Gilleleje

History

The earliest confirmed permanent residence in Gilleleje is in the early 16th century. An excavation, done in 1979 by the city museum, revealed a lot from a house under the layers of sand. The house had most likely been built shortly after 1536, as a coin was found, dated 1534–36. There were also found ceramics reminiscent of other finds, so the archeologists assumed that the culture layer was from the late 15th century. Additionally, the house was found on the address Fabersvej 10 which is not the closest to the beach, and the habit was to build from the beach and inwards. At around this time, it is also known that the village had enough financial means to build a church and hire a priest. This required considerable funds, and the general consensus, then, is that the township went from seasonal fishing to year-round fishing, and the fishermen settled down in the years surrounding 1500. Town hall has established 1488 as the "official" founding year to make celebrating easier. The church was inaugurated in 1538 by the newly ordained priest Hans Lauridtzen. In 1588, the vassal of Kronborg made a list of the taxes that the fishermen should pay. This was one or a half barrel of cod. From this list, we can see who the earliest citizens were. There are about 70 names (a name is analogous to a house - there were probably about 500 citizens), with the surnames Lauritsen, Rasmussen, Jensen and Skomager being the most common. Note that patronymic surnames were the norm then, but from this, it gives an impression of what first names were in vogue among the citizens. Aside from the fishing, the taxes allowed people to grow various types of crops south of the town, such as wheat. There was also a pasture, on which there were many cows and sheep. Most of the town was on the…