Jens Munk
Encyclopedia
Jens Munk was a Danish
navigator
and explorer who was born in Norway
where his father, Erik Munk
, had received several fiefs for his achievements in the Northern Seven Years' War
. He returned to Denmark at the age of eight. He entered into the service of King Christian IV
and is most noted for his attempts to find the Northwest Passage
to India
.
in the county of Aust-Agder
. The father had an infamous reputation for his brutal rule over his estates which led to several trials, and in 1585 he was deposed and imprisoned at Dragsholm Castle
. After that, at the age of eight, Jens Munk travelled to Aalborg
in Denmark with his mother who became a housekeeper in the home of her husband's sister who was married to the city's mayor.
In 1591, at the age of twelve, Munk went to Oporto in Portugal
where he worked for the shipping magnat Duart Duez. The following year he sailed with a Dutch convoy to Bahia
in Brazil
. Off the Brazilian coast the convoy was attacked by French pirates. Munk was among the seven survivors. Munk lived in Bahia
(today's Salvador
) for six years, where he was in the service of Duart Duez' brother, Miguel. Under dramatic circumstances Munk returned to Europe and Copenhagen
in 1599, where the Danish magnat and Lord Chancellor Henrik Ramel hired him as ship clerk.
In 1609, he set sail with his partner Jens Hvid for the ice-filled Barents Sea
. After two unsuccessful attempts to find the Northeast passage in 1609 and 1610 he caught the attention of King Christian IV
. In the Swedish - Danish war (1611–13), the so called Kalmar war
, Jens Munk together with the noble man Jørgen Daa led a successful attack on the Swedish fortress Älvsborg
in 1612, near today's Gothenburg
. In 1614 he led a search for the notorious Spanish privateer
Jan Mendoza, who he fought in a battle at Kanin Nos near the entrance of the White Sea
. In the spring of 1617 he recruited eighteen Basque whalemen for the first Danish whaling expedition to Spitsbergen
.
In 1618 King Christian IV appointed him as commander of the first Danish
expedition to East India
with five vessels and almost 1000 men, but only one month before the departure of the expedition in November Munk was relegated and replaced by the much younger nobleman Ove Gjedde
. The reason for the relegation is unclear, but was most likely caused by a conflict Munk had with the Lord Chancellor, Christian Friis. Munk’s setback was compounded by the deaths of his brother Niels and good friend Jørgen Daa. A few months earlier Munk also had lost a vast amount of money as a result of an unsuccessful whaling expedition and which caused loss of social prestige. As an attempt to regain his social position he started the planning of a much more spectacular expedition in 1619, the search for the Northwest Passage
.
On 9 May 1619, under the auspices of King Christian IV
, Munk set out with 65 men and His Royal Majesty's two ships, the Enhiörningen (Unicorn), a small frigate, and Lamprenen (Lamprey), a sloop, which were outfitted under his own supervision. His mission was to discover the Northwest Passage
to the Indies
and China
. His crew included Rasmus Jensen
, Church of Denmark
priest today recognized to be the first Lutheran cleric in Canada
. Munk penetrated Davis Strait
as far north as 69°, found Frobisher Bay
, and then spent almost a month fighting his way through Hudson Strait
. In September 1619 he found the entrance to Hudson Bay
and spent the winter near the mouth of the Churchill River
. Cold, famine, and scurvy
destroyed so many of his men that only two persons besides himself survived. With these men, he sailed for home with the Lamprey on 16 July 1620, reaching Bergen
, Norway, on 20 September 1620.
Later a party of Indians returned to the shore. They found a number of unburied bodies of strange appearance and Munk's abandoned stores. Not knowing what gunpowder was, they set it alight and many of them were killed
Munk had planned on a new Northwest journey to take possession of Nova Dania (New Denmark) for the Danish crown, but his health was too weak to go on with it. In the subsequent years Munk served as sea captain in the royal fleet. During the Thirty years war Munk led a blockade on the river Weser in 1626 and 1627. Munk took part in the attacks on Wallensteins troops at Fehmarn
and in the Kiel
er fjord in March and April 1628. Munk died on 26 June the same year probably as a result of being wounded in the battles in the Kiel
er fjord a couple of months earlier. According to the French scientist Isaac de la Peyrere, who served as a legate at the French embassy in Copenhagen
, Munk died as a result of a dispute with King Christian IV, where the king furiously had attacked Munk with his stick and thus caused his death.
in 1624 as Navigatio Septentrionalis; new editions by Peter Lauridsen (Copenhagen, 1883) Efterretning af Navigationen og Reisen til det Nye Danmark af Styrmand Jens Munk and by C. C. A. Gosch, Danish Arctic Expeditions 1605 to 1620, volume ii. Hakluyt Society
, No. xcvii (London, 1897).
