Aslak Bolt

Land register Aslak Bolts. Modern reproduction.

Aslak Harniktsson Bolt (* around 1375; † probably 1450) was Norwegian Archbishop. He campaigned for the strengthening of the church, especially its economic basis. His register of church property is one of the most important sources for the history of Norwegian economics at the time.

family

His parents were alderman in Bergen Harnikt Henningsson (mentioned 1389) and his wife Sigrid Aslaksdatter Bolt (mentioned 1410). There are many indications that he came from one of Norway's noblest families, Rømer . Because he carried the coat of arms of this sex.

Bishop of Bergen

Aslak was elected Bishop of Oslo in 1407 . But in 1408 he took over at the instigation of the regent Margaret I with the support of Pope Gregory XII. the diocese of Bergen . Immediately he began to compile a list of goods for the diocese. In 1426 he also took part in the negotiations between King Erik of Denmark, Norway and Sweden and King James I of Scotland, which renewed the treaty of 1226 between King Magnus Håkonsson lagabætir and Alexander III. had to the subject. But above all he dealt with the consolidation of the economic basis of the diocese administration. In the religious field he was an admirer of St. Birgitta of Sweden and owned a copy of her "Visions". He also campaigned for the Munkeliv Benedictine monastery to be converted into a Birgittine monastery for the nuns from the Maribo monastery. In a letter dated November 26, 1421, Pope Martin V agreed to this at King Erik's request.

Archbishop of Nidaros

In 1428 the cathedral chapter in Nidaros elected him archbishop . He took over the office in 1430 after Pope Martin V confirmed the election. In the meantime, in 1429 Bergen was attacked by the Vitalienbrothers under the direction of Bartolomeus Voet. Aslak Bolt had to flee on an English ship. In Nidaros he made a list of all valuables that he had brought to Nidaros in 20 boxes. This directory is an important source for which objects belonged to an episcopal household at that time: everyday objects, carpets, furniture, theological books, etc. In general, he tried to identify and catalog the possessions of the archdiocese.

In 1432 the cathedral burned down. It became all the more important, especially for the reconstruction, to obtain clarity about the economic basis of the diocese. Thus, Aslak Bolts Jordebok was tackled and completed in 1433. This list of goods is one of the most important sources of the Middle Ages in Norway. The archbishopric owned over 3000 estates and places wholly or partially within Trøndelag and also scattered across the country. By describing the desolation and the reduced rental income, his work gives a unique insight into the population decline and the economic consequences of the plague epidemic of 1349. The directory also shows that the archbishopric acquired many other estates during his time in office.

Some of the income was used to help the poor. Aslak Bolt renewed the forgotten provisions that alms were to be given to the poor on Michaelmas Mass and Saint Olav's Day by making appropriate agreements with the farmers. However, the grain that was paid for the alms should no longer be given directly to the poor as in the past, but to the 14 altars of the cathedral church. The canons who served at these altars were to sing a daily mass for all living for peace and good harvest and read another for all Christian souls. He also tried to revive the pious gifts voluntarily promised to previous archbishops. It was important to him that the various periodically recurring gifts were recorded in writing. In Trøndelag and Northern Norway, representatives of the archdiocese represented the archbishopric's economic interests.

The Council of Basel also fell during Aslak Bolt's term of office. There it was about limiting the power of the Pope. One of the principles was that the bishops should be elected by the cathedral chapter. If the archbishop found the election valid, he could ordain the bishop without the consent of the Pope. This also resulted in considerable savings for the local dioceses, since the Pope demanded considerable taxes for his approval. Aslak Bolt joined this council movement and, according to the council regulations, occupied the bishop's chair in Bergen in 1434. He also tried to revive the provincial councils. The first was convened in Bergen in 1435, but was poorly attended. After he had once again imposed the compulsory attendance of all bishops, all bishops appeared at the provincial council in Oslo the following year, except for the one from Oslo, who was currently in Denmark. The 21 resolutions of the council clearly show Aslak Bolt's endeavor to protect the spiritual and economic interests of the church. Every bishop should send at least one local clergyman to university. His aim was to be able to fill the Norwegian church offices with locals instead of Danes. Part of the poor tithe could be used for this. The custom of concubines (Frille) was also condemned there. Anyone who did not separate from them or did not marry them should be excluded from the sacrament of the altar after one year. Further church punishments to raise morale were also introduced. This council was the last provincial council in Norway. Another council was planned in Tønsberg for 1441, but could not be held.

In agreement with the Pope, the king had placed his confidante on the bishopric. This gave the king some control over the Imperial Council, in which the number of lay people was gradually declining. Aslak Bolt now pursued the goal of weakening the Union kingship. Should the position of the Imperial Council be strengthened in relation to the royal power, the demand for free election of bishops and the filling of Norwegian church offices with native candidates instead of with Danes as before could be pursued more easily. That was in line with the Council of Basel anyway. In addition, there was great resistance to King Erik in Sweden. As a member of the Imperial Council he was with the consequences of the uprising Engelbrekt Engelbrektssons concerned and the uprising of the peasant leader Amund Bolts in Sweden 1436th He apparently played a central role in the treaty of 1437 between the Imperial Council and the rebels.

At the end of his life, politics came to the fore. After the death of Christoffer von Bayern in 1448, Sweden and Denmark each elected their own king. This led to a split in the Norwegian Imperial Council. A Swedish faction was formed under the leadership of Aslak Bolt and the knight Eirik Sæmundsson and a Denmark faction under the leadership of the imperial vicar Sigurd Jonsson, the bishop of Oslo Jens Jakobsson and the captain on Akershus, Hartvig Krummedike. So both kings were crowned in Nidaros. Aslak Bolt was later forced to stick to Christian I. In Christian's election surrender on July 2, 1449, Aslak Bolt was appointed royal governor in Norway together with Sigurd Jonsson. But that did not prevent him from crowning Karl Knudsson in the same year in the cathedral church of Nidaros. In his election surrender, the treaty of 1277 between the Church and the royal power was confirmed. Aslak Bolt died shortly afterwards, probably in 1450.

Among the many objects that Aslak Bolt has survived is the magnificent French Bible, which he apparently bought in Copenhagen.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Diplomatarium Norvegicum Vol. 12 No. 172 .
2. ↑ Diplomatarium Norvegicum Vol. 17 No. 470 .
3. ↑ ^{a b} Article “Aslak Bolt” in: Lokalhistoriewiki.no , accessed on October 26, 2011.
4. ↑ Diplomatarium Norvegicum Vol. 5 No. 586 .
5. ↑ Diplomatarium Norvegicum Vol. 5 No. 660 .
6. ↑ Diplomatarium Norvegicum Vol. 16 No. 132 .
7. ↑ Article "Christian I". in Norsk biografisk leksikon .
8. ↑ Diplomatarium Norvegicum, Vol. 10, No. 173 .

literature

• Audun Dybdahl: “Article Aslak Harniktsson Bolt” in Norsk biografisk leksikon , accessed on October 25, 2011.
• Olav Martinsen: Article “Aslak Bolt (1428-1450)” in: Den katolske kirke , accessed on October 25, 2011.
• Friedrich Münter: Church history of Denmark and Norway. Leipzig 1831. pp. 408-409.

Web links

• Handwriting from Aslak Bolt's real estate directory

predecessor	Office	successor
Eskill	Archbishop of Nidaros 1428–1450	Henrik Kalteisen