guarded, and at length they had to
purchase their liberty by surrendering the whole of their property,
excepting one estate in Fyen. Ulfeldt had to make the most humble
apologies, and to promise not to leave the island of Fyen, where this
estate was situated, without special permission. He was also
compelled to renounce on the part of his wife the title of a Countess
of Slesvig-Holstein, which Fredrik III. had never acknowledged. She
never made use of that title afterwards, nor is she generally known
by it in history. Corfits Ulfeldt being a Count of the German Empire,
of course Leonora and her children were, and remained, Counts and
Countesses of Ulfeldt. This compromise was effected in 1661.
Having been conveyed to Copenhagen, Ulfeldt could not obtain an
audience of the King, and he was obliged, kneeling, to tender renewed
oath of allegiance before the King's deputies, Count Rantzow, General
Hans Schack, the Chancellor Redtz, and the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, Christofer Gabel, all of whom are mentioned in Leonora's
account of her subsequent prison life.
A few days after, Corfits Ulfeldt and Leonora Christina left
Copenhagen, which he was never to see again, she only as a prisoner.
They retired to the estate of Ellensborg, in Fyen, which they had
still retained. This was the ancient seat of the Ulfeldts, which
Corfits' father had sold to Ellen Marsvin, Leonora Christina's
grandmother, and which had come to Leonora through her mother. In the
meanwhile it had been renamed and rebuilt such as it stands to this
day, a picturesque pile of buildings in the Elizabethan style. Here
Ulfeldt might have ended his stormy life in quiet, but his thirst for
revenge left him no peace. Besides this, a great change had taken
place in Denmark. The national revival which followed the renewal of
the war by Carl Gustav in 1658 led to a total change in the form of
government.
It was indisputable that the selfishness of the nobles, who refused
to undertake any burden for the defence of the country, was the main
cause of the great disasters that had befallen Denmark. The abolition
of their power was loudly called for, and the Queen so cleverly
turned this feeling to account, that the remedy adopted was not the
restoration of the other classes of the population to their
legitimate constitutional influence, but the entire abolition of the
constitution itself, and the introduction of hereditary, unlimited
despotism. The title 'hereditary king,' which so often occurs in
Danish documents and writings from that time, also in Leonora's
Memoir, has reference to this change. Undoubtedly this was very
little to Ulfeldt's taste. Already, in the next year after his
release, 1662, he obtained leave to go abroad for his health. But,
instead of going to Spaa, as he had pretended, he went to Amsterdam,
Bruges, and Paris, where he sought interviews with Louis XIV. and the
French ministers; he also placed himself in communication with the
Elector of Brandenburg, with a view of raising up enemies against his
native country. The Elector gave information to the Danish
Government, whilst apparently lending an ear to Ulfeldt's
propositions.
When a sufficient body of evidence had been collected, it was laid
before the High Court of Appeal in Copenhagen, and judgment given in
his absence, whereby he was condemned to an ignominious death as a
traitor, his property confiscated, his descendants for ever exiled
from Denmark, and a large reward offered for his apprehension. The
sentence is dated July 24, 1663. Meanwhile Ulfeldt had been staying
with his family at Bruges. One day one of his sons, Christian, saw
General Fuchs, who had treated his parents so badly at Hammershuus,
driving through the city in a carriage; immediately he leaped on to
the carriage and killed Fuchs on the spot. Christian Ulfeldt had to
fly, but the parents remained in Bruges, where they had many friends.
It was in the following spring, on May 24, 1663, that Leonora
Christina, much against her own inclination, left her husband--as it
proved, not to see him again alive. Ulfeldt had on many occasions
used his wealth in order to gain friends, by lending them
money--probably the very worst method of all. It is proved that at
his death he still held bonds for more than 500,000 dollars, or
100,000_l._, which he had lent to various princes and noblemen, and
which were never paid. Amongst others he had lent the Pretender,
afterwards Charles II., a large sum, about 20,000 patacoons, which at
the time he had raised with some difficulty. He doubted not that the
King of England, now that he was able to do it, would recognise the
debt and repay it; and he desired Leonora, who, through her father,
was cousin of Charles II., once removed, to go to England and claim
it. She describes this journey in her Autobiography.
The Danish Government, hearing of her presence in England, thought
that Ulfeldt was there too, or hoped at any rate to obtain possession
of important documents by arresting her, and demanded her
extradition. The British Government ostensibly refused, but underhand
it gave the Danish minister, Petcum, every assistance. Leonora was
arrested in Dover, where she had arrived on her way back,
disappointed in the object of her journey. She had obtained enough
and to spare of fair promises, but no money; and by secretly giving
her up to the Danish Government, Charles II. in an easy way quitted
himself of the debt, at the same time that he pleased the King of
Denmark, without publicly violating political propriety. Leonora's
account of the whole affair is confirmed in every way by the light
which other documents throw upon the matter, particularly by the
extracts contained in the Calendar of State Papers, Domestic Series,
of the reign of Charles II., 1663-64.
Leonora was now conducted to Copenhagen, where she was confined in
the Blue Tower--a square tower surmounted by a blue spire, which
stood in the court of the royal castle, and was used as a prison for
grave offenders (see the engraving). At this point the Memoir of her
sufferings in the prison takes up the thread of her history, and we
need not here dwell upon its contents.