A member of theHouse of Oldenburg, Christian began his personal rule ofDenmark-Norway in 1596 at the age of 19. He is remembered as one of the most popular, ambitious, and proactive Danish-Norwegian kings, having initiated many reforms and projects. Christian IV obtained for his kingdoms a level of stability and wealth that was virtually unmatched elsewhere in Europe.[2] He engaged Denmark-Norway in numerous wars, most notably theThirty Years' War (1618–1648), which devastated much of Germany, undermined the Danish economy, and cost Denmark-Norway some of its conquered territories.[3]He rebuilt and renamed the Norwegian capitalOslo asChristiania after himself, a name used until 1925.[4]
At the time, Denmark was still anelective monarchy, so in spite of being the eldest son Christian was not automatically heir to the throne. But Norway was ahereditary monarchy, and electing someone else would result in the end of theunion of the crowns. However, in 1580, at the age of 3, his father had him elected Prince and successor to the throne of Denmark.
At the death bed ofNiels Kaas. The 17-year-old Christian IV receives from the dying chancellor the keys to the vault where the royal crown and sceptre are stored. History painting byCarl Bloch, 1880.
At the death of his father on 4 April 1588, Christian was just 10 years old.[5] He succeeded to the throne, but as he was still under-age aregency council was set up to serve as the trustees of the royal power while Christian was still growing up. It was led bychancellorNiels Kaas (1535–1594) and consisted of theRigsraadet council membersPeder Munk (1534–1623), Jørgen Ottesen Rosenkrantz (1523–1596) andChristoffer Valkendorff (1525–1601). His motherQueen Dowager Sophie, 30 years old, had wished to play a role in the government, but was denied by the council.[6] At the death of Niels Kaas in 1594, Jørgen Rosenkrantz took over leadership of the regency council.
Christian continued his studies atSorø Academy where he had a reputation as a headstrong and talented student.[7]
In 1595, theCouncil of the Realm decided that Christian would soon be old enough to assume personal control of the reins of government. On 17 August 1596, at the age of 19, Christian signed hishaandfæstning (lit. "Handbinding" viz. curtailment of the monarch's power, a Danish parallel toMagna Carta), which was an identical copy of his father's from 1559.[5]
Coat of arms of Christian IV and Queen Anne Catherine. FromKompagnietor,Flensburg.
Christian took an interest in many and varied matters, including a series of domestic reforms and improving Danish national armaments. New fortresses were constructed under the direction ofDutch engineers. TheRoyal Dano-Norwegian Navy, which in 1596 had consisted of but twenty-two vessels, in 1610 rose to sixty, some of them built after Christian's own designs. The formation of a national army proved more difficult. Christian had to depend mainly upon hiredmercenary troops as was common practice in the times—well before the establishment of standing armies—augmented by nativepeasant levies recruited for the most part from the peasantry on the crown domains.[5]
Up until the early 1620s, Denmark-Norway's economy profited from general boom conditions in Europe. This inspired Christian to initiate a policy of expanding Denmark-Norway's overseas trade as part of themercantilist wave fashionable in Europe. He founded a number of merchant cities, and supported the building of factories. He also built a large number of buildings inDutch Renaissance style.
