Povel Juel

Povel Juel (c.1673 – 8 March 1723) was a Norwegian civil servant and writer, executed for treason in 1723.

Early life Povel Juel was born and grew up in Trondheim, Norway where his father was a merchant, and a big landowner. At a young age he became the taxman for Bishop Peder Krog, and an assistant to the judge (sorenskriver) in Harstad. But after a fire at the judge`s farm in 1695, where a female servant lost her life, he had to leave Harstad, because of a rumour that he had started the fire to kill the girl since she was pregnant with his child. Juel then moved to Bergen where he worked as a lawyer from 1695 to 1709. In 1709, he was appointed acting commissioner in Bergen.

As Governor Juel was appointed to be the County Governor of Lister og Mandals amt in 1711. As Governor, he often came into conflict with his superior, the Diocesan Governor of Christianssand stiftamt, Henrik Adeler. One such incident is when Juel had a British ship seized and detained. Adeler ordered him to release the ship, but Juel refused and had the skipper of the ship arrested. Juel was suspended from his job as governor in 1713, but regained his position in 1715. After his reinstatement, he wrote to the King and complained that he hadn't been paid since he began as governor in 1711. He also sent letters with very sharp personal attacks against other government officials. He was fired as governor in 1718 due to unruly and arbitrary behavior. After his firing, he sent several letters to King Frederick IV that asked for another job, but were somewhat threatening. The plot did not lead to a dissolution of the union between Denmark and Norway at this time, but almost ninety-one years later the union was dissolved after the Treaty of Kiel, in 1814.