by Susan Flantzer © Unofficial Royalty 2021

Favorite: a person treated with special or undue favor by a king, queen, or another royal person

Count Adam Gottlob Moltke; Credit – Wikipedia

The Moltke family is an old German noble family from Mecklenburg, now in Germany. It has a Danish branch, whose members have played major roles in Danish history (link in German).  It was considered more important and more promising for young northern German noblemen to seek positions at the Danish court rather than at the courts of the German counties, duchies, and principalities.

King Frederik V as a child; Credit – Wikipedia

Adam Gottlob Moltke was born on November 10, 1710, in Walkendorf, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, to Joachim Moltke, who had been a Lieutenant Colonel in the Danish Army, and Magdalene Sophia von Cothmann. One of Adam’s uncles was the stablemaster for Prince Carl of Denmark, younger brother of Frederik IV, King of Denmark. Caspar Gottlob Moltke, another uncle, was a county official for Møn, an island in south-eastern Denmark. Through the influence of his uncle Caspar, twelve-year-old Adam was employed as a page for Crown Prince Christian of Denmark in 1722. When Christian came to the throne in 1730 as Christian VI, King of Denmark, Adam was appointed chamberlain to Christian VI’s 7-year-old son Crown Prince Frederik (later Frederik V). The close relationship between Adam and Frederik was established and lasted until Frederik’s death.

Sophie Hedvig von Raben, Moltke’s second wife; Credit – Wikipedia

Moltke married twice, first to Christiane Frederikke von Brüggemann (1712 – 1760), and after her death, he married Sophie Hedvig von Raben (1732 – 1802). From his two marriages, Moltke had 22 children, including 15 sons: five who became cabinet ministers, four who became ambassadors, two who became generals, and all of whom went into public service.

Moltke’s most important children:

• Count Christian Frederik Moltke (1736 – 1771) – Deputy for Finance, Court Marshal, Privy Councilor
• Catharine Sophie Wilhelmine Caroline Moltke (born 1737) – Lady-in-waiting to Louise of Great Britain, first wife of King Frederik V of Denmark
• Count Caspar Herman Gottlob Moltke (1738 – 1800) – General of the Cavalry, Chamberlain
• Ulrikke Augusta Vilhelmine Moltke (1740 – 1763) – Lady-in-waiting to Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, second wife of King Frederik V of Denmark
• Count Christian Magnus Frederik Moltke (1741 – 1813) – Lieutenant General of the Cavalry, Chamberlain
• Count Frederik Ludvig Moltke (1745 – 1824) – Ambassador to Oldenburg, Privy Councilor
• Count Joachim Godske Moltke (1746 – 1818) – Prime Minister, Privy Councilor
• Count Adam Gottlob Ferdinand Moltke (1748 – 1820) – Vice Admiral, Chamberlain
• Juliane Maria Frederica Moltke (1751 – 1773) – Lady-in-waiting to Louise of Great Britain, first wife of King Frederik V of Denmark
• Count Gebhard Moltke https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gebhard_Moltke (1764 – 1851) – Diocesan Governor in Trondheim, Kristiania, and Funen, Privy Councilor
• Count Otto Joachim Moltke (1770 – 1853) – Prime Minister of Denmark
• Count Carl Emil Moltke (1773-1858) – Ambassador to Stockholm, The Hague, and London, Privy Councilor

Bregentved House and Park; Credit – By Flemming – DSC_3077, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17112569

In 1746, when King Frederik V became King of Denmark, Moltke was appointed Court Marshal of Denmark and was made a Privy Councilor. In addition, Moltke was given the Bregentved estate in Haslev on the Danish island of Zealand and it is still owned by Moltke’s descendants. In 1750, Frederik V created Moltke a Count. Although Frederik V took part in the government by attending council meetings, he suffered from alcoholism, and therefore, most of his reign was dominated by his very able ministers led by Moltke and including Count Johann Hartwig Ernst von Bernstorff and Heinrich Carl von Schimmelmann.

Christian VII’s Palace, formerly Moltke’s Palace; Credit – By archer10 (Dennis) – https://www.flickr.com/photos/archer10/3990370387/sizes/o/in/photostream/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15057703

Within a few years of the start of his reign, Frederik V started a project that would result in the Amalienborg, the home of today’s Danish royal family. The Amalienborg would be the centerpiece of Frederiksstaden, a district in Copenhagen built by Frederik V to commemorate the tercentenary of the House of Oldenburg’s ascent to the Danish throne in 1748 and the tercentenary of the coronation of Christian I, King of Denmark in 1749. Heading the project was Adam Gottlob Moltke. Four identical palaces were built on an octagonal square as homes for four distinguished noble families, including Moltke’s family. After Christiansborg Palace, the Danish royal family’s residence in Copenhagen, was destroyed in a fire in 1794, the noblemen who owned the four palaces of the Amalienborg were willing to part with them for promotion and money. Today’s Christian VII Palace was originally known as Moltke’s Palace.