His sisterAnne had married KingJames VI of Scotland, who succeeded to theEnglish throne in 1603. To foster friendly relations between the two kingdoms, Christian paid a state visit to England in 1606. The visit was generally judged to be a success, although the heavy drinking indulged in by English and Danes alike caused some unfavourable comments: both Christian and James had an ability to consume great amounts of alcohol, while remaining lucid, which most of their courtiers did not share.Sir John Harington described an entertainment atTheobalds, amasque of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, as a drunken fiasco, where most of the players simply fell over from the effects of too much wine.[12] The royal party went toUpnor Castle and had dinner aboard theElizabeth Jonas. At Gravesend, when the royal party was on his ship theAdmiral, Christian IV provided a firework display built on a small ship or lighter, which brought tears to eyes of King James, although the effect was somewhat spoiled because the show was held in daylight.[13] After an exchange of gifts Christian sailed home, escorted byRobert Mansell with theVanguard and theMoon.[14]
Christian IV visited England again in August 1614, coming incognito to surprise his sister atDenmark House,[15] accompanied only byAndrew Sinclair and a page.[16] Christian IV was recognised by the queen's dancing masterThomas Cardell and a French servant.[17] He had sailed with only three ships and captured some pirates during the voyage. More ships with his Danish courtiers arrived on 5 August.[18] The diplomatic purpose of the visit was kept secret. The Venetian ambassadorAntonio Foscarini heard that Anne of Denmark had written to him about a dispute with King James. Foscarini described Christian as, "above the average in height, dressed in the French fashion. His nature is warlike".[19]
Danish routes of their expedition in Ceylon.Roland Crappé's navigations is shown in blue, while Ove Gjedde's is shown in red
Despite Christian's many efforts, the new economic projects did not return a profit. He looked abroad for new income.Christian IV's Expeditions to Greenland involved a series of voyages in the years 1605–1607 to Greenland and to Arctic waterways in order to locate the lostEastern Norse Settlement and to assert Danish sovereignty over Greenland. The expeditions were unsuccessful, partly due to leaders lacking experience with the difficult Arctic ice and weather conditions. The pilot on all three trips was English explorerJames Hall. An expedition to North America was commissioned in 1619. The expedition was captained byDano-Norwegian navigator and explorer,Jens Munk. The ships, searching for theNorthwest Passage, arrived inHudson Bay landing at the mouth ofChurchill River, settling at what is nowChurchill, Manitoba. However, it was a disastrous voyage, with cold, famine, andscurvy killing most of the crew.[7][20]
In 1618, Christian appointed AdmiralOve Gjedde to lead an expedition and establish a Danish colony inCeylon. The expedition set sail in 1618, taking two years to reach Ceylon and losing more than half their crew on the way. Upon arriving in May 1620, the establishment of acolony in Ceylon failed,[21] but instead theNayak of Tanjore (now Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu) turned out to be interested in trading opportunities and a treaty was negotiated granting the Danes the village ofTranquebar (or Tarangamabadi) on India's south coast[22] and the right to construct a "stone house" (Fort Dansborg) and levy taxes.[23] The treaty was signed on 20 November 1620, establishingDenmark's first colony in India. Christian also assigned the privilege establishing theDanish East India Company.[24]
In 1611, he first put his newly organised army to use. Despite the reluctance ofRigsrådet, Christian initiated a war with Sweden for the supremacy of theBaltic Sea.[7] It was later known as theKalmar War because its chief operation was the Danish capture ofKalmar, the southernmost fortress of Sweden. Christian compelled KingGustavus Adolphus of Sweden to give way on all essential points at the resultingTreaty of Knäred of 20 January 1613.[5] However, despite Denmark's greater strength, the gains of the war were not decisive.[7]
He now turned his attention to theThirty Years' War in Germany. Here, his objectives were twofold: first, to obtain control of the great German rivers—theElbe and theWeser—as a means of securing his dominion of the northern seas; and secondly, to acquire the secularised GermanArchdiocese of Bremen andPrince-Bishopric of Verden asappanages for his younger sons. He skillfully took advantage of the alarm of the GermanProtestants after theBattle of White Mountain in 1620, to secure co-adjutorship of the See of Bremen for his sonFrederick (September 1621). A similar arrangement was reached in November atVerden. Hamburg was also induced to acknowledge the Danish overlordship ofHolstein by thecompact of Steinburg in July 1621.[5]
Christian IV had obtained for his kingdom a level of stability and wealth that was virtually unmatched elsewhere in Europe.[25] Denmark was funded by tolls on theØresund and also by extensive war-reparations from Sweden.[26] Denmark's intervention in the Thirty Years' War was aided by France and by Charles I of England, who agreed to help subsidise the war partly because Christian was the uncle of both the Stuart king and his sisterElizabeth of Bohemia through their mother,Anne of Denmark. Some 13,700 Scottish soldiers were to be sent as allies to help Christian IV under the command of GeneralRobert Maxwell, 1st Earl of Nithsdale.[27] Moreover, some 6000 English troops under SirCharles Morgan also eventually arrived to bolster the defence of Denmark though it took longer for these to arrive than Christian hoped, not least due to the ongoing British campaigns against France and Spain. Thus Christian, as war-leader of the Lower Saxon Circle, entered the war with an army of only 20,000 mercenaries, some of his allies from Britain and a national army 15,000 strong, leading them as Duke of Holstein rather than as King of Denmark.
