The Chronicle of the Expulsion of the Greyfriars (, , or Gråbrødrenes Fordrivelseskrønike) is a historical writing on the Reformation in Denmark between 1527 and 1532 when the Franciscans were forced to leave Denmark.
Introduction The Chronicle of the Expulsion of the Greyfriars records the systematic hounding of the Franciscans out of Denmark between 1527 and 1532. In all, 28 towns drove the friars from their friaries, often with the approval and encouragement of Frederik I of Denmark and his son, Duke Christian, later King Christian III. The chronicle describes the expulsion of the Greyfriars from 15 of them and mentions one more in passing.
The chronicle's author or more likely authors, Franciscan Friar Erasmus Olai (Rasmus Olsen) and Friar Jacob Jensen of Næstved Friary, wrote an account of the tribulations of the monks and condemned the cruelty of those who drove them from their houses. The chronicle is not objective; it is vehemently anti-Lutheran, and certainly lionizes those who were being persecuted, but the details the authors provide give first-hand insight into a turbulent time period in Danish history.
Introductory Prayer Concerning the Greyfriar's expulsion.
A prayer against the heretics and the devil's schemes.
O Lord, God of the heavenly hosts, turn and look down from heaven specifically with a compassionate eye and see specifically our tribulation which we have suffered for our sins, and visit this vine, namely the Greyfriar's Order.
And bring to an end (our tribulation), which (he who) sits at your right hand, even the only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, because it now in great part is fallen away; this vine, namely the holy order, is grounded upon the son of Man even the Virgin's son, who established yourself, even upon the sure rock, Christs. This vine I say is being fooled by heretics and false preachers, and set afire by trials and errors and undermined, even torn away from the true faith. Therefore, I ask, Lord, God of the hosts of heaven, that these false preachers might perish by the threat and indignation from your angry countenance, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. This (as mentioned) in Psalmus 79 (Psalm 80).
The Chronicle Now follows a chronicle or a short account of the case of the Greyfriars expulsion from their friaries in the Province of Denmark. First an explanation of that:
'God's judgement is a deep abyss.' (Psalm 36:6) How true the words of the psalmist are; one can all too often see in our (time). O the pains,(of this) all too often unhappy and storm-filled age where one can see the Lutheran party's miserable expectations take hold. They have forsaken the (appointed) interpreters' true explanation of the holy scriptures, so that they with cunning and slyness and in a quarrelsome manner wrest the scriptures. They become stiff-necked by holding fast to their error (which) they drank in at first, to condemnation for themselves and for others.
Because their lying master, Martin Luther, has asserted that faith alone was enough to save and that one had only to see to it that (faith) grew. But works, he asserted, were done only for dead flesh and to edify (one's) neighbor, but not to righteousness or salvation. Nor would there be any reward hereafter for mankind's holy works, but that works were only a preparation for faith which all the righteous were given, and taken away from the wicked.
That interpretation is and has done much to foster laxity, O, that can one see more of in our time than is necessary to produce evidence of without long and extensive research. For many who before burned brightly in their devotion and zeal for the faith and despite their determination to never to forsake it, cooled, and went out completely with this devilish wind gust.
For many who at one time were devoted under the holy father Francis' rule and stood like Lebanon's cedars, hurtled down in that they gave way before the misfortunes, like shrubbery on flat fields (give way) before the force of the wind. The majority ending their days in a very unhappy manner. Nearly all Denmark's great nobles were led away by their bad examples and pestilent dogma. And our order's poor brothers who are steadfast in the faith and preach against the Lutheran party's doctrines. They Greyfriars) are persecuted without compassion and against all just laws and driven from their friaries. And they (the fallen brothers) take away the alms and remove the religious decorations from the friaries, which property they took which (belonged to the friaries) and then use them for worldly purposes, thinking that they bring God an offering from the heart.
For so they are taught by the heretic preachers. They assert that the offering of mass which has always been celebrated and which should be celebrated in the church is so abominable and so pernicious that is a wonder that such priests of the mass are not by God's punishing judgement swallowed up alive by the earth. their supposed heresy lifted from them whose god is (their) belly. Among them Mogens Gjo can be seen who was the first, he who in the most unjust manner drove our poor order's brothers from many places.
Chapter 1 Concerning the Friary in Flensborg But in the year 1528 after the Saviour of the world's incarnation (on) the second day after Palm Sunday1, the above-mentioned Mogens Gjø, and his priest by the name of Svend came to Flensborg (in order to), with the citizens help, drive our brethren out of that town's friary. He and a considerably large host of citizens trespassed into our friary and demanded the keys from the Guardian, Brother Stig Nielsen, who came from Skåne, from the town of Lund. He delivered the keys of the friary immediately to him (the priest, Svend). And he (Stig Nielsen) and the Vice-Guardian, Brother Andreas Hoffmand and another Vice-Guardian Brother Johannes Johansen who was from Flensborg, received each 4 guilder2 in travel money, which they accepted.
