Henrik Below (1540–1606) was a Danish nobleman and diplomat. He was the son of Claus Below and Dorothea Golitz. He attended the

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 ...

. He acquired

Spøttrup Castle Spøttrup Castle () is a well-preserved medieval defensive castle in Jutland, Denmark. It is situated northwest of Skive and west of the village of Rødding. The castle is located at the easthern shore of Spøttrup Lake, a small lake just east ...

from the Danish crown in 1579 and made substantial alterations to the building. In 1583 he married Lisbet Lauridsdatter Skram (1563-1600) and Johannes Caselius wrote a Latin epithalamium. In 1585 Henrik Below, Manderup Parsberg, and Nicolaus Theophilus were appointed ambassadors to Scotland. They arrived in June, while there was plague in Scotland and

James VI of Scotland James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

was in the country at

Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, who took refuge there from political and religious turmoil of her times. Today it is under th ...

Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...

. James VI appointed Sir James Melville of Halhill,

William Schaw William Schaw (c. 1550–1602) was Masters of Work to the Crown of Scotland, Master of Works to James VI of Scotland and Anne of Denmark for building castles and palaces, and is claimed to have been an important figure in the development of Free ...

, and the Laird of Segie to be companions to the ambassadors. Melville described the events of the embassy. At

Dunfermline Palace Dunfermline Palace is a ruined former Scottish royal palace and important tourist attraction in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. It is currently, along with other buildings of the adjacent Dunfermline Abbey, under the care of Historic Environmen ...

they discussed the disputed ownership of the

Orkney Islands Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland ...

and the king's marriage. They were not treated in the usual manner but had to pay their own expenses, and when they were to travel to

St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...

the promised horses were late. At St Andrews they suffered some abuse organised by supporters of the pro-French faction. The ringleader was a leading courtier

James Stewart, Earl of Arran Captain James Stewart, Earl of Arran (died 1595) was created Earl of Arran by the young King James VI, who wrested the title from James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran. He rose to become Lord Chancellor of Scotland and was eventually murdered in 1 ...

who had served in Sweden. The English ambassador

Edward Wotton Edward Wotton may refer to: *Sir Edward Wotton (1489–1551) treasurer of Calais *Edward Wotton (zoologist) (1492–1552), early English zoologist *Edward Wotton, 1st Baron Wotton (1548–1628), English diplomat {{hndis, Wotton, Edward ...

helped the Danish diplomats because England and Denmark were allies, and he told them privately that James VI had criticised Danish customs and their king Frederick II. According to Melville, the Danish envoys considered leaving Scotland, but he persuaded them to continue and spoke to James VI in their favour. When the mission was concluded, the three Danish ambassadors were supposed to receive gifts of gold chains but these were not ready. The Master of Gray described the discussion in the

Parliament of Scotland In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

in July 1585 to give an answer to the Danish embassy regarding a league or peace treaty involving England. In May 1587 the Scottish ambassadors Patrick Vans of Barnbarroch and

Peter Young Peter or Pete Young may refer to: Sports * Peter Dalton Young (1927–2002), English rugby union player * Peter Young (cricketer, born 1961), Australian cricketer * Pete Young (born 1968), American baseball player * Peter Young (rugby league) (fl. ...

were sent to Denmark, to discuss the Orkney Islands and arrange for a marriage between James VI and

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Empress Elisabeth (disambiguation), lists various empresses named ''Elisabeth'' or ''Elizabeth'' * Princess Elizabeth ...

. They went to

Antvorskov Antvorskov Monastery (Danish: ''Antvorskov Kloster'') was the principal Scandinavian monastery of the Catholic Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, located about one kilometer south of the town of Slagelse on Zealand, Denmark. It served as the Scand ...

to meet

Frederick II of Denmark Frederick II (1 July 1534 – 4 April 1588) was King of Denmark-Norway, Denmark and Norway and Duke of Duchy of Schleswig, Schleswig and Duchy of Holstein, Holstein from 1559 until his death in 1588. A member of the House of Oldenburg, Fre ...

, but he was ill with toothache and would not see them, and they spoke to Below and Parsberg. Henrik Below was with

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 ...

and his mother

Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow (''Sophia''; 4 September 1557 – 4 October 1631) was List of Danish royal consorts, Queen of Denmark and List of Norwegian royal consorts, Norway by marriage to Frederick II of Denmark. She was the mother of King ...

in the palace of

Koldinghus Koldinghus is a Danish royal castle in the town of Kolding on the south central part of the Jutland peninsula. The castle was founded in the 13th century and was expanded since with many functions ranging from fortress, royal residency, ruin, mu ...

Kolding Kolding () is a Denmark, Danish seaport city located at the head of Kolding Fjord in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the seat of Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre and has numerous industria ...

on 29 July 1590. They entertained the Scottish ambassadors John Skene and William Stewart. At dinner the Scottish ambassadors were seated at one table with the king,

Peder Munk Peder Munk of Estvadgård (1534–1623), was a Danish navigator, politician, and ambassador, who was in charge of the fleet carrying Anne of Denmark to Scotland. The events of the voyage led to witch trials and executions in Denmark and Scotland ...

, Peder Gyldenstierne, Steen Brahe, Hak Holgersen Ulfstand, Henrik Below, and

Breide Rantzau Breide Rantzau (13 October 1556 10 January 1618) was a German nobleman in Danish-Norwegian service. He served as ''stadtholder'' of Copenhagen from 1602. Early life He was born on 13 October 1556 at Segeberg, the son of Heinrich Rantzau, and the ...

.David Scott Gehring, ''Diplomatic Intelligence on the Holy Roman Empire and Denmark during the Reigns of Elizabeth I and James VI'', Camden Fifth Series, 49 (2016), p. 155. He came to England for the coronation of King James and was lodged with Christian Freiss at

Richmond Palace Richmond Palace was a Tudor royal residence on the River Thames in England which stood in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Situated in what was then rural Surrey, it lay upstream and on the opposite bank from the Palace of Westminste ...

. Henrik Below died in 1606.

References

External links

Marriage poem by Johannes Caselius, ''HENRICO BELOVIO ET ELISABETHAE SCHRAMMIAE sponsis nobilissimis'' (Rostock, 1583)

'Belov, Henrik', University of St Andrews, SSNE
{{DEFAULTSORT:Below, Henrik 1540 births 1606 deaths Ambassadors of Denmark to Scotland