Jacob Ulfeldt

Jacob Ulfeldt (1535 – 8 October 1593) was a Danish diplomat and member of the Privy Council from 1565.

Biography

Ulfeldt was the son of Knud Ebbesen Ulfeldt and Anne Eriksdatter Hardenberg. He studied at Louvain in 1551 and Wittenberg in 1554. He entered the state service in 1562. In 1566, he inherited Holckenhavn Castle on Funen which he held until his death. In 1563, he acquired Dronninglund Castle in Jutland which he kept until 1568. In 1566 he became a member of the Rigsrådet.

He is mostly known for his very troubled diplomatic journey into Russia in 1578 during which he concluded an unfavourable treaty with Tsar Ivan IV (1530–1584) that brought him to disgrace at home. His bitter attempts of getting satisfaction only damaged his case. However his account of his Russian travels (published by Melchior Goldast in Latin during 1608) is still considered a main source of Danish-Russian relations as well as of 16th Century Russia.

Ulfeldt was married to Anne Jakobsdatter Flemming (1544-1570) and had three sons; Mogens Ulfeldt (1569–1616), Jakob Ulfeldt (1567–1630) and Corfitz Ulfeldt (1559–1614). His son Jacob Ulfeldt was a diplomat and chancellor of King Christian IV of Denmark.

Other sources

• Dansk Biografisk Leksikon, vol. 15, Copenh. 1984.
• Schlegel, B.; Klingspor, C.A. Den med sk ldebref f rl nade men ej Riddarhuset introducerade Svenska Adelns ttar-taflor. Samlade och utarbetade af B. Schlegel och C. A. Klingspor. p. 311. ISBN 9780543959577. Retrieved 2015-11-09.