| Notater |
- The following is from "Sagen om Berrild Clausen", by C.A. Kofoed, Bornholmske Samlinger, r?kke II, bog 18, side 117-123:
Berild Clausen, of Bj?rneg?rd, 10 Vdg. Klemensker, was at that time Bornholm's chief agitator. Ruthless, malicious, rude and bloodthirsty, he searched for every opportunity to "Klammer" (quarrel) and dispute. It was during the period that Hans Christensen Piil, of Vester Pileg?rd, 69 Slg. Klemensker, served as "Fendrich", that he was involved in a lawsuit with Berild Clausen. The lawsuit first came before the "N?rre Herreds Ret" (Northern District Court), where Daniel Barch served as judge.
At the same time as the lawsuit against Sub-Lieutenant Hans Christensen Piil, Berild Clausen had a lawsuit against Peder Sandersen Lesler of Kyndeg?rd, whom he showered with charges and abusive language without limits. Resulting with Chief Justice Matthias Rasch judging him a liar, and fined him 3 Mark (and also to pay expenses). He took both lawsuits to the High Court, and lost both of them.
In the lawsuit brought before the Northern District Court Daniel Barch judged Hans Christensen guilty of a "Stavehug" (whipping) and assault upon a blameless wayfaring man and to be fined 120 "Lod S?lv" (weighted silver), 1/3 to got to Berild Clausen and 2/3 to the crown (1 Lod S?lv = 1/2 Riksdaler). But the chief justice knew Berild Clausen better, that no proof had been provided and neither did the judgement take into consideration the opinion of "Dannem?nd" (good men and true) on the bloody battle, and so he declared the district bailiff's judgement null and void and Hans Christensen free of the lawsuit (dated July 1, 1685). And thus declaring the two young girls preposterous testimony rather weak.
Before the lawsuit went before the High Court, Berild Clausen sought desperately to get the witnesses from the District Court to strengthen their evidence and testimony. Namely, that Hans Christensen Piil had attempted to entice from Sandheden's Road, that the maiden Elisabeth, when she last come home from the court, had been given an old mare. And that his wife had summoned the maiden Kirsten Hansdatter and promised her "en saadan Grovhed, som hun aldrig havde baaret paa sin Krop" (such a beating, as she had never before borne upon her body), and that Elisabeth Larsdatter of R?nne had come to her informing her that if she went to Hans Christensen Piil's and renounced her testimony that she would get a fashionable dress, etc. All of this Berild Clausen had gotten Kirsten Hansdatter and the boy Peder Larsen to sign, with the addendum: "Saa sandt hj. m. Gud og hs. hell. Ord" (True to God and his Holy Word). Furthermore, four men attested that they had heard the above from the two witnesses own mouths, namely: "Laurids Mogensen - egen haand, Hans H.J.S. Jensen, Michel M.H.S. Hansen, Hans Clausen - egen haand."
This disgraceful manoeuvre might well have received serious attention in the High Court. However, the new Commandant and County Administrator, Johan Diderich Wettberg (1685-94) became involved, seeing that it concerned one of his military underlings. He put together a civil commission to examine the lawsuit and unravel the accusations of violence against Sub-Lieutenant Hans Christensen Piil. An important document placed before the High Court was the following sworn testimony issued by R?nne town council from three respected citizens in R?nne, dated August 26, 1686:
"Saa haver vi efter Hr. Oberstens Befaling ladet forn?vnte Peder Lauridsen for os kalde udi R?nne den 16 August 1686, som sagde sig at v?re ungef?hr 17 Aar gl. - Angav at have v?ret nogle Aar hos sin Morfader Niels Ambrusen . . . : sagde, at Berrild Clausen kom til ham til Hans Jensens i Rydsker, hvorhen Peder Larsen var gaaet, og spurgte, om Hans Christensen F?nrik vilde have ham til at vidne anderledes end tilforn, og at han, Peder Larsen, svarede Nej, og dermed rejste Berrild Clausen bort. - Men den n?ste Dag kom Berrild Clausen igen til Peder Larsen ude paa Marken i samme Sogn og havde med sig Michel Hansen, Berrild Clausens Moders S?sters?n, item Hans Jensen, og Hans Clausen af Hasle. Saa bad Berrild Clausen Michel Hansen at tage Peder Larsen paa Hesten til sig, de vilde ride hen til Lars Mogensen, hvilket og skede. Her spurgte