Giske manor burns down
NRR 4, s. 432 · 12. april 1611 · København
What the letter says
From Copenhagen on 12 April 1611 King Christian IV sends an open letter to all tenants and servants throughout the Giske estate, wherever it lies, and to the Crown's tenants in Sunnmøre under Bergenhus. Giske manor, which the treasurer Sigvord Beck of Førsløv has in his charge, has burned down completely in an unexpected and destructive fire. So that the manor can be rebuilt and improved, each of them is to give, this one time, 1 pund of fish towards the building when Sigvord Beck or his agent comes. Anyone who does not pay is to be prosecuted and punished.
The letter in modern English
Open letter to all the tenants and common people throughout the Giske estate and in Sunnmøre, that each should give 1 pund of fish to rebuild Giske manor, which was burned down. Christian IV. We greet you all, our and the Crown of Norway's tenants and servants who build and live throughout the Giske estate, wherever it lies, and our and the Crown of Norway's tenants and servants in Sunnmøre, belonging to Bergenhus, eternally with God and our grace. Know that we have graciously learned that Giske manor, which our treasurer Sigvord Beck of Førsløv now has in his charge, is said to have been entirely burned and consumed by an unexpected and destructive fire. So that Giske manor may be rebuilt and improved with good building, we ask and bid you, our and the Crown of Norway's tenants and common people who serve Giske manor, and our and the Crown of Norway's servants in Sunnmøre belonging to Bergenhus, that when you are visited with this by Sigvord Beck or his agent, each of you at once and without any objection or neglect, this one time and no more, shall give 1 pund of fish towards the building of Giske manor to Sigvord Beck or his agent. Should any of you be found negligent in this and refuse to give the pund of fish as written, you shall be prosecuted and punished for it as is proper. By this each and every one may know how to act and guard against harm. Copenhagen, 12 April 161
Original text
Aabent Brev til menige Bønder og Almue over alt Giske Gods samt paa Søndmøre, at enhver skulde give 1 Pund Fisk til Giske Gaard, som blev afbrændt, at opbygge. C. IV. Hilse eder alle, vore og Norges Krones Bønder og Tjenere, som bygge og bo over alt Giske Gods, ihvorsomhelst det ligger, samt og vore og Norges Krones Bønder og Tjenere paa Søndmøre, til Bergenhuus liggendes, evindeligen med Gud og vor Naade. Vider, at eftersom vi naadigst ere komne udi Forfaring, hvorledes Giske Gaard, som os els
Background
The letter is the only one in the extracts that tells of a fire at Giske. It does not say when the fire happened, only that the king had recently learned of it. A pund of fish was c. 6 kg of stockfish, and with several hundred tenants on the estate and in Sunnmøre this could probably amount to a couple of tonnes of fish or more, which the bailiff probably sold in Bergen to pay for timber and labour. That is an estimate and an inference. The letter was written while the Kalmar War against Sweden was under way, and a letter on the page before concerns watch against Swedish attacks.