Product Code Database
A fogd (, or fut; ; ; ) is a historical administrative function, and official title. They were in charge of the administration and collection of taxes on behalf of the government, either in rural or in towns.
The term appears sporadically in Norwegian sources from the 14th century in the forms fógt, fóguti, fólguti, or fógutr. Old Norse fóguti (and its other spellings) and Norwegian fut also go back to Latin. The title of bailiff replaced the title of (Danish bryde) on farms in the Middle Ages, but reflects largely the same office: to be responsible for and manage some kind of property on behalf of its owner. This could be a farm, a piece of land, or a castle, in which case the title of bailiff is seen almost as a replacement for the title of jarl. In the husby estates, later called kongsgård (Swedish kungsgård), the bailiff ruled. Hence one of the older words for bailiff: husabyman. Another synonym is prefectus.
In Sweden, with Magnus IV's 1350 Stadslagen (Swedish: stadslagen), the king's bailiff was included as a member of the magistrate, the 'elders' of a city, who supervised municipal activities, police and justice, and acted as a court of law.
The feudal lords (Norwegian: lensherrene) in Norway had bailiffs under them who collected taxes and fines and were responsible for maintaining order. Initially they were the personal servants of the lord, but by the early 17th century they had been transferred to the service of the king.9788202141745, Cappelen. ISBN 9788202141745 The bailiff had great power in the village council (bygdeting). At the parliament in Oslo, from a village in Eastern Norway complained about a bailiff who had come with a Swedish woman and threatened them: "Here is a woman I should have judgment on today." But the procedural rule in Norwegian law required two concurring witnesses to find someone guilty, and the bailiffs had not seen the woman before and had no opportunity to summon any witnesses and deal with the case according to the law.
In 1497, Knut Alvsson's bailiff Lasse Skjold was killed at the Thing in Romerike, Norway, when he came to collect taxes. His brutal behavior was the cause, and around 180 farmers from Ullensaker and Nes supported the murder. The farmers were fined, but were found to have acted more or less in self-defense, and Alvsson was subsequently deposed as lord and stripped of his fiefdoms.
Between 1518 and 1521, large additional taxes were levied, and the peasants protested in parliament. They were supported by the bishop, who complained that the lord of Akershus Fortress was allowing his bailiff to plunder pilgrims. The lord of Bergenhus appeared armed at the Thing and levied an extra tax equivalent to 10% wealth tax. If there was no available money, he seized tapestries and boats. In the summer of 1521, the bailiff was killed at the court in Nordhordland. Christian II cracked down hard on the peasants, and several of the rebel leaders were executed. In 1526, farmers in Rogaland killed the lord's men and refused to pay taxes.
In 1540, farmers from Raabyggelaget gathered "to kill all bailiffs and Lensmann". With a huge club with sharp spikes, they made their way from Setesdal to Nedenes and killed the bailiff Nils Skredder there. Then they went towards Kvinesdal, but the lord was not home. His men later captured the farmers and executed four of them. The leader described the "Hun army", a popular tradition about Attila's Huns 1,500 years earlier. The story of the Hun army came to life again during the at Hønefoss in 1851.
The last city bailiff's office in Norway, Oslo city bailiff's office ( ), was headed by a magistrate called a city bailiff (byfogd) until 2006. Oslo byfogdembete was then headed by a sorenskriver until the merger with Oslo District Court on 26 April 2021.
From 2008, the tax bailiffs (skattefogdene) were merged with the tax offices. The Act relating to Children and Parents designates a state agency called the grant bailiff (bidragsfogden). This function is the responsibility of the Labour and Welfare Service.
The bailiff is also a character in several of Ludvig Holberg's plays, including Jeppe on the Hill and Erasmus Montanus.
|
|