Despite the growing power of Roman Catholics in North Germany, and the threat to the Danish holdings in theSchleswig-Holstein duchies, Christian for a time stayed his hand. The urgent solicitations of other powers, and his fear that Gustavus Adolphus should supplant him as the champion of the Protestant cause, finally led him to enter the war on 9 May 1625.[5] He also feared that Sweden could use a war to further expand their holdings in the Baltic Sea. Christian embarked on a military campaign which was later known in Denmark and Norway as "The Emperor War" (Danish:Kejserkrigen,Norwegian:Keiserkrigen).[28]
He had at his disposal from 19,000 to 25,000 people, and at first gained some successes but on 27 August 1626 he was routed byJohan Tzerclaes, Count of Tilly in theBattle of Lutter.[5] Christian had not thoroughly planned the advance against the combined forces of theHoly Roman Emperor and theCatholic League, as promises of military support from the Netherlands and England did not materialise.[29] In the summer of 1627 both Tilly andAlbrecht von Wallenstein occupied the duchies and the whole peninsula ofJutland.[5]
Christian now formed an alliance with Sweden on 1 January 1628, as he and Gustavus Adolphus shared the reluctance of German expansion in the Baltic region.[29] Gustavus Adolphus pledged to assist Denmark with a fleet in case of need, and shortly afterwards a Swedo-Danish army and fleet compelled Wallenstein to raise thesiege of Stralsund. Thus with the help of Sweden, the superior sea-power enabled Denmark to tide over her worst difficulties, and in May 1629 Christian was able to conclude peace with the emperor in theTreaty of Lübeck, without any diminution of territory.[5] However, the treaty bound Christian not to interfere in the Thirty Years' War any further, removing any Danish obstacles when Gustavus Adolphus entered the war in 1630.[29]
Christian's foreign policy did not suffer from lack of confidence following the Danish defeat in The Thirty Years' War. To compensate for lacking export revenues, and also in order to stifle the Swedish advances in the Thirty Years' War, Christian enacted a number of increases in theSound Dues throughout the 1630s.[7] Christian gained both in popularity and influence at home, and he hoped to increase his external power still further with the assistance of his sons-in-law,Corfitz Ulfeldt andHannibal Sehested, who now came prominently forward.[5]
Between 1629 and 1643 the European situation presented infinite possibilities to politicians with a taste for adventure. However, Christian was incapable of a consistent diplomatic policy. He would neither conciliate Sweden, henceforth his most dangerous enemy, nor guard himself against her by a definite system of counter-alliances.[5] Christian contacted the Roman Catholic part of the Thirty Years' War, and offered to broker a deal with Sweden. However, his mediating was highly skewed in favour of the Holy Roman Emperor, and was a transparent attempt at minimising the Swedish influence in the Baltics.[30] His Scandinavian policy was so irritating and vexatious that Swedish statesmen advocated for a war with Denmark, to keep Christian from interfering in the peace negotiations with the Holy Roman Emperor, and in May 1643, Christian faced another war against Sweden.[5] The increased Sound Dues had alienated the Dutch, who turned to support Sweden.[7]
Sweden was able, thanks to their conquests in the Thirty Years' War, to attack Denmark from the south as well as the east; the Dutch alliance promised to secure them at sea. In May 1643 the SwedishPrivy Council decided upon war; on 12 December the SwedishField MarshalLennart Torstensson, advancing fromBohemia, crossed the southern frontier of Denmark; and by the end of January 1644 the whole peninsula ofJutland was in Swedish hands. This unexpected attack, conducted from first to last with consummate ability and lightning-like rapidity, had a paralysing effect upon Denmark.[5]
