Johannes Lauritsson (c. 1540 – c. 1620) was a wealthy Norwegian landowner. Through marriage, he was associated with the prominent Galte family of

Jondal Jondal is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1863 until its dissolution in 2020 when it became part of Ullensvang Municipality in Vestland county. It ...

Hardanger Hardanger is a traditional district in the western part of Norway, dominated by the Hardangerfjord and its inner branches of the Sørfjorden and the Eid Fjord. It consists of the municipalities of Ullensvang, Eidfjord, Ulvik and Kvam, and is ...

.Handegård, Odd (2008),
Vår felles slektshistorie. Hardanger, Sunnhordland og Ryfylke m.m. 1170-1650
', p. 314

Plot and arrest

He is mentioned as living at Valen (Valo) in

Fjelberg Fjelberg is a former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until 1965 when it was dissolved. In 1965, the municipality covered , mostly islands and a small area on the mainland. It encompassed par ...

Kvinnherad Kvinnherad is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Sunnhordland, along the Hardangerfjorden. The municipality was the 5th in siz ...

from 1563 to 1578."''Jondal kommune, Gards- og slektssoge, bind II''" Around 1567, during 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 ...

(1563-1570), Lauritsson joined the adventurer Enno Brandrøk in

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 ...

in his scheme to aggravate King

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

. Lauritsson was after some time sent back to

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

with a letter for the nobility, describing great hostilities and suggesting they should kill as many

Danes Danes (, ), or Danish people, are an ethnic group and nationality native to Denmark and a modern nation identified with the country of Denmark. This connection may be ancestral, legal, historical, or cultural. History Early history Denmark ...

as possible. Due to this, Lauritsson was captured and sentenced to be executed. However he was set free after paying 100 daler. This was probably due to Enno's sister Anna Tronds.

Later life

Lauritsson is not mentioned again after his return from Sweden until 1578, when he was trustee for his mother in the case against the brothers Sebjørn and Tore Toresson. At this time he still lived at the farm Valen. He was married around 1583–85 to Herborg Torbjørnsdatter Sandven (c. 1565–1633) of Sandven in

Kvam Kvam is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The municipality is located along the Hardangerfjorden in the traditional district of Hardanger. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Norheimsund. Other larger settl ...

. Through this marriage, he received Jondal farm in

, one of the two farms at Torsnes which she in turn had inherited from her grandfather or great-grandfather Peter Nilsson på Torsnes (c.1450-1530). Lauritsson also inherited land from Guttorm Nilsson. By 1603 he was, together with his wife's brother Olav Torbjørnson Sandven (1560-1637), one of the wealthiest landowners in

and

Sunnhordland Sunnhordland is a traditional district in the western region of Norway. The district consists of the southern coastal regions of the old Hordaland county (now part of Vestland county). It includes the areas that surround the mouth of the Harda ...

. Lauritsson was

juror A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence, make Question of fact, findings of fact, and render an impartiality, impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a sentence (law), penalty or Judgmen ...

in 1590, 1599 and 1610. In 1591, he was the representative from the parish of

Strandebarm Strandebarm is a former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The original municipality was large, spanning both sides of the central part of the Hardangerfjorden. It also included the island of Varaldsøy. Over time, the municipa ...

at the celebration at

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

for King Christian IV of Denmark-Norway.

References

1540s births 1620 deaths People from Hordaland People from Kvinnherad Norwegian landowners Norwegian jurists 16th-century Norwegian people 17th-century Norwegian people Norwegian prisoners sentenced to death Prisoners sentenced to death by Norway {{Norway-bio-stub