Kildehenvisninger
1. [Født: Ca. 1550 i Rønne Sogn, Bornholms Vester Herred, Bornholm Amt]
- kilde: Titel: Oplysninger fra Michael Erichsen - GED-fil via mail , i arkivet:
2. [Død: 1623 i Pg. Blykobbegård, Nyker Sogn, Bornholms Vester Herred, Bornholm
Amt]
- kilde: Titel: Oplysninger fra Michael Erichsen - GED-fil via mail , i arkivet:
Biografi Oplysninger fra Michael Erichsen - GED-fil via mail
er af Bornholms første historiker Rasmus Ravn (1603-1677) nævnt som bror til landsdomÙwmer Jens
Kofoed. Da han ikke er med på den lybske familieliste har han måske været en halvbror. Hans
frimandsgård var Blykobbegård i Nyker, og hans indsats i Kofod-slægtens historie var ikke mindre
end de fornemme brødres. Han sikrede nemlig slægtens blomstring ved at få fem fremadstræbende
sønner, hvoraf de 4 kom til at bo på store frimandsgårde i Rønnes omegn: VelÙwlensgård, Kyndegård,
Ladegård og BlykobbeÙwgård, og den femte midt i byen som borgmester. Det blev disse brødre, der kom
til at arve landsÙwdommer Jens Kofoeds store formue, sammen med en vis Albert Hansen på sin hustru
Karine Mikkelsdatters vegne. Også hende giver den lybÙwske fortegnelse forklaring på, for hvem
skulle arÙwveJens Kofod i 1625, udover BlykobbegårdssønÙwneme? Broderen Peder var for længst død,
og hans evt. børn ligeså. Søsteren Boels børn med Oluf Bagge var borte. Men søsteren Anna
(ÙDAnÙwnekenÙC) var jo gift med Mikkel Abraham - et alÙwmindeligt bornholmsk navn, og en 'datter af
detÙwte ægteskab måtte jo hedde: Mikkelsdatter.
Hans Kofod nåede at se sin store børneflok komme godt i vej, Privilegerede var de allerede født ind
i frimandsstanden, og med mægtige og formuende slægtninge, Ved giftermål udbyggeÙwde de yderligere
slægtens position og formue, og børnebørnene, hvoraf alene 4 Mads'er, 3 Hans'er, Jens'er og Per'er,
begyndte at myldre frem, inden Hans Kofod omkring 1623 lukkede sine øjne på Blykobbegård,
Sigvard Mahler Dam states, in 'Over Hals og hoved' (published in SAXO,1991), that he discovered
that in 1666 there was a case in court concerning the estate of the deceased widow Christine
Kiøller (died 1665), in which Hans Olufsen Kofoed, the grandson of Hans Madsen Kofoed,states that
he is as close an heir after Christine Kiøller as her guardian Claus Kames. Christine is the
daughter of Christen Clausen Køller (died circa 1582) and Margrethe Mogensdatter Uf, of Store
Hallegård in Olsker.
Sigvard notes that Hans Madsen Kofoed named a son Claus, and another son Jacob, which up to that
point had not been given names used by the Kofoed-family. Since Christen Clausen Køller had named a
son Jacob, Sigvard speculates that Claus and Jacob are Køller family names. Sigvard also notes that
Christine Kiøller's brother Christen Clausen Kiøller (junior) signed documents in 1624 and 1628,
while he was Bornholm's chief justice, which concerned the Kofoed family. (This information was
first published in Julius Bidstrup's book on Kofoed family A.)
Based on the above, Sigvard suggests that Hans Madsen Kofoed's wife may have been the daughter of
Christen Clausen Køller (senior) and Margrethe Mogensdatter Uf. (Or possibly it is Hans Olufsen
Kofoed's mother Sidsele who is the relative of Christine Kiøller? - Norman Madsen, December 6,
2000)
At the 'Frimandsmødet' held on September 6, 1572 there were 17 men namedas being in attendance: the
brothers Jens and Hans Madsen Kofoed, Peder Poulsen Kofoed, Oluf Bagge, Peder Uf, Peder Myre,
Jørgen Gagge, Bendt Hansen, Laurids Pedersen, and also eight other men only listed by their
patronyms; and at which occassion three Danish Parlimentary advisers (Rigsråder) had been sent to
preside over the meeting. This special meeting was held to establish who on Bornholm had the right
to call themselves 'Frimand' (Free-man), a title which conveyed the upper-class standing of the
landed-gentry.
