Hemming Gadh (c. 1450 – 16 December 1520) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

Roman Catholic priest and Bishop of the

Diocese of Linköping The Diocese of Linköping () is a diocese within the Church of Sweden administering the Östergötland County, the north eastern part of Jönköping County and the northern part of Kalmar County. It comprises nine deaneries subdivided into 176 ...

. He was a staunch ally of Sten Sture and a fierce opponent of

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 ...

and the

Kalmar Union The Kalmar Union was a personal union in Scandinavia, agreed at Kalmar in Sweden as designed by Queen Margaret I of Denmark, Margaret of Denmark. From 1397 to 1523, it joined under a single monarch the three kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden (then in ...

Biography

Hemming Olofsson Gadh was born around 1450 at Hossmo parish in

Kalmar County Kalmar County () is a Counties of Sweden, county or ''län'' in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Kronoberg County, Kronoberg, Jönköping County, Jönköping, Blekinge County, Blekinge and Östergötland County, Östergötland. To the ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. He studied legal and ecclesiastical law at the

University of Greifswald The University of Greifswald (; ), formerly known as Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Founded in 1456, it is one of th ...

and

University of Rostock The University of Rostock () is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in continental northern Europe and the Baltic Se ...

. In 1479 he became

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

and secretary for

Henrik Tidemansson Henrik is a male given name of Germanic origin, primarily used in Scandinavia, Finland, Estonia, Hungary and Slovenia. In Poland, the name is spelt Henryk but pronounced similarly. Equivalents in other languages are Henry (English), Heiki (Estoni ...

, Bishop of the

. Gadh was later that year selected by

Sten Sture the Elder Sten Sture the Elder (; 1440 – 14 December 1503) was a Swedish statesman and regent of Sweden from 1470 to 1497 and again from 1501 to 1503. As the leader of the victorious Swedish separatist forces against the royal unionist forces led by De ...

as an

envoy Envoy or Envoys may refer to: Diplomacy * Diplomacy, in general * Envoy (title) * Special envoy, a type of Diplomatic rank#Special envoy, diplomatic rank Brands *Airspeed Envoy, a 1930s British light transport aircraft *Envoy (automobile), an au ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. He was a master in gaining well paid posts, which he did not take up, but rather sold for a good price. He did however choose to take up his new position when at the request of Sten Sture, he was elected as

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

after his predecessor Henrik Tidemansson died in 1501. He did not manage to get the post confirmed by the

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

within the statuted three months. This had as a consequence the Spanish

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

Jaume Serra i Cau Jaume Serra i Cau (, ; died 1517) was a Spaniard, Spanish Valencian people, Valencian Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal, from the city of Valencia, Spain, Valencia. He was tutor to the young Giovanni Borgia (1474), Giovanni Borgia, and a close as ...

appointed as

administrator Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

. In 1506 Gadh was

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...

by the Pope and in 1513

Hans Brask Hans Brask (1464–1538) was a Swedish Bishop of Linköping. Biography Brask was born in Linköping in 1464 to a bourgeois family. He studied philosophy and law at German universities, e.g. Rostock, and around 1500 he received a doctoral degree ...

(1464–1538) gained the position as bishop. During the

Dano-Swedish War (1501–1512) The Dano-Swedish War from 1501 to 1512 was a military conflict between Denmark and Sweden within the Kalmar Union. The war began with a Swedish and a Norwegian revolt against King Hans and the siege of Queen Christina in her castle in Danish ...

he led troops against Kalmar and worked as a Swedish ambassador in

Lübeck Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...

between 1510 and 1512. He was captured by the Danes in October 1518. He was on King

Christian II A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Ch ...

's fleet to

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

in 1520 and played a role in allowing the Danes entrance to the city. However the King did not trust the excommunicated bishop. After the Stockholm massacre, he was taken to

Raseborg Castle The Raseborg Castle (, ), is a medieval castle in Raseborg, Finland. The castle was active from 1370s to 1553. Today the ruins are open to the public in the summer and the castle is host to the yearly Raseborg Summer Theatre. History It has ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

where he was

beheaded Decapitation is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and all vertebrate animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood by way of severing through the jugular vein and common c ...

by order of King

Christian II of Denmark A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gadh, Hemming 1450s births 1520 deaths People excommunicated by the Catholic Church Swedish politicians Executed Swedish people People executed by the Kalmar Union 15th-century Swedish people 16th-century Swedish politicians People executed by Denmark by decapitation 16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Sweden Bishops of Linköping 16th-century executions by Denmark Papal chamberlains