More recently there has been a popular book about him The Way to Hudson Bay: The Life and Times of Jens Munk (1969) by Thorkild Hansen
. Hansen recovered a few remains of the Unicorn in the tidal flats of the river in 1964.
, located off the coast of Baffin Island
, is named after him as is Munk Harbour at the mouth of Churchill River in Hudson Bay. The Jens Munk rose
, developed by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, was named in his honour.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
navigator
Navigator
A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation. The navigator's primary responsibility is to be aware of ship or aircraft position at all times. Responsibilities include planning the journey, advising the Captain or aircraft Commander of estimated timing to...
and explorer who was born in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
where his father, Erik Munk
Erik Munk
Erik Munk was a Danish military officer who was ennobled and received several fiefs in Norway for his military achievements. He was the father of the navigator and explorer Jens Munk.-Biography:...
, had received several fiefs for his achievements in the Northern Seven Years' War
Northern Seven Years' War
The Northern Seven Years' War was the war between Kingdom of Sweden and a coalition of Denmark–Norway, Lübeck and the Polish–Lithuanian union, fought between 1563 and 1570...
. He returned to Denmark at the age of eight. He entered into the service of King Christian IV
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV was the king of Denmark-Norway from 1588 until his death. With a reign of more than 59 years, he is the longest-reigning monarch of Denmark, and he is frequently remembered as one of the most popular, ambitious and proactive Danish kings, having initiated many reforms and projects...
and is most noted for his attempts to find the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
Biography
Jens Munk was born on his father's estate Barbu at ArendalArendal
is a town and municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. Arendal belongs to the traditional region of Sørlandet.The town of Arendal is the administrative center the municipality and also of Aust-Agder county...
in the county of Aust-Agder
Aust-Agder
is a county in Norway, bordering Telemark, Rogaland, and Vest-Agder. In 2002, there were 102,945 inhabitants, which is 2.2% of the total population in Norway. Its area is . The administrative center of the county is in Arendal....
. The father had an infamous reputation for his brutal rule over his estates which led to several trials, and in 1585 he was deposed and imprisoned at Dragsholm Castle
Dragsholm Castle
Dragsholm Castle is a historic building in Hørve, Denmark.For about 800 years there has been a building on the islet by the “drag”. From the original palace over the medieval castle to the current baroque style, Dragsholm Castle has had an influence on and been influenced by changing times and...
. After that, at the age of eight, Jens Munk travelled to Aalborg
Aalborg
-Transport:On the north side of the Limfjord is Nørresundby, which is connected to Aalborg by a road bridge Limfjordsbroen, an iron railway bridge Jernbanebroen over Limfjorden, as well as a motorway tunnel running under the Limfjord Limfjordstunnelen....
in Denmark with his mother who became a housekeeper in the home of her husband's sister who was married to the city's mayor.
In 1591, at the age of twelve, Munk went to Oporto in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
where he worked for the shipping magnat Duart Duez. The following year he sailed with a Dutch convoy to Bahia
Bahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. Off the Brazilian coast the convoy was attacked by French pirates. Munk was among the seven survivors. Munk lived in Bahia
Bahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
(today's Salvador
Salvador, Bahia
Salvador is the largest city on the northeast coast of Brazil and the capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. Salvador is also known as Brazil's capital of happiness due to its easygoing population and countless popular outdoor parties, including its street carnival. The first...
) for six years, where he was in the service of Duart Duez' brother, Miguel. Under dramatic circumstances Munk returned to Europe and Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
in 1599, where the Danish magnat and Lord Chancellor Henrik Ramel hired him as ship clerk.
