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Frederick I of Denmark

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Frederick I
Portrait of Frederick attributed toJacob Binck,1539. No portraits of the King painted during his lifetime are known.[1]
King of Denmark
(more...)
Reign1523[2]– 10 April 1533
Coronation7 August 1524
Copenhagen Cathedral
PredecessorChristian II
SuccessorChristian III
King of Norway
Reign1524 – 10 April 1533
PredecessorChristian I
SuccessorChristian III
Duke of Schleswig-Holstein
Reign1482 – 10 April 1533
PredecessorChristian II
SuccessorChristian III
Co-dukeJohn(until 1490)
Born7 October 1471
Haderslevhus
Died10 April 1533(1533-04-10)(aged 61)
Gottorf Castle
Burial
Schleswig Cathedral
Spouses
​
​
(m.1502; died 1514)​

​
(m.1518)​
Issue
among others...		Christian III of Denmark
Dorothea, Duchess of Prussia
John II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Haderslev
Elizabeth, Duchess of Mecklenburg
Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp
Dorothea, Duchess of Mecklenburg
Frederick, Bishop of Hildesheim and Schleswig
HouseOldenburg
FatherChristian I of Denmark
MotherDorothea of Brandenburg
ReligionCatholicism

Frederick I(DanishandNorwegian:Frederik;‹See Tfd›German:Friedrich;Swedish:Fredrik;7 October 1471 – 10 April 1533) wasKing of DenmarkandNorway.He was the lastCatholicmonarch to reign over Denmark and Norway, when subsequent monarchs embracedLutheranismafter theProtestant Reformation.As king of Norway, Frederick is most remarkable in never having visited the country and was never crowned as such. Therefore, he was styledKing of Denmark, the Vends and the Goths, elected King of Norway.Frederick's reign began the enduring tradition of calling kings of Denmark alternatively by the names Christian and Frederick.[3][4]

Background

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Frederick was the younger son of the first Oldenburg KingChristian I of Denmark,Norway andSweden(1426–81) and ofDorothea of Brandenburg(1430–95). Soon after the death of his father, the underage Frederick was elected co-Duke ofSchleswigandHolsteinin 1482, the other co-duke being his elder brother, KingJohn of Denmark.In 1490 at Frederick's majority, both duchies were divided between the brothers.[5]

In 1500, he had convinced his brother King John to conquerDithmarschen.A great army was called from not only the duchies, but with additions from all of theKalmar Unionfor which his brother briefly was king. In addition, numerous Germanmercenariestook part. The expedition failed miserably, however, in theBattle of Hemmingstedt,where one-third of allknightsof Schleswig and Holstein lost their lives.[6]

Reign

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When his brother,King Johndied, a group of Jutish nobles had offered Frederick the throne as early as 1513, but he had declined, rightly believing that the majority of the Danish nobility would be loyal to his nephewChristian II.In 1523, Christian was forced by disloyal nobles to abdicate as king of Denmark and Norway, and Frederick took the throne of Denmark in 1523 and was elected king of Norway in 1524. It is not certain that Frederick ever learned to speak Danish. After becoming king, he continued spending most of his time atGottorp,a castle and estate in the city ofSchleswig.[7]

In 1524 and 1525, Frederick had to suppress revolts among the peasants inAgder,JutlandandScaniawho demanded the restoration of Christian II. The high point of the rebellion came in 1525 whenSøren Norby,the governor (statholder) ofGotland,invadedBlekingein an attempt to restore Christian II to power. He raised 8000 men who besiegedKärnan(Helsingborgs slott), a castle inHelsingborg.Frederick's general,Johann Rantzau,moved his army toScaniaand defeated the peasants soundly in April and May 1525.[8]

Gold coin or medal of Frederick I. Shows him together with Sophia on the obverse, and coat of arms on the reverse.
Sophie of Pomerania

Frederick played a central role in the spread of Lutheran teachings throughout Denmark. In his coronation charter, he was made the solemn protector (værner) of theCatholic Church in Denmark.In that role, he asserted his right to select bishops for the Catholic dioceses in the country. Christian II had been intolerant of Protestant teaching, but Frederick took a more opportunist approach. For example, he ordered that Catholics and Lutherans share the same churches and encouraged the first publication of theBiblein the Danish language. In 1526, when Lutheran ReformerHans Tausenwas threatened with arrest and trial for heresy, Frederick appointed him his personalchaplainto give him immunity.[9]

Starting in 1527, Frederick authorized the closure ofFranciscanhousesand monasteries in 28 Danish cities. He used the popular anti-establishment feelings that ran against some persons of theCatholic hierarchyand nobility of Denmark as well as keen propaganda to decrease the power of bishops and Catholic nobles.[10]