In his sixty-sixth year he once more displayed something of the energy of his triumphant youth. Night and day he laboured to levy armies and equip fleets. Fortunately for him, the Swedish government delayed hostilities inScania until February 1644, and the Danes were able to make adequate defensive preparations and save the important fortress ofMalmö.[5] The Danish fleet prevented Torstensson crossing from Jutland toFunen, and defeated the Dutch auxiliary fleet which came to Torstensson's assistance at theaction of 16 May 1644.[30] Another attempt to transport Torstensson and his army to the Danish islands by a large Swedish fleet was frustrated by Christian IV in person on 1 July 1644. On that day the two fleets encountered at theBattle of Colberger Heide. As Christian stood on the quarterdeck of theTrinity, a cannon close by was exploded by a Swedish cannonball, and splinters of wood and metal wounded the king in thirteen places, blinding one eye and flinging him to the deck. But he was instantly on his feet again, cried with a loud voice that it was well with him, and set every one an example of duty by remaining on deck until the fight was over. Darkness at last separated the contending fleets; and the battle was drawn.[5]
The Danish fleet subsequently blockaded the Swedish ships in theBay of Kiel. But the Swedish fleet escaped, and the annihilation of the Danish fleet by the combined navies of Sweden and the Netherlands, after an obstinatefight between Fehmarn and Lolland at the end of September, exhausted the military resources of Denmark and compelled Christian to accept the mediation of France and the Netherlands; and peace was finally signed with theTreaty of Brömsebro on 8 February 1645.[5] Here Denmark had to cedeGotland,Ösel and (for thirty years)Halland, while Norway lost the two provincesJämtland andHärjedalen, giving Sweden the supremacy of the Baltic Sea.[30]
Christian IV spent more time in the kingdom of Norway than any other Oldenburg monarch and no Oldenburg king made such a lasting impression on the Norwegian people. He visited the country a number of times and founded four cities. He also established and took control over one silver mine (Kongsberg), one copper mine (Røros inTrøndelag), and tried to make an iron plant with limited success inEiker. In 1647 he gave the crown privileges of theRøros Copper Works to his banker and his privy councillor (Geheimrat)Joachim Irgens von Westervick, including rights to forests and water resources within a circle of diameter 90 kilometers. Christian also restored and restructured the castleAkershus, where he invited the people of Norway to the official and age-old installment of the king in 1590, and again in 1610.
When the king was busy overseeing the reparations and re-building of the fortress at Oslo, he lived in the country all summer, and at the same time tried to establish a centre for producing iron atEiker inBuskerud. History tells he actually ruled the entire kingdom from this area in the summer of 1603.
In 1623, Christian again visited Norway for an entire summer, this time to oversee the foundation ofKongsberg. He was also present in the area in 1624, when Oslo burned in August of that year. The king was able to reach the area in a few weeks, being in Eiker. Over the years, fire had destroyed major parts of the city many times, as many of the city's buildings were built entirely of wood. After the fire in 1624 which lasted for three days, Christian IV decided that the old city should not be rebuilt again. He decided that the new town be rebuilt in the area belowAkershus Fortress, a castle which later was converted into a palace and royal residence. His men built a network of roads in Akershagen and demanded that all citizens should move their shops and workplaces to the newly built city of Christiania.[31]
Securing the Northern Lands under the Danish-Norwegian Crown
During the fourteenth century the Swedish kings tried to push the areas of their control towards the north, and contemporary maps depicted the now Norwegian coastal areas ofTroms andFinnmark as a part of Sweden. The possibly boldest move of any Danish-Norwegian regent was to make a voyage to the Northern Lands to secure these lands under theDanish-Norwegian crown.
After the Torstenson War,Rigsrådet took on an increasing role, under the leadership ofCorfitz Ulfeldt andHannibal Sehested.[7] The last years of Christian's life were embittered by sordid differences with his sons-in-law, especially with Corfitz Ulfeldt.
