- Hark Olufs
Hark Olufs (born
July 17 or 19, 1708 in Süddorf on the island ofAmrum , diedOctober 13 ,1754 ibidem) was asailor .Life
Hark Olufs was born as son of a nautical captain named Oluf Jensen on either July 17 or 19 in 1708 on the island of Amrum, which then belonged to
Denmark . In 1721 he became a seaman on the "Hoffnung", one of his father's vessels.In 1724, on a voyage from
Nantes toHamburg , his ship was seized byAlgeria npirate s, he and his two cousins were taken hostages. Olufs' family could not afford the high sum which was demanded by theslave trader s for his release. Also, as the ship had been sailing under Hamburg colours, the family's request for a loan from the slavery fund of the Danish Kingdom was rejected.Subsequently, Olufs was sold as a
slave onAlgiers ' slave market. From 1724 to 1727/28 he was a servant of the Bey ofConstantine, Algeria and advanced to become the Bey'streasurer . Between 1728 and 1732 he was madeCommander of the Life Guards.In 1732 he became "Agha ed-Deira",
Commander in Chief of the localcavalry . He took part in the conquest ofTunis by the Algerian army in 1735 and as a reward he was released on October 31, 1735, and was allowed to return to Amrum. In 1747 he published anautobiography inDanish language , which was translated to German in 1751. Hark Olufs died onOctober 13 , 1754 in Süddorf on Amrum. His headstone is still visible in the graveyard of Nebel.References
*cite episode|url=http://www3.ndr.de/ndrtv_pages_std/0,3147,OID2000300_REF9730,00.html|network=
Norddeutscher Rundfunk |title="Ein Amrumer Schicksal im 18. Jahrhundert"|series=Die Geschichte Norddeutschlands - Im Zeichen des Kreuzes |airdate=2007-03-13|accessdate=July 23|accessyear=2008|language=German
*cite web|author=Olufs, Hark|publisher=Martin Rheinheimer|url=http://web.sdu.dk/mrh/autdan.htm|title="Harck Olufs,... Besynderlige AVANTURES,..." (Autobiography)|language=Danish|accessdate=July 23|accessyear=2008
*cite book|first=Martin|last=Rheinheimer|title=Der fremde Sohn. Hark Olufs’ Wiederkehr aus der Sklaverei. (The alien Son. Hark Olufs' Return from Slavery.)|publisher=Wachholtz|year=2007|edition=3rd edition|language=German|isbn=978-3529027758
*cite web|url=http://www.web.sdu.dk/mrh/background.htm|author=Rheinheimer, Martin|title=Hark Olufs and the Barbary States|year=2001|accessdate=July 23|accessyear=2008
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