The Robbers from Rold
In Rold Forest stories about robbers have existed since Maragret the 1st (1353-1412). Some of the most notorious robbers lived at the beginning of the 1800's. They were all arrested in 1837.
Especially three robbers have become infamous:
Bette Fanden (1801-1870), meaning 'the small devil', whose real name was Johannes Jensen. He was a short man, but he was ruthless. He earned his nickname after he robbed an elderly woman. During the robbery, he covered himself with a cowhide, with the horns still attached. He broke into the home of the old woman and she was scared witless. Because of the horns she believed that she was seeing the devil himself. He robbed her, but left her unharmed. Other victims were not so fortunate. He was convicted of 47 crimes, and spent the rest of his days imprisoned at Holmen in Copenhagen.
Lorentz Meyer (1800-1878) was initially a shoemaker, but needed more money because he lived a wild night life. He funded this life with robberies, and started with his own boss. Lorentz Meyer was caught more than once, however, he was quite the escape artist. At last he was convicted of 82 crimes, and sentenced to public whipping and life imprisonement at Holmen in Copenhagen.
Petronillen was the mistress of Lorentz Meyer, and generally not very pleasant company. She was very violent and often pulled out a knife during robberies. Many stories tell that she burned infants on the heating stove during a robbery, to force their parents to tell where they were hiding the valuables. She was convicted of 14 crimes, and her punishment was public whipping and imprisonment in Aalborghus Castle.
However, as time has passed, the robbers have been romanticized. In the 19th century, people were afraid and would do anything to avoid them, but the Robbers from Rold that you can meet today are a fun experience. Today, you can even order an “assault” by the robbers, however, with a friendlier outcome than during the 19th century.