Gerdeka Hartlevsdotter

Gerdeka Hartlevsdotter, or Hartlefsdotter, also called Gerdica (1370-1438), was a Swedish Bridgettine nun. She was the abbess of Vadstena Abbey from 1403 until 1422.

Gerdeka Hartlevsdotter was the daughter of Hartlev Bolk (d.1390) and Ingeborg (d. 1400) from Skänninge. Her mother became a member of the Vadstena Abey as a widow, and Gerdeka had her father reburied in the abbey cenetary as an abbess, when it became allowed for non-members of the order to be buried at the abbey during her tenure as abbess. Gerdeka was elected abbess in 1403, after the deposition of her predecessor Ingegerd Knutsdotter. Her reign has been described as a golden age for the abbey.

In 1406, she received a delegation from England head by Henry Fitzhug of Rawenswater with the purpose of creating a daughter-abbey of the Bridgettine order in England. In 1415, she completed the negotiations, and upon the wish of the English King, she sent the nuns Anna Karlsdotter, Christina Finwitsdotter, Christina Esbjörnsdotter and Anna Esbjörnsdotter to England under great festivities, escorted by all the Bishops of Sweden as well as the Arch Bishop, one Bishop from Norway, as well as several ambassadors, to found the Syon Monastery in England.

In 1419, she abbey was subjected to an investigation after rumors that both the abbess Gerdica as well as the nuns had received male guests in private and accepted gifts from them.

Gerdeka resigned form her position from health reasons 27 April 1422.

References

• Syster Patricia, OSsS 2003: ”Vadstena klosters abbedissor”. I: Beskow, Per & Annette Landen (red.) Birgitta av Vadstena. Pilgrim och profet 1303–1373. Natur och Kultur, Stockholm. S. 297–314.
• Anteckningar om svenska qvinnor /
• Tore Nyberg: Birgitta, hendes værk og hendes klostre i Norden (1991)
• https://archive.org/stream/MN5063ucmf_4/MN5063ucmf_4_djvu.txt
• https://archive.org/stream/MN42054ucmf_3/MN42054ucmf_3_djvu.txt
• Historiskt bibliotek utgifvet af Carl Silfverstolpe