Hans Egede
| Hans Egede | |
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Johan Hörner, Hans Egede, c. 1745, Danish Museum of National History
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| Born | 31 January 1686 Harstad, Northern Norway |
| Died | 5 November 1758 (age 72) Falster, Denmark |
| Spouse(s) | Gertrud Egede nee Rasch |
| Children | sons: Paul (1709-1789) Niels (1710-1782) daughters: Kirstine (1715/1786) Petronelle (1716–1805) |
| Church | Church of Denmark (evangelical Lutheran) |
| Writings | Published the journal of his journey to Greenland |
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Offices held
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Ordained pastor Missionary to Greenland Bishop of Greenland Principal of missionary seminary |
| Title | National Saint of Greenland |
Hans Poulsen Egede (January 31, 1686 – November 5, 1758) was a Dano-Norwegian Lutheran missionary who launched mission efforts to Greenland, which led him to be styled the Apostle of Greenland. He established a successful mission among the Inuit and is credited with revitalizing Dano-Norwegian interest in the island after contact had been broken for hundreds of years. He founded Greenland's capital Godthåb, now known as Nuuk.
Hans Egede was born into the home of a civil servant in Harstad, Norway, nearly 150 miles north of the Arctic Circle. His paternal grandfather had been a vicar in Vester Egede on southern Zealand, Denmark. Hans was schooled by an uncle, a clergyman in a local Lutheran Church. In 1704 he traveled to Copenhagen to enter the University of Copenhagen, where he earned a Bachelor's degree in Theology. He returned to Hinnøya Island after graduation, and in April 1707 he was ordained and assigned to a parish on the equally remote archipelago of Lofoten. Also in 1707 he married Gertrud Rasch (or Rask), who was 13 years his senior. Four children were born to the marriage - two boys and two girls.
At Lofoten, Egede heard stories about the old Norse settlements on Greenland, with which contact had been lost centuries before. Beginning in 1711, he sought permission from Frederick IV of Denmark to search for the colony and establish a mission there, presuming that it had either remained Catholic after the Danish Reformation or been lost to the Christian faith altogether. Frederick gave consent at least partially to re-establish a colonial claim to the island.
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