His personal obsession with witchcraft led to the public execution of some of his subjects during theBurning Times. He was responsible for several witch burnings, including 21 people in Iceland, and most notably the conviction and execution ofMaren Spliid, who was victim of awitch hunt at Ribe and was burned at the Gallows Hill nearRibe on 9 November 1641.[32]
On 21 February 1648, at his earnest request, he was carried in a litter fromFrederiksborg to his belovedCopenhagen, where he died a week later.[5] He was buried inRoskilde Cathedral. The chapel of Christian IV had been completed 6 years before the King died.[33]
Christian was reckoned a typical renaissance king, and excelled in hiring musicians and artists from all over Europe. Many English musicians were employed by him at several times, among themWilliam Brade,John Bull andJohn Dowland. Dowland accompanied the king on his tours, and as he was employed in 1603, rumour has it he was in Norway as well. Christian was an agile dancer, and his court was reckoned the second most "musical" court in Europe, only ranking behind that ofElizabeth I of England. Christian maintained good contact with his sister Anne, who was married to King James. Christian asked Anne to request for him the services of Thomas Cutting, a lutenist employed byArbella Stewart.[34] His other sister,Elizabeth, was married to theDuke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, and artists and musicians travelled freely between the courts.
Christian IV is renowned for his many city (town) foundations, and is most likely theNordichead of state that can be accredited for the highest number of new cities in hisrealm. These towns/cities are:
Christianopel, now Kristianopel in Sweden. Founded in 1599 in the then Danish territory ofBlekinge as a garrison town near the then Danish-Swedish border.
Christianstad, now Kristianstad in Sweden. Founded in 1614 in the then Danish territory ofSkåne.
Glückstadt, now in Germany, founded in 1617 as a rival toHamburg in the then Danish territory ofHolstein.
Christianshavn, now part of Copenhagen, Denmark, founded as a fortification/garrison town in 1619. It also housesFreetown Christiania, a planned commune.
Konningsberg (King's Mountain), now Kongsberg in Norway, founded as an industrial town in 1624 after the discovery of silverores.
Christiania, now Oslo in Norway. After a devastating fire in 1624 the king ordered the old city of Oslo to be moved closer to the fortification ofAkershus slot and also renamed it Christiania. The city name was altered to Kristiania in 1877 and then back to Oslo in 1924. The original town of Christian is now known asKvadraturen =The Quarters.
Christian IV monument inStortorvet,Oslo by Carl Ludvig Jacobsen.
The statue was completed in 1878 and unveiled on 28 September 1880.
Christian is the longest-reigning monarch in Scandinavian history in terms of holding the title.[36] However, theDanish Royal House recognizedMargrethe II as having the official record in July 2023.[37][38] The Danish Royal House noted that Christian IV was not of the legal age to become King upon his father's death, which resulted in a "guardian government" being installed until he was officially installed as King in 1596.[37] When Christian was crowned king,Denmark-Norway held a supremacy over the Baltic Sea, which he lost to Sweden. Nevertheless, Christian was one of the few kings from theHouse of Oldenburg that achieved a lasting legacy of popularity with both the Danish and Norwegian people. As such, he featured in the Danish national playElverhøj. Furthermore, his great building activities also furthered his popularity.[7]
Christian IV spoke Danish, German,Latin, French and Italian. Naturally cheerful and hospitable, he delighted in lively society; but he was also passionate, irritable and sensual. He had courage, a vivid sense of duty, an indefatigable love of work, and all the inquisitive zeal and inventive energy of a born reformer. His own pleasure, whether it took the form of love or ambition, was always his first consideration. His capacity for drink was proverbial: when he visited England in 1606, even the notoriously hard-drinking English Court were astonished by his alcohol consumption. In the heyday of his youth his high spirits and passion for adventure enabled him to surmount every obstacle with elan. But in the decline of life he reaped the bitter fruits of his lack of self-control, and sank into the grave a weary and brokenhearted old man.[5]
Christian IV also features prominently in the novelMusic and Silence byRose Tremain, which is primarily set in and around the Danish court in the years 1629 and 1630.
Christian IV is depicted as a foul-natured person, but a good king who did a lot to make his realm flourish, by the Danish alternative music bandMew in their song,"King Christian".