But thereafter came the turn of lay brother, Hans, who as the master of the cellars with responsibility for the common food stores. From him they demanded the keys, but he assured them that he could not deliver the keys without ruining the beer, which had recently been put into the cellar, and said that he would retain them (the keys) for a time and serve Mogens Gjø faithfully if what the priest, Svend, had said was true, that all the friars would be expelled from Denmark within the year. When that assurance was given, he went in to the cook, Brother Andreas Gad. He praised his (Hans') opinion and answered that he would do the same. The presiding brethren received permission to remain in the friary until the next day and a few of the court servants were set to keep watch over things. But early the next day there came the noble knight, Herr Wolf, who at that time was governor of Flensborg Castle to the friary. He had heard the sorrowful rumours about our friary and asked the guardian if they were to have a new guardian. He answered that such was the decision. For they had had as superintendent a citizen from Vejle whose house had burned down. Herr Wolf chased him (the previous superintendent) out of the friary and returned the keys to the Guardian2. After these events, the brethren remained in their friary until Trinity Sunday and served God. They deposited the money they had received when they were to have been expelled, in the town. Then the subordinate brothers received 3 guilder in Danish money except holy Brother Mathias who was a priest. He moved to Svendborg Friary and there served God a short time. Later he travelled from there left the order and ended his life in the Baltic where he drowned.
On Trinity Sunday3 when the brethren in the choir had begun to sing the Kyrie eleison the aforementioned priest, Svend came back and invaded the friary together with a crowd of citizens to drive the brothers out immediately. He had with him a royal warrant wherein it was written that the citizens should assist the aforementioned Mogens Gjø's priest to force the brothers out. But the brethren refused to travel away before they ate, so the citizens remained with the brothers while they ate, and after dinner, they chased the brothers out of the friary4.
1 Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter, which means that date varies from mid-March to early April.
2 Guilden (singular) or guilder (plural) was the common name for large silver coins in use at the time. One and a half guilder equalled a thaler or daler, two and a half guilder was equal to a riksthaler. Dalers were the common currency in Denmark until the 19th century when the krone was introduced.
3 The Guardian or Father Guardian was the leader of the local friary assisted by one or more Vice-Guardians. Other named positions in the chronicle include, cook, porter, and cellar master.
3 Trinity Sunday is the Sunday after Pentecost. Since it is dated from Easter, the date varies from late May to early June. The Sundays between Trinity Sunday and Advent in November are numbered from Trinity Sunday. e.g. Third Sunday after Trinity
4 The Danish word 'kloster' is used for all monastic religious houses, equivalent to 'convent' in English which furthermore makes a distinction between friary, priory, abbey, nunnery. Since information about many religious houses in Denmark before the Reformation is lacking, the word in the Chronicle is translated as friary. The only exception listed in the Chronicle is Antvorskov Abbey.
5 Royal warrants for expulsion were often the deciding factor which forced the closure of the friaries. Frederik I publicly tried an even-handed approach suggesting that Catholic and Lutherans share churches, which brought condemnation from both parties. Either on his own or by persuasion from local authorities, he wrote letters authorizing the expulsion of Franciscans from their friaries. He usually offered money to the monks which on his part was an inducement to leave peacefully either to travel or to abandon the monastic life. On the Franciscans' part, the offer of money was viewed as a cynical attempt to subvert their vows of poverty, to accept the king's money for personal use or gain was outside the 'rule' and a betrayal of their basic vows.
Frederiks I's royal warrants specifically targeted Franciscan houses, no other order was so treated, even by Christian III who was thoroughly Lutheran and very anti-Catholic. On the whole, once it was clear the Lutherans would prevail, Danes took a level-headed approach to terminating monasteries. In 1536 when Denmark became officially Lutheran, the monasteries, all of them, were dissolved. The monks were turned out and either travelled to Germany or other monastic houses or simply took off their habits and became ordinary Danes. Nuns were often permitted to remain in their nunneries until their deaths and provision was made for them by local noble houses. In a few instances remote religious houses stayed open for a year or two, but in the end not a single monastic house survived until they were re-established in recent times.
Chapter 2 Concerning the Friary at Viborg But in the year 1527 there came a certain lapsed (one) of the Order of St John's1 Abbey at Antvorskov, Master Hans Tausen2, who until that time had borne his monk's habit3 or (in other words) his clothing of virtue and began in his priory's church to preach the Lutheran heresy. And that day when he finished preaching, he removed his habit in the church which he had upon the pulpit and left there together with the citizens who had heard his preaching. They went to St. John's Church in the same town and there he gathered the people often who would hear his infectious Lutheran heresy and pour out his poisoned tongue's oaths.