Hans Gaas ( c.1500 – 17 September 1578) was a Danish-Norwegian clergyman. He was Bishop of the

Diocese of Nidaros Nidaros is a diocese in the Lutheran Church of Norway. It covers Trøndelag county in Central Norway and its cathedral city is Trondheim, which houses the well-known Nidaros Cathedral. Since 10 September 2017, the Bishop of Nidaros is Herborg ...

in the aftermath of the introduction of

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

into Norway. Gaas was born in

Svendborg Svendborg () is a town on the island of Funen in south-central Denmark, and the seat of Svendborg Municipality. With a population of 27,616 (1 January 2025), Svendborg is Funen's second largest city.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 ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. He studied in

Wittenberg Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is the fourth-largest town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, in the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. It is situated on the River Elbe, north of Leipzig and south-west of the reunified German ...

for a few years from 1521. He took his magister degree in theology at

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

during 1548. He was sent to

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

in 1549 with the goal of completing the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

of the church in the Diocese of Nidaros. When he first came to

, he was initially assigned to the Cloister at

Elgeseter Elgeseter is a neighborhood in the city of Trondheim in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the western part of the borough of Lerkendal in Trondheim Municipality. It is south and east of the river Nidelva, south of the neighborhoods of ...

where he initiated reform. He also undertook a rescue mission for

Nidaros Cathedral Nidaros Cathedral () is a Church of Norway cathedral located in the city of Trondheim in Trøndelag county. It is built over the burial site of Olav II of Norway, King Olav II ( 995–1030, reigned 1015–1028), who became the patron saint of th ...

which was badly damaged by fires in 1327 and again in 1531. In his efforts to initiate reform of the church, he found an ally in Gjeble Pederssøn (ca. 1490-1557) Bishop in Bergen stift, who in 1537 had become the first Lutheran Bishop within Norway. Pederssøn was likewise reforming the church in

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

. Hans Gaas served as superintendent and Bishop in Trondhjems stift from 1549 until his death in 1578, except for the war period from 1564 to 1570. In 1563, the

Northern Seven Years' War The Northern Seven Years' War (also known as the ''Nordic Seven Years' War'', the ''First Northern War,'' the ''Seven Years' War of the North'' or the ''Seven Years War in Scandinavia'') was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden (1523–1611), K ...

was initiated between Sweden and Denmark-Norway. In 1564, Swedish forces occupied

Trøndelag Trøndelag (; or is a county and coextensive with the Trøndelag region (also known as ''Midt-Norge'' or ''Midt-Noreg,'' "Mid-Norway") in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County (); in 1804 the county was ...

, including the city of

. Gaas refused taking the oath to the king of Sweden and was imprisoned. The war ended in 1570 with the withdrawal of Swedish forces under terms of the Treaty of Stettin at which time Gaas was reinstated in his former office.

References

1500 births 1578 deaths People from Svendborg Danish emigrants to Norway Bishops of Nidaros 16th-century Norwegian Lutheran clergy {{Norway-Lutheran-bishop-stub