Jens Grand

Jens Grand (1260? -May 29, 1327) was a Danish archbishop (1289-1302), titular Archbishop of Riga (1304-1310), and Archbishop of Bremen (1310-1327), known as the central figure of the second ecclesiastical struggle in Denmark in the late 1200s.

Grand belonged to a Danish magnate's family; he was related to both Archbishop Jakob Erlandsen and to many of outlaws associated with the regicide of 1286. He appeared as a political figure when he was elected as archbishop during the years of crisis. From the start he firmly opposed the royal power, openly sympathising with the exiled magnates and refusing any support of the royal family. Like Jacob Erlandsen he seems to have been the supporter of an independent church without any obligations towards the State or the king. These views, which seem to have been expressed in a both daring and provoking way, made him appear to the young Eric VI as a pure traitor -especially at a time of danger.

In 1294, Jens Grand was arrested on orders of the king and for over two years he was imprisoned in Søborg Castle in Northern Zealand under both humiliating and unhealthy conditions. Grand, however, refused to yield. In 1296, however, he succeeded in escaping with the help of a cook and fled to his castle Hammershus on Bornholm, whereafter he sought help from Rome. The crisis led to interdict and a papal ban on the king, but without much effect. Both the bishops and much of the people seem to have preferred a peaceful solution.

The Grand affair lasted from 1297 to 1302 and was a foreign political strain on the Danish government. The archbishop demanded a huge compensation for his arrest together with general royal concessions. In return King Eric accused him of disloyal behaviour and treason. The king's firm attitude, together with a half-hearted support from the church, weakened Grand's case and after a royal rapprochement to Pope Boniface VIII, the affair ended in 1302 with the payment of a much lesser penalty than expected, while Jens Grand was removed from his Danish see.

Grand's later career was marked by new struggles. From 1310 he was Archbishop of Bremen, where he came into an insoluble conflict with his subordinates and at last he settled in Avignon where he lived for the rest of his life engaged in bitter lawsuits.

Coloured by the opinion of his enemies and opponents, Grand's reputation and legacy suffered. However, he seems to have been a man of courage, administrative ability, firmness and of principles, but also hot-tempered, cantankerous and reckless. Even in an age of great respect of the clergy, he lacked general support. The reason of his defeat was probably also that the power of the Pope was in decline.

External links

* [http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jens_Grand Jens Grand] at the Danish Wikipedia