Berrild Clausen Peder Larsen, om han ikke var sig bevidst, at Hans Christensen efter Vidnesagen gav Elisabeth Larsdatter et graat ?g, hvortil Peder Larsen svarede Nej, og at han aldeles intet vidste eller havde h?rt derom, f?rend Berrild Clausen sligt omtalte. . . . Og var Hans Jensen i Rydsker til Stede, som haver ovenn?vnte Elisabet nu til ?gte, og soer, at han eller hans Hustru aldrig have talet om noget ?g at have faaet af Hans Christensen. . . . Og sagde Peder Larsen, at Berrild Clausen tog saa en Skrift op af sin Lomme og l?ste, og Peder Larsen svarede, at han dens Indhold ej kunde vedstaa, da han intet vidste af det, som stod deri, hverken om det graat ?g eller andet. Og bad da Berrild Clausen Hans Clausen af Hasle renskrive det, som han havde l?st, hvilket han ogsaa gjorde, og saa vilde Berrild Clausen, at Peder Larsen skulde underskrive det med sit Navn, og som han ikke kunde skrive sit Navn, saa skrev V?rten udi Huset Lars Mogensen to Bogstaver foran ham paa Bordet, hvor Peder Larsen efter Berrild Clausens Beg?ring og Tillokkelse med Hans Clausens Tilhj?lp, som tog ham om Haanden, skrev tre Bogstaver under samme Seddel, og bekendte Peder Larsen, at han aldrig f?r havde skrevet noget Brev under, og vidste intet af, hvad de Bogstaver betyder. . . . Hans Clausen, som havde renskrevet, forklarer nu om Sammenkomsten i Rydsker hos Lars Mogensen og meldte, at der var, foruden Peder Larsen en Pige ved Navn Kirsten, og saa renskrev Hans Clausen Berrild Clausens Papir paa et Stykke stemplet Papir til 6 Sk., og saa havde Berrild Clausen selv Bl?k og Pen med sig, som det blev renskrevet med. Og saa skrev, da Peder Larsen var udgaaet af Stuen, forn?vnte Pige trende Bogstaver under samme Brev, efter som V?rten i Huset Lars Mogensen f?rst nogle Gange paa Bordet havde skrevet tre Bogstaver for hende, og var samme Piges Lavv?rge ej hos, da det skete. Hans Clausen tog ikke Pigen ved Haanden, men hun skrev selv. Saaledes for os bekendt. Actum anno, die et loco ut supra: Hans Olufsen, Mads Pedersen, Claus Hartvig."
The above translated to English:
"After Sir Colonel's order we have we a summon to R?nne the above mentioned Peder Lauridsen on the 16th of August 1686, who described himself to be approximately 17 years old. Stated to have lived for several years with his mother's father Niels Ambrusen . . . : stated, that Berild Clausen came to him at Hans Jensen's in Rutsker, where Peder Larsen was going, and questioned, about Sub-Leutenant Hans Christensen would have him to testify different than formerly, and that he, Peder Larsen, replied no, and with that Berild Clausen went away. But the next day Berild Clausen came again to Peder Larsen out upon a field in the same parish and had with hims Michel Hansen, Berild Clausen's mother's sister's son, also Hans Jensen, and Hans Clausen of Hasle. Then Berild Clausen asked Michel Hansen to take Peder Larsen upon his horse, and they would ride along to Lars Mogensen, which came to pass. Here Berild Clausen asked Peder Larsen, about which he had no evidence, that Hans Christensen after the legal testemony gave Elisabeth Larsdatter an old horse, to which Peder Larsen replied no, and that he knew absolutely nothing nor had heard thereof before Berild Clausen had mentioned it. . . . As well Hans Jensen of Rutsker was here in town, now married to the above mentioned Elisabeth, and related that neither he nor his wife have ever told of having received an old horse from Hans Christensen. . . . And said Peder Larsen, that Berild Clausen thus took a document out of his pocket and read, and Peder Larsen replied, to him its contents would not abide by, at that time he knew nothing of it, which stood therein, neither about that old horse or others. And then Berild Clausen asked Hans Clausen of Hasle to make a good copy of the document, which he had read, which one he also made, and thus would Berild Clausen, to Peder Larsen shall sign it with his name, and which he will not write his name, thus wrote host of the house Lars Mogensen two characters in front of him on the table, where Peder Larsen characters after Berild Clausen's request and urging with Hans Clausen's help, who took him about the hand, wrote three char beneath the same piece of paper, and confess Peder Larsen, to he never