Counter-Admiral Johan Frederik Bardenfleth (19 August 1772 3 February 1833) was a Danish naval officer, courtier and colonial administrator who served as the Governor-General of the Danish West Indies from 1821 to 1827. The owner of Harridslevgaard 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 ...

, he was the father of prime minister Carl Emil Bardenfleth.

Early life and background

Bardenfleth was born on 19 August 1772 in

Holbæk Holbæk () is a town in Denmark and the County seat, seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 30,903 (1 January 2025). His father owned Harridslevgaard on

Career

Bardenfleth became a cadet in 1781. In 1786, he was part of his uncle

Poul de Løvenørn Counter-Admiral Poul de Løvenørn (11 August 1751 – 16 March 1826) was a Danish naval officer, cartographer, scientist and diplomat. Personal life Poul de Løvenørn was the grandson of Poul Vendelbo Løvenørn and the son of . His mother wa ...

's expedition to

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

in search of Østerbygden. He became a junior lieutenant in 1789 and a senior lieutenant in 1796. During the Battle of Copenhagen, he served as second-in-command of the defensive barge (''defensionsprammen'') ''Charlotta Amalie''. He was later sent to the Mediterranean Sea with the brig ''Sarpen'' (captain: C.C. Holck). In May 1797, he became a teacher at the

Royal Danish Naval Academy The Royal Danish Naval Academy ( or more commonly, ''Søofficerskolen'') educates and commissions all officers for the Royal Danish Navy. Having existed for more than 300 years, it is the oldest still-existing officers' academy in the world. ...

. He was therefore decommissioned from the ''Sarpen'' at

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

and returned to Denmark on board the frigate ''

Thetis Thetis ( , or ; ) is a figure from Greek mythology with varying mythological roles. She mainly appears as a sea nymph, a goddess of water, and one of the 50 Nereids, daughters of the ancient sea god Nereus. When described as a Nereid in Cl ...

''. He therefore just missed in the

Action of 16 May 1797 The Action of 16 May 1797 was a naval battle that took place near Tripoli in Ottoman Tripolitania (present-day Libya). The Danish squadron was attacked by a Tripolitan squadron that outnumbered them in number of vessels. Background After the n ...

. In 1806, with rank of captain lieutenant, Bardenfleth was created ''kammerjunker'' and appointed as governor for

Ferdinand, Hereditary Prince of Denmark Frederick Ferdinand, Hereditary Prince of Denmark () (22 November 1792 – 29 June 1863) was grandson of King Frederick V and heir presumptive to the throne from 1848 until his death. Had he lived five months longer, he would have outlived his ...

. In 1810, now with rank of captain. he was appointed to chamberlain and ''hofchef'' for Prince Ferdinand. On 20 February 1822, he was appointed as interin governor-general of the Danish West Indies. He remained in the office until 25 May 1826. He reached the rank of

counter admiral Counter admiral is a military rank used for high-ranking officers in several navies around the world, though the rank is not used in the English-speaking world, where its equivalent rank is rear admiral. The term derives from the French . Dependi ...

in 1826. In 1929, he was appointed as ''ceremonimester'' at Ordenskapitlet.

Personal life

Bardenfleth married on 16 April 1799 im

Vejle Vejle () is a city in Denmark, in the southeast of the Jutland Peninsula at the head of Vejle Fjord, where the Vejle River and Grejs River and their valleys converge. It is the site of the councils of Vejle Municipality (''Municipalities of De ...

to Augusta Wilhelmine Hellfried (16 November 1775 - 23 December 1861). She was the daughter of postmaster-general C.F. von Hellfried. They had the following children: * Reinholdine Fredericke Wilhelmine Bardenfleth (1800-) * Sophie Dorothea Bardenfleth (1801-1801) * Sophie Dorothea Bardenfleth (1803-1826) * Johan Frederik Bardenfleth (1805-1850) * Carl Emil Bardenfleth (1808-1857) ''Gehejme-Statsminister'' * Marie Sophie Frederikke Bardenfleth (1810-1887) Bardenfleth succeeded his father as the owner of Harridslevgaard in 1810. In 1829, he sold it to Andreas Erich Heinrich Ernst lensgreve Bernstorff-Gyldensteen.

Written works

* ''En militair Beskrivelse om Slaget paa Kjøbenhavns Red'' (1801) * ''Om Orkaner'' (1831)

Awards

* Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog (1808= * Cross of Honour (1812) * Commander of the Order of the Dannebrog (1918) * Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog (1826)

References

{{reflist Danish naval commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Governors of the Danish West Indies People from Holbæk Municipality Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog 1772 births 1833 deaths Royal Danish Navy counter admirals 18th-century Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy officers 19th-century Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy officers 19th-century Royal Danish Navy admirals