Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Denmark and Norway
Encyclopedia
Frederick (11 October 1753, Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
– 7 December 1805, Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
), was a Hereditary Prince of Denmark and Norway. He was the surviving son of the second marriage of King Frederick V of Denmark
Frederick V of Denmark
Frederick V was king of Denmark and Norway from 1746, son of Christian VI of Denmark and Sophia Magdalen of Brandenburg-Kulmbach.-Early life:...
with Juliana Maria of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel.
Hereditary Prince Frederick acted as regent on behalf of his half-brother King Christian VII
Christian VII of Denmark
Christian VII was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1766 until his death. He was the son of Danish King Frederick V and his first consort Louisa, daughter of King George II of Great Britain....
from 1772 to 1784. He is said to have been physically disabled.
Early life
Frederick was born at Christiansborg PalaceChristiansborg Palace
Christiansborg Palace, , on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, is the seat of the Folketing , the Danish Prime Minister's Office and the Danish Supreme Court...
in Copenhagen on 11 October 1753. To provide for his future position, at the age of 3 he was elected coadjutor in the Prince-Bishopric of Lübeck
Bishopric of Lübeck
The Bishopric of Lübeck was a Roman-Catholic and, later, Protestant diocese, as well as a state of the Holy Roman Empire.-History: The original diocese was founded about 970 by Emperor Otto I in the Billung March at Oldenburg in Holstein , the former capital of the pagan Wagri tribe...
. This meant that in time he would succeed the Prince-Bishop
Prince-Bishop
A Prince-Bishop is a bishop who is a territorial Prince of the Church on account of one or more secular principalities, usually pre-existent titles of nobility held concurrently with their inherent clerical office...
then in office, Frederick August
Frederick August I, Duke of Oldenburg
Friedrich August, Duke of Holstein-Oldenburg was the son of Christian August, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp and his wife Margravine Albertine Friederike of Baden-Durlach.-Marriage and issue:...
. This plan had to be abandoned, however, and Frederick stayed in Denmark as a junior member of the royal family.
Marriage
He married Duchess Sophia Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1758–1794) in CopenhagenCopenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
on 21 October 1774. She was a Princess and Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1348, when Albert II of Mecklenburg and his younger brother John were raised to Dukes of Mecklenburg by King Charles IV...
, a daughter of Duke Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Duke Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Duke Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was heir to the Dukedom of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from 1756 to his death. He was also the father of the first Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Frederick Francis I-Early life:...
and Princess Charlotte Sophie of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.
Regent
His half-brother King Christian VII of DenmarkChristian VII of Denmark
Christian VII was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1766 until his death. He was the son of Danish King Frederick V and his first consort Louisa, daughter of King George II of Great Britain....
suffering from a severe mental illness (believed to have been schizophrenia), and having been divorced from his wife, Queen Caroline Mathilde
Caroline Matilda of Wales
Caroline Matilda of Great Britain was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1766 to 1772 and a member of the British Royal Family.-Early life:...
(who was then exiled), Prince Frederick was designated as Regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
of Denmark in 1772, when 18 years old. His regency was mostly nominal, the power being held by his mother Queen Juliane Marie, and minister Ove Høegh-Guldberg
Ove Høegh-Guldberg
Ove Høegh-Guldberg was a Danish statesman, historian and de facto prime minister of Denmark, 1772–1784.-Biography:...
.
He acted as regent until the coup of 1784, when Crown Prince Frederick (the future Frederick VI of Denmark
Frederick VI of Denmark
Frederick VI reigned as King of Denmark , and as king of Norway .-Regent of Denmark:Frederick's parents were King Christian VII and Caroline Matilda of Wales...
), the then 16-year-old son of King Christian, took power and regency.
Later life
After the coup, Hereditary Prince Frederick was left without much influence at the court. As Crown Prince Frederick did not have any surviving sons, Hereditary Prince Frederick remained heir-presumptive to the throne. Eventually, his son Christian FrederickChristian VIII of Denmark
Christian VIII , was king of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, king of Norway in 1814. He was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick of Denmark and Norway and Sophia Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, born in 1786 at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen...
would succeed Frederick VI as King.
After Christiansborg Palace was destroyed by fire in 1794, Hereditary Prince Frederick moved with his family to Amalienborg Palace
Amalienborg Palace
Amalienborg Palace is the winter home of the Danish royal family, and is located in Copenhagen, Denmark. It consists of four identical classicizing palace façades with rococo interiors around an octagonal courtyard ; in the centre of the square is a monumental equestrian statue of Amalienborg's...
. Sophia Frederica died the same year, shortly after the move. Hereditary Prince Frederick outlived his wife by 11 years and died at Amalienborg Palace on 7 December 1805.
Issue
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Princess Juliana Marie | Christiansborg, 2 May 1784 | Copenhagen Copenhagen Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region... , 28 October 1784 |
died in infancy |
| Prince Christian Frederick Christian VIII of Denmark Christian VIII , was king of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, king of Norway in 1814. He was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick of Denmark and Norway and Sophia Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, born in 1786 at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen... |
18 September 1786 | 20 January 1848 | married (1) 1806 Charlotte Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin; had issue; divorced 1810; married (2) 1815 Caroline Amalie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg; no issue |
| Princess Juliane Sophie | Copenhagen, 18 February 1788 | Copenhagen, 9 May 1850 | married at Frederiksborg Frederiksborg Frederiksborg is a Danish placename that can refer to:* Frederiksborg Palace* Frederiksborg County* Frederiksborg horse... 22 August 1812 Wilhelm, Landgrave of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld (Barchfeld Barchfeld Barchfeld is a municipality in the Wartburgkreis district of Thuringia, Germany.... , 10 August 1786 – Copenhagen, 30 November 1834); had no issue |
| Princess Louise Charlotte Princess Louise Charlotte of Denmark Princess Louise Charlotte of Denmark was a princess of Denmark.She was born in Christiansborg Palace to Hereditary Prince Frederick of Denmark and Norway and Sophia Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin , Princess and Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.-Marriage:On 10 November 1810 in Amalienborg Palace... |
30 October 1789 | 28 March 1864 | married 1810 William, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel; had issue |
| Hereditary Prince Ferdinand | 22 November 1792 | 29 June 1863 | married 1829 Caroline of Denmark Princess Caroline of Denmark Princess Caroline Mathilde of Denmark , was a member of the Danish Royal Family, the eldest surviving daughter of Frederick VI of Denmark... ; no issue |