The election of Christian III

Christian III of Denmark

Christian III reigned as king of Denmark and Norway. He was the eldest son of King Frederick I and Anna of Brandenburg.-Childhood:...

as king of Denmark and Norway on 4 July 1534 was a landmark event for all of Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

 and Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. It took place in the church in the town of Rye

Old Rye

Old Rye is a small town in eastern Jutland, Denmark, with a population of 1,317 .Rye was a very important market town in medieval Denmark. In 1534 AD, St. Søren's Church in Rye was the setting of the Election of Christian III as king of Denmark...

, eastern Jutland

Jutland

Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...

, where the Jutlandic nobility

Nobility

Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...

 elected Prince Christian, son of King Frederick I

Frederick I of Denmark

Frederick I of Denmark and Norway was the King of Denmark and Norway. The name is also spelled Friedrich in German, Frederik in Danish, and Fredrik in Swedish and Norwegian...

 and Duke of Slesvig

Schleswig

Schleswig or South Jutland is a region covering the area about 60 km north and 70 km south of the border between Germany and Denmark; the territory has been divided between the two countries since 1920, with Northern Schleswig in Denmark and Southern Schleswig in Germany...

 and Holsten

Holsten

Holsten Brewery is a brewing company founded in 1879 in what is now Hamburg's Altona-Nord quarter. The group now has seven breweries in Germany. Its nationally distributed premium brand is the pale lager Holsten Pilsener...

, as king. This brought about the Count's Feud

Count's Feud

The Count's Feud , also called the Count's War, was a civil war that raged in Denmark in 1534–36 and brought about the Reformation in Denmark...

 (Grevens Fejde) and later also led to the implementation of the Protestant Reformation in Denmark

Reformation in Denmark

The Reformation in Denmark–Norway and Holstein was the transition from Roman Catholicism to Lutheranism in the realms ruled by the Copenhagen-based House of Oldenburg in the first half of the sixteenth century...

 and Norway.

Christian was a zealous Protestant who had witnessed the defence of Martin Luther

Martin Luther

Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...

 at the Diet of Worms

Diet of Worms

The Diet of Worms 1521 was a diet that took place in Worms, Germany, and is most memorable for the Edict of Worms , which addressed Martin Luther and the effects of the Protestant Reformation.It was conducted from 28 January to 25 May 1521, with Emperor Charles V presiding.Other Imperial diets at...

, and he had already carried out the Reformation

Protestant Reformation

The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...

 in the Duchies of Slesvig and Holsten. Christian's views made it difficult to gain the support of a majority of the Council of the Realm

Rigsraadet

Rigsraadet, or Riksrådet, , is the name of the councils of the Scandinavian countries that ruled the countries together with the kings from late Middle Ages to the 17th century...

 as most noblemen and, of course, the bishop

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...

s would rather see a Roman Catholic king on the throne and hence preferred his younger brother.

Among the supporters of Christian were Mogens Gøye

Mogens Gøye

Mogens Gøye was a Danish statesman and Steward of the Realm, whose enormous wealth earned him the derogatory nickname "the King of Northern Jutland". Gøye was the Royal councillor of Danish Kings John I, the feuding Christian II and Frederick I, and Christian III...

, Steward of the Realm. Mogens Gøye was a Danish statesman and the Royal councillor of several Danish Kings. Gøye was among the originators of the meeting in Rye Church between eight Jutlandic members of the Council and the four Jutlandic bishops.

Members of the lesser nobility had also turned up – presumably on Mogens Gøye's initiative – but had to stay outside the church. The lengthy discussion about the election eventually made them lose patience, and they forced their way into the church and demanded to know who opposed the election of Prince Christian. After that, the opponents finally gave up. Bishop Bille of Aarhus

Ancient See of Aarhus

The Ancient See of Aarhus was a pre-reformation Catholic diocese in Denmark.The diocese included the counties of Aarhus and Randers, the islands of Samsø and Tunø, and, after 1396, part of the county of Viborg....

 wept when he signed the request for the Protestant Duke to become king, realising that it would mean his own downfall.

Although hesitant, Christian accepted the election and was cheered at a meeting in Horsens

Horsens

Horsens is a Danish city in east Jutland. It is the site of the council of Horsens municipality. The city's population is 53,807 and the Horsens municipality's population is 82,835 ....

 on 18 August 1534 where he declared that he would, like his predecessors, sign a håndfæstning

Håndfæstning

Håndfæstning , Håndfestning , Handfeste , were names for documents issued from the 13th to the 17th century in Scandinavia and Germany , e.g. the charters that were signed by Danish and Norwegian kings, and sometimes also by Swedish kings...

(charter), although with a reform of ecclesiastical affairs, i.e. the implementation of the Protestant Reformation in Denmark and Norway.

Other sources

• Colding, P. Studier i Danmarks politiske historie i slutningen af Christian IIs og begyndelsen af Frederik IIs tid (Copenhagen, 1939)
• Lausten, M. S. Christian 3. og kirken 1537–1559 (Copenhagen, 1987)