Beate Clausdatter Bille (30 April 1526 – 18 October 1605) was a Danish

noblewoman A noblewoman is a female member of the nobility. Noblewomen form a disparate group, which has evolved over time. Ennoblement of women has traditionally been a rare occurrence; the majority of noblewomen were linked to the nobility by either their ...

and

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

who was born into the noble

Bille family Bille may refer to: * Bille (given name) * Bille (surname) *Bille (Elbe), a river in Germany * Billé, a French commune *Bille (noble family) The Bille family (also spelled ''Bilde'') is a Danish noble family. Its members have played a promin ...

and married into the

Brahe family The Brahe family (originally ''Bragde'') refers to two closely related nobility, noble families of Scania, Scanian origin that played significant roles in both Denmark, Danish and Sweden, Swedish history. The Danish branch became extinct in 1786 ...

. As a member of the

royal court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

, she was Chief Court Mistress to Queen Sophie from 1584 to 1592. She married statesman

Otte Brahe Otte Brahe (; 2 October 1518 – 9 May 1571) was a Danes, Danish (Scanian) Danish nobility, nobleman and statesman, who served on the privy council (Rigsraad, "Council of the Realm"). He was married to Beate Clausdatter Bille and was the father o ...

and became a feudal fiefholder in her own right following the death of her husband. She and her husband Otte had 12 children, 8 of whom survived into adulthood, including the influential scientists and astronomers Tycho and

Sophia Brahe Sophia (or Sophie) Thott Lange (; 24 August 1559 or 22 September 1556probably in 1559 following , some others scholars give 1556, both dates match his horoscope (Det Kongelige Bibliotek). – 1643), known by her maiden name, was a Danish noble ...

.Thoren & Christianson, p. 340.

Biography

Beate Clausdatter Bille was born on 30 April 1526 at Skarhult Castle into the noble

. Her father, Claus Bille, was a member of the

Riksråd Riksrådet (in Norwegian and Swedish) or Rigsrådet (in Danish or English: the Council of the Realm and the Council of the State – sometimes translated as the "Privy Council") is the name of the councils of the Scandinavian countries that ...

and her mother, Elisabeth Ulfstand, came from the Ulfstand family. She had two brothers:

Jens Bille Jens Bille (or Bilde; born 26 January 1531 in Varberg; died 28 April 1575) was a son of Claus Bille (1490-1558) and Lisbeth Ulfstand (died 1540). In his time he was a powerful servant of the Danish monarchy; but he is probably best known today as ...

and Steen Bille (1527–1586). In 1544, as the age of 18, she married

. At the time, it was uncommon for aristocratic women to take their husband's

surnames In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several giv ...

, and so she maintained her

maiden name When a person (traditionally the wife in many cultures) assumes the family name of their spouse, in some countries and cultures that name replaces the person's previous surname, which in the case of the wife is called the maiden name ("birth name" ...

. Otto was a member of the

and, like her father, a member of the Riksråd.Thoren & Christianson, pp. 2–4, 21. She and Otte had 12 children, 8 of whom survived into adulthood: Lisbet Brahe (1545–1563),

Tycho Brahe Tycho Brahe ( ; ; born Tyge Ottesen Brahe, ; 14 December 154624 October 1601), generally called Tycho for short, was a Danish astronomer of the Renaissance, known for his comprehensive and unprecedentedly accurate astronomical observations. He ...

(1546–1601), Steen Ottesen Brahe (1547–1620), Axel Brahe (1550–1616), Margaret Brahe (1551–1516), Jørgen Brahe (1554–1601), Knud Brahe (1555–1615), and

(1556/1559–1643). They had two daughters who died in childhood: Maren (b. 1549) and Kirsten (1552–1566), and two stillborn children. Two of their sons, Steen and Axel, followed in their father's footsteps to become members of the Riksråd. Jørgen and Knud became

vassals A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerai ...

of various fiefs within the

Kingdom of Denmark The Danish Realm, officially the Kingdom of Denmark, or simply Denmark, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united by the Constitution of Denmark, Constitutional Act, which applies to the entire territor ...

. Sophia and Tycho became influential renaissance scientists and astronomers. Bille's husband held substantial fiefs on behalf of the crown. Because Denmark had no law of

primogeniture Primogeniture () is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn Legitimacy (family law), legitimate child to inheritance, inherit all or most of their parent's estate (law), estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some childre ...

, she assumed administration of four of them after his death in 1571, collecting income from the fiefs as a vassal. She administered the fiefs of Froste in

Scania Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

and Vissenbjerg Birk on

Funen Funen (, ), is the third-largest List of islands of Denmark, island of Denmark, after Zealand and North Jutlandic Island, Vendsyssel-Thy, with an area of . It is the List of islands by area, 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in th ...

until 1575, and in Scania until 1592. In 1577, Bille was invited along with a selection of other nobles to be a godparent to Queen Sophie's son, the later

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and King of Norway, Norway and List of rulers of Schleswig-Holstein, Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years and 330 days is th ...

.Thoren & Christianson, p. 119. When her sister-in-law,

Inger Oxe Inger Johansdatter Oxe ( - 1591) was a Danish noblewoman and court official. She was Hofmesterinde to the Danish Queen Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow between 1572 and 1584. She was the sister to Peder Oxe Steward of the Realm, daughter of Johan ...

, resigned as Queen Sophie's Chief Court Mistress in 1584, Bille took over her role. She was the Chief Court Mistress for 8 years, until 1592. While at court, she was a noted supporter of the arts. She, perhaps on behalf of the Queen, encouraged

Anders Sørensen Vedel Anders Sørensen Vedel (9 November 1542 – 13 February 1616) At 14 years old, he moved to study in Ribe, and after finishing his education he moved on to Copenhagen University in 1561. In 1562, he was the tutor of astronomer Tycho Brahe on Brahe' ...

to publish his collection of folk songs. Vedel dedicated one of his devotional books to her in 1592. She died at on 18 October 1605 and is buried with her husband in Kågeröd Church in Scania.

References

Works cited

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bille, Beate Court of Frederick II of Denmark Danish ladies-in-waiting 17th-century Danish nobility Beate Clausdatter Brahe family 1526 births 1605 deaths 16th-century Danish nobility 16th-century Danish women landowners People from Eslöv Municipality