The royal clergy (Norwegian : Den kongelige kapellgeistlighet) was the clergy in the service of the King of Norway in the Middle Ages. It refers to the priests of the 14 royal "chapels" throughout Norway, and is a modern term used by historians. From 1308, during the reign of Haakon V of Norway, the royal clergy became a separate institution, largely independent of the church hierarchy in Norway. They were granted vast privileges by the king and were also large land-owners. The royal clergy played its most central role during the Late Middle Ages, when they effectively formed the Norwegian state administration. The provost of the royal chapel of Oslo, St Mary's Church, was independent of the Bishop of Oslo as the "chapel" (which was one of the largest and most impressive churches of Norway) had its own cathedral chapter. In 1314, King Haakon decreed that the provost of St Mary's Church should "for eternity" also hold the office of Chancellor of Norway. [1] In 1300, the clergy of St Mary's Church were also granted high secular aristocratic rank. [2]
The royal clergy also formed a basis from which the King could recruit competent men loyal to the King to other high offices. The royal clergy had a large degree of meritocracy for its time, as the positions were not hereditary, which ensured competent and well educated recruitment. On the other hand, most of the royal clergy—especially those who rose to its upper echelons such as canon and provost—were recruited from the lower nobility, and sometimes from the high nobility. Peter Andreas Munch describes the royal as a counterweight to the regular secular aristocracy with a stronger loyalty to the king and a stronger service element than both the secular and the ordinary ecclesiastical aristocracy. [3] [4]
As the bishops with seats in the Council of the Realm grew in influence in the late Middle Ages, the royal clergy formed an important counterweight. [5] The Royal clergy was dissolved in 1545. [6]
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The following list contains known members of the Royal Clergy.
| Name | Year of appointment | Clerical title | Equal to secular title | Agnatic progenitor of | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hans Olufsson | 1540s | Canon | Knight | Paus family |
Haakon IV Haakonsson, sometimes called Haakon the Old in contrast to his namesake son, was King of Norway from 1217 to 1263. His reign lasted for 46 years, longer than any Norwegian king since Harald Fairhair. Haakon was born into the troubled civil war era in Norway, but his reign eventually managed to put an end to the internal conflicts. At the start of his reign, during his minority, Earl Skule Bårdsson served as regent. As a king of the birkebeiner faction, Haakon defeated the uprising of the final bagler royal pretender, Sigurd Ribbung, in 1227. He put a definitive end to the civil war era when he had Skule Bårdsson killed in 1240, a year after he had himself proclaimed king in opposition to Haakon. Haakon thereafter formally appointed his own son as his co-regent.
The Paus family is a Norwegian family that first appeared as members of the elite of 16th-century Oslo and that for centuries belonged to Norway's "aristocracy of officials" as priests of the state church, judges and other higher government officials, especially in Upper Telemark. The family is particularly known for its close association with Henrik Ibsen.
Haakon V Magnusson was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319.
The Norwegian Law of Succession was first introduced in 1163 during the Civil war era in Norway.
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The Bagli Party or Bagler was a faction or party during the Norwegian Civil Wars. The Bagler faction was made up principally of the Norwegian aristocracy, clergy and merchants.
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Konungs skuggsjá is a Norwegian didactic text in Old Norse from around 1250, an example of speculum literature that deals with politics and morality. It was originally intended for the education of King Magnus Lagabøte, the son of King Håkon Håkonsson, and it has the form of a dialogue between father and son. The son asks, and is advised by his father about practical and moral matters, concerning trade, the hird, chivalric behavior, strategy and tactics. Parts of Konungs skuggsjá deals with the relationship between church and state.
Inge Magnusson or Inge Baglar-king was from 1196 to 1202 the Bagler candidate for pretender to the Norwegian throne during the Civil war era in Norway.
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Arnstein Rynning Arneberg was a Norwegian architect. He was active professionally for 50 years and is often considered the leading architect in Norway of his time.
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St. Mary's Church was a medieval church located in Oslo, Norway. The church ruins are located in Middelalderparken near the neighborhood of Sørenga in the borough of Gamlebyen.
The Chancellor of Norway was the most important aide of the King of Norway during the Middle Ages, and during the Union with Denmark. He issued laws and regulations, and was responsible for day-to-day administration of the kingdom. From 1270, the Chancellor resided in Bergen. Haakon V of Norway moved the Chancellor's residence to Oslo; on 31 August 1314 the provost of St Mary's Church became Chancellor on a permanent basis. He was given the Great Seal of the Realm "for eternity." The Chancellors were originally chosen from the clergy but after 1542 the position was given to people from the nobility. The position lost its importance after Jens Bjelke's tenure, and was abolished in 1679.
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The "aristocracy of officials" or "civil service aristocracy" is a term used by historians to denote the elite of university-educated higher state officials in Denmark and Norway from the early modern period until the 19th century. Particularly in Norway, which unlike Denmark had no significant nobility from the 17th century and which formally abolished nobility in 1821, the aristocracy of officials filled the vacant position at the top of society at the local, regional and national levels. Vidar L. Haanes notes that "in Norway the aristocracy of officials occupied the position in society held by the nobility elsewhere in Europe". This social group, principally constituted by priests, lawyers and doctors, has with reference to the 19th century also been called "the thousand academic families" by the historian Jens Arup Seip, and they comprised less than one per thousand in the overall population. By the 19th century Norway is widely considered to have been a "Civil Servant State," reflecting the role of the civil servants as "the most enduring, consistent and visible elite."
Sir Peter Paulson Paus, also rendered as Peder Povelsson Paus, was a Norwegian high-ranking cleric who served as the provost of Upper Telemark from 1633 until his death. He is known through a loving poem in Latin written by his son Paul Peterson Paus in his memory in 1653, In memoriam Domini Petri Pavli. His descendants include the playwright Henrik Ibsen.
Hans Olufsson was a Norwegian high-ranking cleric and nobleman during the 16th century.
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