Setesvein

Setesvein ( norrön: " setusveinn ", masculine ) was called first the weapons leading man who was in the service of a chief and this was his stay. A special group among them were the Skutelsvein. They performed their service on the board of the sovereign. But soon the word for certain offices was used, from which developed institutions that met the continental offices " cupbearer ", " marshal " and " Chamberlain ". You had commanded a special courtly behavior in Hirðskrá. It was normal, as a young noble man first as Svein to serve the bishop and later as Setesvein in the districts. In the sources often Huskarl, Setesvein, Herresvein, and eidgeschworene Svein be mentioned next to each other. The term " Huskarl " goes back to the rules of Hirðská on the exemption from taxes of the grand staff. " Herresvein " is an import from abroad, especially from Sweden. The same applies to the eidgeschworenen Svein. It was a vassal relationship between Svein and his Lord.

In a bull Pope Celestine III. of 15 June 1194 secular servants of the archbishop of all taxes and duties army were released. The birth of the Episcopal Setesvein was the Concordat of Tønsberg in 1277th The word " Setesvein " but is first detected by the December 18, 1332 on the Huskarle of the chiefs in a decree of King Magnus Eriksson. It says that some staff entered ( svende ) have gained that would have them as a king swear allegiance, and that these Svein " sitia Their oc i stodhum eder bygdhum heima " ( sit in settlements and districts ). It is forbidden to the chiefs, " nokoro seto sveina " to keep. Here you can see the etymology of the term. Setesvein is therefore a member of staff with a private firm residence in contrast to Huskarl who is staying at the court of the chief. When Queen Margaret in 1388, the Norwegian government took over, it was decided that the archbishop, bishops, knights and provosts Huskarle and " Setesvein " could hold.

As the old Hird organization gradually dissolved, all its members, both at the respective court as well as those who lived abroad, king 's men were. The gentlemen were the king immediately committed to Svein indirectly via their Lord. The church Svein had the same position, but without the obligation to the king. They were vassals of the bishops.

At the time of the Great Plague in the years 1347 and after the liberation of worldly Svein of the Knights has been removed from military service. In a royal arrangement, all able-bodied men were to the royal service in the defense obligation, in particular to build warships and entertain. That was the end of the secular Setesvein.

In the late Middle Ages, the Setesvein were only special officials of the bishops in their dioceses, perceived the various economic and administrative tasks. It was the Archbishop to a group of clients in the North West and North Country Norge. They belonged to the low nobility or were large farmers. The boundaries between these aristocratic groups are fluid, so that can not always be determined with certainty whether a family is part of the low needle ( squire ) or leading large peasantry. Apparently, the bishops were just before the Reformation interested to bind secular nobility itself. Erik Valkendorf uses the term in a letter to Pope Hadrian VI. " Liberos seruos Dicte ecclesie Nidrosiensis Sedesuene vulgariter nuncupatos " In the same letter, the archbishop stressed that the Setesvein were freed from all worldly duties and taxes since time immemorial. Ludvig Ludvigsen Daae concluded that the Setesvein had been a member of the Episcopal Hird, an allegiance that keep the bishops and auxiliary bishops were allowed by the Concordat of 1277 Tønsberg. After this Concordat, the Archbishop could carry 100 men and the other bishops as 40 man protection force with it. In this concordat also Archbishop Aslak Bolt summoned in his certificate of appointment for Steinar Øysteinsson to Setesvein in Nidaros. The appointment of lay members of noble families expanded the worldly influence of the church considerably. As the king men enjoyed the Setesvein duty exemption. They were also exempt from the royal army service.

In the book of accounts Olav Engelbrektssons of 1533 is a collection of 69 named Setesvein. The list ends with " etc. " can be seen from which that it is not complete. Of these, 18 were followed in Finnmark, Troms in today's 18, 13 in Nordland, 3 and 4 in Fosen in Møre og Romsdal and two in Iceland. From the list it can be seen that most Setesvein sat in the fish-rich areas. There were also commoners and foreigners among them, which is due to the fact that there are few nobles were in the area, whose sons had come in this question. It can be assumed that they held responsibilities in the archbishop's fishing industry and fish trade. They apparently shipped the fish to Bergen at the Hanseatic League, which was a lucrative business for the duty exemption. This trade and the tax exemption, therefore, was a particular source of conflict between Archbishop Erik Valkendorf and Jørgen Hansson, the captain of Christian II in Bergen. He saw the Setesvein as illegal competition to the citizens of Bergen. As Jørgen Hansson sent his bailiffs to collect the tithe, he let these also raise the episcopal Setesvein. In the last days in office Olav Engelbrektssons Eske Bille received the order to expel all Setesvein from the area of ​​today Møre og Romsdal. He had to run this mission through its bailiff Tord Rod. In the letter of the Archbishop of April 1, 1537, the day of his flight from the land, to Eske Bille he describes the happened that the violence.

The Episcopal Setesvein in Sønnafjelske Norge fared no better. Archbishop Erik Valkendorf called because of the tax exemption in vain to the imperial councils in Norway and Denmark. But at this time the Imperial Council had no meaning. Then he offered Hans Mule, at that time governor of Christian II in Norway, that he aufkomme for controlling its Setesvein. In this way he wanted to avoid the precedent of taxing Setesvein. But Hans Mule precisely why did not enter it. He is not got so much on the control itself, but to weaken in this way the institution of Setesvein as the economic and organizational apparatus of the Church decisively.

The Setesvein there were only up to the Reformation in 1537, when the bishopric was abolished. But in northern Norway were members of this ancient group of Setesvein an important element in the regional low nobility and ruling class.

In Sweden, we find the term " Setesvein " also and for a man in the service of a Great, who kept him for military service and enjoyed tax exemption. 1497 will be the " Satuswena " the Bishop of Linköping Henrik mentioned, and in 1506 wrote Svante Nilsson ( Sture ) on " menige frelsit ... ehwars godhe Herre och mans thienere och sæteswenæ the wara kunne ".