Hans Madsen Kofoed is known to have been living in Rønne in 1586 and to have been to owner of
Hæslegård in Østerlars parish. Hans Kofoed, named as a 'Frimand', was one of the delegates who on
May 6, 1608, in København, selected and confirmed Prince Christian as the future King of Danmark.
He also, along with Peder Poulsen Kofoed (1548-1616), took part in the following festivities in
Lund, Skåne,where the nobility swore their allegiance to Prince Christian in the year 1610.
Their written authorization to attend is stated as follows:
'We, the hereafter stated signatories: Jens Kofoedt of Kyndegård, Hanns Kofoedt of Blykobbegård,
Peder Koefoedt of Bagisgård, Matz Koefoedt of Eskiilsgård, and Niels Beriildsen of Gadebygård, all
Free-men of Borringholm, and present here together hereby declare . . . . . The honest and noble
man: Hanns Lindenow, Commander of Hammershus Fortress,has according to our consent, requested these
two persons: the honourable Hans and Poffuill Koefoedt to travel to Kiöbenhaffn with our authorized
document and be our representatives (at Prince Christian's election) . .. . as further
documentation we have in our own handwriting signed and sealed this our open-letter.'
The above letter is dated: 'Borringholm, 6 Maij, Anno 1608' With the signatures of: Jenns Koefoedt,
Hans Kofod, Peder Koefoedt, Matz Koefoedt, Jacob Køller, Hans Berillsenn, Niels Berendtzen. (Jørn
Klindt notes that Hans Kofoed's signature is not like that of his brother the Judge Jens Kofoed -
the Judge was experienced and fluent at handwritting - while Hans Kofoed, being a farmer, was
unaccustomed to feather and ink, which easily made blotches!)
From the seven seals affixed we can see that Hans, Jens and Mads Kofoed used the Kofoed
coat-of-arms in their seals, but Peder Kofoed did not --his seal was simply marked 'P.K.'
In 1595 Hans Madsen Kofoed had incorporated the image of a chevron (gavlsparren) in his seal; this
later became the most widely incorporated image in later Kofoed seals and coats-of-arms. The
'sparre' was the symbol used by his mother Gunhild Uf's family in their coat-of-arms. His oldest
son Mads Kofoed used this image from 1608, and his descendants (the 'Rønne family' or 'branch B' as
this line of the family was referred to by Julius Bidstrup) used it as well.
Hans Madsen Kofoed at one point held the position of church warden (kirkeværge) for Nyker Church.
He lived long enough to see his children prosper; they were privileged to have been born as
free-men and have wealthy and influential relations. Through marriages they further built up their
family position.
The 'Danish Coat-of-Arms' registry includes no less than 18 families carrying the truss as part of
their coat-of-arms. The image of the truss seems to have come from the Uf family of Skåne province.
Noblemen of the Uf family settled on Bornholm around the year 1400, and quite a few of the native
Bornholmer Kofoeds married into that family, and it seems that they adopted the Uf's coat-of-arms
with its depiction of a 'sparre'(chevron). Later, as the 'Rønne family' and the 'Østermarie family'
began to inter-marry the image of the chevron can be seen together with the cow-foot image of the
Østermarie line descended from Poul Kofoed (before 1520-before 1584).
From the book 'Danske adelsvåbener, en heraldisk nøgle', Politikens Forlag, 1973, København:
Kofod. Et koben. Farver og eventuel hjelmfigur kendes ikke. Markvard Kofod, væbner, 1378; afkom
ukendt. NDA side 151.
According to Sigvard Mahler Dam's article 'De bornholmske væbnerslægter Uf og Splid - noget nyt om
deres våbener', published in the 'Heraldisk Tidsskrift', the Kofoed-family's arms carried a blue
chevron on a red background, with 2 white vesselhorns on the helmet, and that 'Danmarks Kirker',
volume 7, Bornholm, tells the same, but incorrectly lists the coat-of-arms as the belonging to the
Gagge-family.