During his reign, Frederick was skillful enough to prevent all-out warfare between Catholics and Protestants. In 1532, he succeeded in capturing Christian II who had tried to invade Norway, and to make himself king of the country. Frederick died on 10 April 1533 in Gottorp, at the age of 61, and was buried inSchleswig Cathedral.Upon Frederick's death, tensions between Catholics and Protestants rose to a fever pitch which would result in theCount's Feud(Grevens Fejde).[11]

Family and children

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On 10 April 1502, Frederick marriedAnna of Brandenburg(1487–1514), the daughter ofJohn Cicero, Elector of BrandenburgandMargaret of Thuringia.The couple had two children:

  1. Christian III, King of Denmark and Norway(12 August 1503 – 1 January 1559)[12]
  2. Dorothea of Denmark(1 August 1504 – 11 April 1547),[13]married 1 July 1526 toAlbert, Duke of Prussia.

Frederick's wife Anna died on 5 May 1514, 26 years old. Four years later on 9 October 1518 atKiel,Frederick marriedSophie of Pomerania(20 years old; 1498–1568), a daughter ofBogislaw "the Great", Duke of Pomerania.Sophie and Frederick had six children:

  1. John II of Denmark, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Haderslev(28 June 1521 – 2 October 1580)[14]
  2. Elizabeth of Denmark(14 October 1524 – 15 October 1586),[15]married:
    1. on 26 August 1543 toMagnus III of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
    2. on 14 February 1556 toUlrich III, Duke of Mecklenburg-Güstrow.
  3. Adolf of Denmark, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp(25 January 1526 – 1 October 1586)[16]
  4. Anna of Denmark (1527 – 4 June 1535)
  5. Dorothea of Denmark(1528 – 11 November 1575),[17]married on 27 October 1573 toChristopher, Duke of Mecklenburg-Gadebusch.
  6. Frederick of Denmark(13 April 1532 – 27 October 1556), Prince-Bishop ofHildesheimand Bishop of Schleswig.

Ancestors

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^Kolstrup, Inger-Lise."Jacob Binck".Den Store Danske Encyklopædi.Retrieved29 April2021.
  2. ^Frederick was provisionally declared king on 26 March 1523, which was confirmed at Roskilde on 5 August. After a siege that began on 10 June 1523, Copenhagen surrendered to [his forces on 6 January 1524, seehttps://danmarkshistorien.dk/vis/materiale/christian-2-1481-1559/ Christian 2., 1481-1559, regent 1513-1523 "], danmarkshistorien.dk.
  3. ^Frederik 1(in Danish), DK: Gravsted.
  4. ^Frederik 1 – utdypning(Store norske leksikon)
  5. ^"Frederik I, Konge i Danmark og Norge",Salmonsens konversationsleksikon(in Danish), Runeberg.
  6. ^"Ditmarsken (Dithmarschen," de tyske Marsklande ")".Salmonsens konversationsleksikon.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  7. ^"Kong Hans".Diplomatarium Norvegicum.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  8. ^"Frederik I, 1471–1533",Konge (Dansk biografisk Lexikon),Runeberg.
  9. ^"Hans Tausen".Den Store Danske.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  10. ^Krønike om Gråbrødrenes Udjagelse(in Danish).
  11. ^"Grevens Fejde".Salmonsens konversationsleksikon.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  12. ^"Christian 3".gravsted.dk.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  13. ^"Dorothea, Hertuginde af Preussen, 1504–47".Dansk biografisk Lexikon.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  14. ^"Hertug Hans den ældre i Haderslev"(PDF).Historisk Tidsskrift.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  15. ^"Elisabeth, 1524–86, Hertuginde af Meklenborg".Dansk biografisk Lexikon.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  16. ^"Adolf, Herzog von Schleswig-Holstein".Adolf I. (Herzog von Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorf).Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie. Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie. 1875. p. 111.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  17. ^"Dorothea, Hertuginde af Meklenborg, 1528–75".Dansk biografisk Lexikon.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.

Bibliography

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  • Scocozza, Benito (1997). "Frederik 1.".Politikens bog om danske monarker[Politiken's book about Danish monarchs] (in Danish). Copenhagen: Politikens Forlag. pp. 111–113.ISBN87-567-5772-7.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related toFrederick I of Denmark.
Frederick I
Born:7 October 1471Died:10 April 1533
Regnal titles
Preceded by King of Denmark
1523–1533 		Succeeded by
King of Norway
1524–1533
Preceded by Duke of HolsteinandSchleswig
1490–1533
withJohn I(1490–1513)
Christian II(1513–1523)
Christian III(1523–1533)
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