Christian IV (Danish title:Christian IV – Den sidste rejse (2018) is a biographical movie, focusing on His Majesty King Christian IV's stormy relationship toKirsten Munk, and the crucial last hours on his journey fromFrederiksborg Castle toRosenborg Castle on his deathbed. The turning point is Christian IV's and Kirsten Munk's turbulent marriage with accusations of infidelity and attempted murder.[39]
His first queen wasAnne Catherine. They were married from 1597 to 1612. She died after bearing Christian seven children. In 1615, three years after her death, the king privately marriedKirsten Munk, by whom he had twelve more children.[5]
In 1632, an English envoy to king Christian IV, then aged 55, primly remarked, "Such is the life of that king: to drink all day and to lie with a whore every night".[40]
In the course of 1628, Christian discovered that his wife, Kirsten Munk, was having a relationship with one of his German officers, so he had Kirsten placed under house arrest. She endeavoured to cover up her own disgrace by conniving at an intrigue betweenVibeke Kruse, one of her discharged maids, and the king. In January 1630, the rupture became final, and Kirsten retired to her estates inJutland. Meanwhile, Christian openly acknowledged Vibeke as his mistress, and they had several children.[5]
With his second wife,Kirsten Munk, he had 12 children, though the youngest, Dorothea Elisabeth, was rumoured to be the daughter of Kirsten's lover, Otto Ludwig:
Stillborn child (b. & d. 1615).
Unnamed infant (b. & d. 1617).
Countess Anna Cathrine of Schleswig-Holstein (10 August 1618 – 20 August 1633); married Frands Rantzau but died in adolescence.
^Martin Butler,The Stuart Court Masque and Political Culture (Cambridge, 2008), pp. 125–127.
^John Nichols,The Progresses, Processions, and Magnificent Festivities of King James the First, vol. 2 (London, 1828), pp. 84, 89–90, 92–93.
^John S. Brewer,Court of James the First, vol. 2 (London, 1839), pp. 138–143: Thomas Birch,Court and Times of James the First, vol. 1 (London, 1848), pp. 65–67.
^John S. Brewer,Court of James the First, 2 (London, 1839), pp. 137–138.
^Original Letters Relating to the Ecclesiastical Affairs of Scotland vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1851), p. 355.
^J. S. Brewer,Court of King James, 2 (London: Richard Bentley, 1839), 137.
^Allen Hinds,Calendar State Papers, Venice: 1613–1615, vol. 13 (London, 1907), pp. 167 no. 348, 170 no. 355.
^Allen Hinds,Calendar State Papers, Venice: 1613–1615, vol. 13 (London, 1907), p. 171 no. 356.
^Esther Fihl (2009). "Shipwrecked on the Coromandel: The First Indo–Danish Contact, 1620".Review of Development and Change14 (1&2): 19–40
^Larsen, Kay (1907).Volume 1 of Dansk-Ostindiske Koloniers historie: Trankebar. Jørgensen. pp. 167–169.
^Bredsdorff, Asta (2009).The Trials and Travels of Willem Leyel: An Account of the Danish East India Company in Tranquebar, 1639–48. Museum Tusculanum Press. p. 13.ISBN9788763530231.
^"Treaty of the Hague".(in Dutch) In Davenport, Frances G.European Treaties Bearing on the History of the United States and Its Dependencies. The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd., 2004.
^"Treaty of Bremen".(in Dutch) In Davenport, Frances G.European Treaties Bearing on the History of the United States and Its Dependencies. The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd., 2004.
Lockhart, Paul D.Denmark in the Thirty Years’ War, 1618–1648: King Christian IV and the Decline of the Oldenburg State (Susquehanna University Press, 1996)
Lockhart, Paul D.Denmark, 1513–1660: the Rise and Decline of a Renaissance Monarchy (Oxford University Press, 2007).
Scocozza, Benito (1997). "Christian 4".Politikens bog om danske monarker [Politiken's book about Danish monarchs] (in Danish). Copenhagen: Politikens Forlag. pp. 125–136.ISBN87-567-5772-7.
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