In 1609, he set sail with his partner Jens Hvid for the ice-filled Barents Sea
Barents Sea
The Barents Sea is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located north of Norway and Russia. Known in the Middle Ages as the Murman Sea, the sea takes its current name from the Dutch navigator Willem Barents...
. After two unsuccessful attempts to find the Northeast passage in 1609 and 1610 he caught the attention of King Christian IV
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV was the king of Denmark-Norway from 1588 until his death. With a reign of more than 59 years, he is the longest-reigning monarch of Denmark, and he is frequently remembered as one of the most popular, ambitious and proactive Danish kings, having initiated many reforms and projects...
. In the Swedish - Danish war (1611–13), the so called Kalmar war
Kalmar War
The Kalmar War was a war between Denmark–Norway and Sweden. Though Denmark soon gained the upper hand, she was unable to defeat Sweden entirely...
, Jens Munk together with the noble man Jørgen Daa led a successful attack on the Swedish fortress Älvsborg
Älvsborg
Älvsborg is the name of a geographical region in Sweden, which can refer to:*Älvsborg, Gothenburg, one of 21 boroughs of Gothenburg, Sweden.*Älvsborg County, a former county of Sweden*Älvsborg Fortress, a sea fortress at Gothenburg...
in 1612, near today's Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
. In 1614 he led a search for the notorious Spanish privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
Jan Mendoza, who he fought in a battle at Kanin Nos near the entrance of the White Sea
White Sea
The White Sea is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the northeast. The whole of the White Sea is under Russian sovereignty and considered to be part of...
. In the spring of 1617 he recruited eighteen Basque whalemen for the first Danish whaling expedition to Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen is the largest and only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. Constituting the western-most bulk of the archipelago, it borders the Arctic Ocean, the Norwegian Sea and the Greenland Sea...
.
In 1618 King Christian IV appointed him as commander of the first Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
expedition to East India
East India
East India is a region of India consisting of the states of West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Orissa. The states of Orissa and West Bengal share some cultural and linguistic characteristics with Bangladesh and with the state of Assam. Together with Bangladesh, West Bengal formed the...
with five vessels and almost 1000 men, but only one month before the departure of the expedition in November Munk was relegated and replaced by the much younger nobleman Ove Gjedde
Ove Gjedde
Ove Gjedde , born in Tommarp in Scania, Denmark , was a Danish admiral and member of the interim government, following the death of Christian IV and the harsh restrictions imposed on Frederick III due to his close ties to Germany.In 1618 he commanded an expedition to Ceylon and India by Christian...
. The reason for the relegation is unclear, but was most likely caused by a conflict Munk had with the Lord Chancellor, Christian Friis. Munk’s setback was compounded by the deaths of his brother Niels and good friend Jørgen Daa. A few months earlier Munk also had lost a vast amount of money as a result of an unsuccessful whaling expedition and which caused loss of social prestige. As an attempt to regain his social position he started the planning of a much more spectacular expedition in 1619, the search for the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
.
On 9 May 1619, under the auspices of King Christian IV
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV was the king of Denmark-Norway from 1588 until his death. With a reign of more than 59 years, he is the longest-reigning monarch of Denmark, and he is frequently remembered as one of the most popular, ambitious and proactive Danish kings, having initiated many reforms and projects...
, Munk set out with 65 men and His Royal Majesty's two ships, the Enhiörningen (Unicorn), a small frigate, and Lamprenen (Lamprey), a sloop, which were outfitted under his own supervision. His mission was to discover the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
to the Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. His crew included Rasmus Jensen
Rasmus Jensen
Rasmus Jensen was a Danish Lutheran priest and the first Lutheran cleric in Canada.Little is known about the life of Jensen, not even the parish where he served as pastor, although his diary during the expedition provides some information...
, Church of Denmark
Church of Denmark
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark, Church of Denmark or Danish National Church, is the state church and largest denomination in Denmark and Greenland...
priest today recognized to be the first Lutheran cleric in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Munk penetrated Davis Strait
Davis Strait
Davis Strait is a northern arm of the Labrador Sea. It lies between mid-western Greenland and Nunavut, Canada's Baffin Island. The strait was named for the English explorer John Davis , who explored the area while seeking a Northwest Passage....
as far north as 69°, found Frobisher Bay
Frobisher Bay
Frobisher Bay is a relatively large inlet of the Labrador Sea in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is located in the southeastern corner of Baffin Island...
