Flade church/ Flade kirke, Horns herred, Hjørring amt.

Flade church, in Frederikshavn.

The church in Flade lies high and desolate upon a hillside. It is a whitewashed brick building without a tower, but with choir, nave, porch to the north and a chapel to the south. The oldest sections, the choir and the eastern section of the nave origin from late Romanesque time, probably from the beginning of the 1200s. The division of the walls is characteristic for the Romanesque brick-architecture in Vendsyssel. The access is from the porch through the still kept, simple and straight-edged north door, while the round arched south door is bricked-up. In the late Middle Ages the church was extended to the west (ab. 7,5 m), and the porch was built, although its western wall was built in the 1600s. The large chapel, now refurnished into a burial chapel, was built in ab. 1675 in small stones upon a profiled plinth; it opened towards the nave in a round arched, now closed arcade. Inside the church is a beamed ceiling, in the choir an unpainted plank ceiling.

Interior:
The triumph wall with the Romanesque choir arch has a narrow frieze above. * The altarpiece is in simple Baroque style, possibly from the end of the 1700s, with a newer painting. The large ore candelabres are according to inscription given 1591 by Willum Frandsen. A chalice from ab. 1700 was given by Otto Arenfeldt and wife Agathe Kirstine Beck (with engraved coat of arms and initials). Oblate box 1705 with the initials of Jens Olufsen Wang and his wife. Romanesque font in granite. Upon the north wall of the nave hangs a late Gothic choir arch crucifix with carved torment tools on the cross wood. * The pulpit is a Renaissance carving, according to inscription given in 1588 by Mogens Juel of Knivholt; in the six fields are scenes from the life of Christ. The upper pews are from 1592 with the paternal and maternal coat of arms of Otto Skeel of Bangsbo and Birgitte Lindenow. At the entrance are similar pews, but the other pews of the church are new.  Two church ships, frigates  from 1767 and 1838.


* An earlier altarpice from 1500 is now in Hirsholm church. 
* after a restoration 1957 the pulpit is now in unpainted oak and very pretty.     


Memorials:
Two memorial tablets, concerning a legacy founded by Christen Jensen Møenbo and wife in 1756. In the church two memorials: in the choir wall a large portrait grave stone for Mogens Juel and his two wives, with life-sized figures. Outside on the south wall of the church a gravestone for the priest Hans Borchorst (+ 1678) and wife. 

Knivholt belonged in the end of the 1300s to hr. Niels Ovesen (Panter) of Asdal and Skovgård (Vennebjerg herred) and his wife Johanne Andersdatter (Stenbrikke); their son Anders Nielsen (Panter) of Asdal (+ latest 1406) m. to Regitze Jakobsdatter Lunge (+ 1405-06) did probably inherit K., which was still only a tenant farm. In an exchange 1419 the farm went to his brother-in-law rigshofmester hr. Anders Jepsen (or Jakobsen) Lunge of Gunderslevholm (+ latest 1429), who had been m. to 1) Ingeborg Nielsdatter (Panter) ( + earliest 1411). The farm was probably thereafter divided among several heirs. Hr. Oluf Andersen Lunge of Odden (+ earliest 1473) wrote himself of K. in 1457. His son hr. Oluf Olufsen Lunge of Odden (+ earliest 1484) was m. to 1) Kirsten Engelbrechtsdatter (Bydelsbak) of Torbenfeld (+ latest 1475), whose father hr. Engelbrecht Albrecthsen (Bydelsbak of Torbenfeld) (+ 1492 or 93) in 1484 let hr Oluf charge for K. and other inheritance after the daughter. Hr. Engelbrecht possibly also bought the rights in K. through his mother fru Pernille Axelsdatter (Brok of Estrup)( + before 1493), a daughter of Ellen Ovesdatter Lunge, above mentioned Anders Jepsen Lunge's brother's daughter,  in her marriage to rigsråd hr. Axel Lagesen (Brok of Estrup)( + 1498). In 1553 K., which now was a farm/manor, belonged to Mogens Juel of Hvidstengård (+ ab. 1579) , whose mother fru Dorte Mogensdatter Krabbe (m. to Mogens Juel of Udstrup) (+ earliest 1536) was a daughter of fru Elsebeth Tygesdatter Lunge (+ earliest 1519), and thus related to the owners from the Middle Ages.

Mogens Juel probably owned K. until his death ab. 1579. His son Mogens Mogensen Juel (+ ab. 1605), wrote himself in 1590 of K., he had probably to give up the farm because of debt, since it was a part of the property of the deceased fru Ingeborg Skeel of Voergård. ( + 1604). K now went to Hans Axelsen Arenfeldt of Rugård and after his death in 1611 to the son, the infamous Niels Arenfeldt (+ 1669), who in 1630 sold the farm to Otte Marsvin of Dybæk etc. (+ 1641) which buy must have gone back, since he in 1632 exchanged it to his father-in-law Hans Dyre (+ 1655), who in 1652 moved to Sæby and gave the farm back to his daughter Karen Dyre.

Later owners: Hans Arenfeldt; Hans Lorents Arenfeldt; Christen Jensen Møenbo; Peter Leth; Jens Madsen Rosborg; Christoffer Madsen Rosborg; Carl Vilh. Uldall; Fritz Peter Adolph Uldall; N. Rasmussen; C.G. Frederiksen; C. Helmer Frederiksen.  

Knivholt is today a kulturinstitution (cultural institution).


Vangsgård was in 1474 owned by Albert Pedersen, but was probably the same year deeded by him to Børglum kloster.

The houses Kierche Schouf and Winter Huus are mentioned in 1688.

Listed prehistorics: at S. Stenhave a long dolmen without chamber and at Vangsgårde a hill with a stone cist with a cover stone. 15 hills, one longhill and a stone grave. The hills all lie in the high terrain in the western part of the parish, a group of 6 at Flade church. At Bækman are listed  two underground cellars from early Roman period. Besides is listed the unique Iron Age burial site at Donbæk, upon a highplaced terrain are 62 memorials, of which 3 are large hills like the large Borgbjerg while the rest are small hills, round and oblong and stone circles. Graves are found from Celtic Iron Age until the Viking period ( among others a pretty gold  bracelet from late Roman period), but the main settlement is from Germanic Iron Age. 20 of the memorials are excavated by the National Museum.
Demolished or destroyed: a stone cist at Tøttenborg. 88 hills, all upon the high terrain. In Bjerghøj at N. Rævedal were found 3 stone graves from Iron Age with gold rings, silver things and clay pots.

Upon the low terrain in the eastern part of the parish were many findings from Iron Age, like burial sites from early Roman period at Knivholt, Fylleled skov and Flade mølle (mill). At Flade Vestergård is a settlement.

Names from the Middle Ages and 1600s: Flade (1419 Fladen); Donbæk (1573 Donne Beck, 1610 Donnbech); Bækman (1419 Bekman); Vangsgårde (1474 Vanxgaardtt); Fladbjerg (1567 Fladbierg); Knivholt (1419 Knyfholt); Købstrup (1419 Køgstørp, 1688 Kiøbstrup); Tronderup (1581 Thrundrup, 1662 Trondrup); Torndal (1579 Tuorndal); Røntved (1419 Rwntwed); Øster and Vester Dal (1579 Dalen, 1662 Dall); Tøttenborg (1579 Thøtenborg, 1662 Tottenborig); Birkebakken (1662 Bircke Backen); Nr. Rævdal (1610 Nøer Reffdaal).    

 Source: Trap Danmark, Hjørring amt, 1960.
 photo: Google earth,