before had written any character beneath, and knew none of, what the characters stood for. . . . Hans Clausen, who had made a copy of the document, explains now about the same meeting in Rutsker with Lars Mogensen and stated that there was, besides Peder Larsen, a maiden named Kirsten, and that Hans Clausen made a copy of Berild Clausen's document upon a piece of stamped paper for 6 Skilling, and that Berild Clausen even had pen and ink with him, with which it was copied. Peder Larsen left the room, and the above mentioned maiden wrote three characters below the same document, after which the host of the house, Lars Mogensen, first went to the table to write three characters for her, and was the same maiden's guardian, as it happened. Hans Clausen did not take the maiden by the hand, but rather she herself wrote. Thus in this manner the information became known to us. Actum anno, die et loco ut supra: Hans Olufsen, Mads Pedersen, Claus Hartvig."
Note: The above signers were: town bailiff Hans Olufsen Schou, town clerk Mads Pedersen Viborg, and court witness Claus Hartwig.
In his enclosure to the High Court, Berild Clausen elaborates, about how Sub-Lieutenant Hans Christensen Piil of Klemensker has kept up a murderous and life threatning assault upon him, even on the plaintiff's own farm and done violence there:
". . . Sag mellem mig og en National Fendrich Hans Christensen af Clemmedsker Sogn . . . imod mig ?fvede Kirkefred, Vejfred og Husfred . . . er bleven sk?ldet paa Kirkegaarden, endog omkuldst?dt af en h?j Grav, som jeg stod paa, uden ringeste given Anledning, som bevises at Dommens Dato 1684 15 Octbr. . . . Siden har Fendrich f?rt nogle villige Bagvidner . . . jeg var kommandert til Stranden, da der var saa mange Skibe i S?en, men da det var Koffardi-Skibe, fik vi Hjemlov igen . . . og som jeg red med min Mundering ret ad Vejen til min Gaard, som falder forbi Hans Christensens Gaard, hvor han da holdt paa sin Hest ved Siden af Vejen og snigte sig paa mig med Hug og Slag . . . som af hans egne Soldater allernaadigst kan erfares . . . Da jeg af Retten beg?rede Ben?gtelsesed, svarede han, at han ej dertil var indst?vnet . . . Fendrichen har ved Lokken og ved Kj?b kj?bt sig Vidnesbyrd, neml: Elisabeth Larsdatter, som nu er kommen i ?gtestand med en af Fendrichens underhavende Soldater, navnlig Hans Jensen . . . nu og villet tilkj?bt de andre tvende Vidnesbyrd, som af dem med Ed aflagte Bekendelse og 4 M?nds Attest bevises af Dato 6de August 1686 har ikke kunnet n?dt Husfred . . . han har gjort sig et ?rinde at skulle hente min dreng med nogle kommanderede Soldater, da han blev udskreven til Soldat, som ikke kunde nyde Madro, men maatte tage sin Mad i Haanden hvorpaa Fendrichen ved Pukken vilde n?de mig til at skaffe og give dem ?l, og dern?st udfordrede mig til Duelleri, mens jeg ikke vilde udgaa til ham og hans Soldater, paa det jeg ikke udi Ulykke, Leml?stelse eller ved Livet skulde geraade, som verdslige Fendrichens og hans medhavendes sikkerlige Intendt maa have voren . . . mens imod sligt hans Udfordring svarede jeg hannem: du lost i Mordsti og slog mig i Gaar med din Prygel, derfor vil jeg igen slaa dig med Lands Lov og Ret . . . saa, jeg maatte mit Liv derover i mit Hus for samme salvere og Fendrichen har sk?ldet og undsagt mig for en sat Ret inden N?rre Herreds Ting den 18 Juli 1684, sigende, at havde jeg kommet ud af min Forstue, da vilde Fendrichen taget mig og f?rt mig fangen til Leensgaard [her boede Kommandanten Benedix von Hatten 1682-85] hvilket Landsdommer ej har villet anse, men ganske frikendt Fendrichen for bem. Poster . . . og ej ringeste. Kost og T?ring mig tild?mt . . . haaber, at dette maa blive anseet, paa det jeg fattige Mand engang kunde vide mig fri og nyde Fred og Ro. Den 7 August 1686. Allerunderdanigst tro Undersaat Berrild Clausen . . . Herimod og til Sagen at svare efter Indst?vning for Retten comparerede F?nrik Hans Christensen tilligemed sin Fuldm?gtig Christoffer Munch. Til Stede var ogsaa Landsdommer Matthias Rasch, som sin Dom vedstod og formenede den saa lovm?ssig at v?re d?mt, at den . . . allernaadigst skulde vorde confirmeret. Da efter Tiltale og Gensvar l?d H?jesterets Dom den 1 Septbr. 1686: Landsdommers Dom af 1 Juli 1685 b?r i alle Maader ved Magt at blive."