, and then spent almost a month fighting his way through Hudson Strait
Hudson Strait
Hudson Strait links the Atlantic Ocean to Hudson Bay in Canada. It lies between Baffin Island and the northern coast of Quebec, its eastern entrance marked by Cape Chidley and Resolution Island. It is long...
. In September 1619 he found the entrance to Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
and spent the winter near the mouth of the Churchill River
Churchill River (Hudson Bay)
The Churchill River is a major river in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada. From the head of the Churchill Lake it is 1,609 km long. It was named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and governor of the Hudson's Bay Company from 1685 to 1691...
. Cold, famine, and scurvy
Scurvy
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
destroyed so many of his men that only two persons besides himself survived. With these men, he sailed for home with the Lamprey on 16 July 1620, reaching Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Norway, on 20 September 1620.
Later a party of Indians returned to the shore. They found a number of unburied bodies of strange appearance and Munk's abandoned stores. Not knowing what gunpowder was, they set it alight and many of them were killed
Munk had planned on a new Northwest journey to take possession of Nova Dania (New Denmark) for the Danish crown, but his health was too weak to go on with it. In the subsequent years Munk served as sea captain in the royal fleet. During the Thirty years war Munk led a blockade on the river Weser in 1626 and 1627. Munk took part in the attacks on Wallensteins troops at Fehmarn
Fehmarn
Fehmarn is an island and - since 2003 - a town on this island in the Baltic Sea, off the eastern coast of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, and ca. 18 kilometers south of the Danish island of Lolland...
and in the Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
er fjord in March and April 1628. Munk died on 26 June the same year probably as a result of being wounded in the battles in the Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
er fjord a couple of months earlier. According to the French scientist Isaac de la Peyrere, who served as a legate at the French embassy in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, Munk died as a result of a dispute with King Christian IV, where the king furiously had attacked Munk with his stick and thus caused his death.
Aftermath
An account of Munk's voyage to Hudson Bay in 1619-20 was published in CopenhagenCopenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
in 1624 as Navigatio Septentrionalis; new editions by Peter Lauridsen (Copenhagen, 1883) Efterretning af Navigationen og Reisen til det Nye Danmark af Styrmand Jens Munk and by C. C. A. Gosch, Danish Arctic Expeditions 1605 to 1620, volume ii. Hakluyt Society
Hakluyt Society
Founded in 1846, the Hakluyt Society is a registered charity based in London, England, which seeks to advance knowledge and education by the publication of scholarly editions of primary records of voyages, travels and other geographical material...
, No. xcvii (London, 1897).
More recently there has been a popular book about him The Way to Hudson Bay: The Life and Times of Jens Munk (1969) by Thorkild Hansen
Thorkild Hansen
Thorkild Hansen was a Danish novelist known for his Slave Trilogy. He also did works concerning Knut Hamsun and travel writing...
. Hansen recovered a few remains of the Unicorn in the tidal flats of the river in 1964.
Legacy
The Canadian island Jens Munk IslandJens Munk Island
Jens Munk Island is one of the Canadian arctic islands in Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is an uninhabited Baffin Island offshore island. Located at 69°39'N 80°04'W it has an area of ....
, located off the coast of Baffin Island
Baffin Island
Baffin Island in the Canadian territory of Nunavut is the largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. Its area is and its population is about 11,000...
, is named after him as is Munk Harbour at the mouth of Churchill River in Hudson Bay. The Jens Munk rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
, developed by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, was named in his honour.
Other sources
- Birket-Smith, K. Jens Munk's rejse og andre danske ishavsfarter under Christian IV (Copenhagen. 1929)
- Knudsen, Johannes Den danske Ishavsfarer Jens Munk (Copenhagen. 1902)
External links
- Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online - Jens Munk entry Library and Archives Canada
- The Arctic Coast and Hudson Bay 1610 to 1632 from the Canadian government's Atlas of Canada project
- Norway's Forgotten Explorers - 1999 Norway Post article hosted on Yukon College's server