The above translated to English:
". . . the matter between me and one National Sub-Lieutenant Hans Christensen of Klemensker Parish . . . against my ability to peacefully make use of church, road and home . . . have been scolded in the churchyard, even pushed down over a tall grave, which I stood upon, without giving cause, as proof a judgement dated October 15, 1684 . . . Since the Sub-Lieutenant has carried out ready false witness . . . I was ordered to the seashore, as there were so many ships in the sea, but as it was determined they were merchant marines, we went home again . . . and as I lawfully road with my gear on that road towards my farm, which goes past Hans Christensen's farm, he sat there upon his horse at the side of the road and threw himself upon me with slashes and blows . . . as some of his own soldiers very graciously can inform . . . When I demanded of my right of way denied, he replied, that he was not blocking the way . . . the Sub-Lieutenant has with enticing and with purchasing has bought himself testimony, namely Elisabeth Larsdatter, who is now married to one of the Sub-Lieutenant's own soldiers, namely Hans Jensen . . . and now would purchase himself the other two testimonies, which with oath sworn confession and 4 men's certified proofs dated August 6, 1686 have not known enjoyment of free use of home . . . he has given an order to some commandered soldiers to fetch my servant, then he was enlisted as a soldier, he has not been able to enjoy peace during meals, but must take his food in his hand whereupon the Sub-Lieutenant with insistance would enjoyen me to obtain and give them beer, and next challenged me to fight a duel, whereas I would not go out to him and his soldiers, so that I not from accident, mutilation or bodily fall, as the Sub-Lieutenant and his assistants certainly intended to have happen . . . while against his challenging I replied to him: you engaged murderously and struck me yesterday with your whip, therefore I shall strike you with the country's law and court . . . so, I must stay in my house for my own salvation and the Sub-Lieutenant has scolded and slandered me before a court of the Northern District Court on July 18, 1684, significantly, as I came out of my entry hall, the Sub-Lieutenant took me and conducted me as a prisoner to Lensg?rd [where Commandant Benedix von Hatten lived 1682-85] which the chief justice wished had not happened, but rather acquited the Sub-Lieutenant from aforesaid post . . . and not least. Brush and tailor me to judgement . . . hope, that this may remain of high standing, that I a poor man will once again know my freedom and partake of peace and rest. The 7th of August 1686. Your most humbly trusing subject Berild Clausen."
Against this is the case presented after summoning before the court by Sub-Lieutenant Hans Christensen together with his attorney Christopher Munch. Present was also Chief Justice Matthias Rasch, who stood by his judgment and formed the thus legal decision to be judged, that it . . . very graciously should be confirmed.
After appeal and rejoiner read the High Court's judgment on September 1, 1686:
"The chief justice's judgment of July 1, 1685 shall in all manner with comfort remain."
It is possible, that there is context to be found between Sub-Lieutenant Hans Christensen's outcome from the above described courtcase and his transition to civilian office, whcih he soon thereafter obtained.
This database researched and compiled by Norman Lee Madsen, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 21 July 2015.
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1658 - 1736 (~ 78 år)
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