Frederik V, King of Denmark; Credit – Wikipedia

While pregnant with her sixth child, Frederik V’s 27-year-old wife, Louisa of Great Britain, daughter of King George II of Great Britain and Caroline of Ansbach, died on December 19, 1751, at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark due to complications from a miscarriage. Moltke thought it would be a good idea if Frederik V married again, as soon as possible, in hopes of stabilizing his behavior. Frederik V preferred another British wife, but there was no British princess at an appropriate age. Moltke drew Frederik V’s attention to 22-year-old Princess Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, daughters of Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, and the couple married in 1752.

In 1760, Frederik V broke his leg in a drunken accident, which affected his health for the rest of his life. Frederik V died in the arms of Moltke on January 14, 1766, at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark at the age of 42. After the death of Frederik V, his mentally unstable son succeeded to the throne as Christian VII, King of Denmark. Christian VII did not like Moltke, and in July 1766, Moltke was dismissed from all his positions and he retired to his estate Bregentved.

Count Adam Gottlob Moltke, aged, 81, died at his estate Bregentved on September 25, 1792. He was buried at the Karise Kirke (link in Danish) in the Moltke family burial chapel in Fax, Denmark, nearby his estate Bregentved.

Karise Kirke, the burial site of Moltke; Credit – Af Claus B. Storgaard – Eget arbejde, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8304299

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Da.wikipedia.org. 2020. Adam Gottlob Moltke. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Gottlob_Moltke> [Accessed 15 November 2020].
• De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Adam Gottlob Von Moltke. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Gottlob_von_Moltke> [Accessed 15 November 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Adam Gottlob Moltke. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Gottlob_Moltke> [Accessed 15 November 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Amalienborg. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalienborg> [Accessed 15 November 2020].
• Flantzer, Susan, 2017. King Frederik V Of Denmark And Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-frederik-v-of-denmark/> [Accessed 15 November 2020].

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2020

Johann Friedrich Struensee, Credit – Wikipedia

The scandalous story of King Christian VII, Queen Caroline Matilda, and Johann Friedrich Struensee has been told in several novels including Norah Loft’s The Lost Queen (1969) and Per Olov Enquist’s The Visit of the Royal Physician (1999) and also in the Danish film A Royal Affair (2012) which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and starred Academy Award-winning supporting actress (for The Danish Girl) Alicia Vikander as Queen Caroline Matilda.

Johann Friedrich Struensee was born on August 5, 1737, in Halle, Kingdom of Prussia, now in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. He was the third of the seven children and the second of the four sons of Adam Struensee (link in German) and Maria Dorothea Carl.

Struensee had six siblings:

• Sophie Elisabeth Struensee (1733 – 1768), married her cousin Samuel Struensee
• Carl August Struensee (link in German) (1735 – 1804), Prussian Minister of Finance, married Karoline Elisabeth Müller, had three daughters
• Samuel Adam Struensee (born 1739), died young
• Maria Dorothea Struensee (1744 – 1820), married Wilhelm Alexander Schwollmann
• Johanna Henrietta Struensee (born 1745), died young
• Gotthilf Christoph Struensee (link in German) (1746 – 1829), married unknown wife

Struensee’s mother Maria Dorothea Carl was the daughter of Johann Samuel Carl, (link in German) the personal physician of Ludwig Ferdinand, Count of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. In 1736, Carl became the personal physician of King Christian VI of Denmark and Norway and also served as personal physician to Christian VI’s son and successor King Frederik V of Denmark and Norway. Struensee’s father Adam Struensee was a Lutheran minister who adhered to Pietism, a movement that originated in the Lutheran Church in the 17th century in Germany that stressed personal piety over religious formality and orthodoxy. Adam Struensee was a pastor in Halle and a professor of theology at the University of Halle. In 1758, he accepted the position as pastor of Trinity Church in Altona, now in Germany, but then under the administration of the Danish monarchy. In 1760 Adam Struensee became superintendent-general (similar to a bishop) of the Duchy of Schleswig-Holstein, then part of Denmark.

In 1752, at the age of fifteen, Johann Friedrich Struensee entered the University of Halle and graduated as a Doctor in Medicine on December 12, 1757. He moved with his parents to Altona in 1758 and took a low-paying position as a public physician. In Altona, Struensee fought the spread of epidemics by improving hygiene and introducing the smallpox vaccination. In 1760, he was appointed physician of the County of Rantzau and in that position, he also treated bourgeois and noble patients. Struensee began to publish articles in medical journals. In his articles, he wrote about the links between lack of education, poor hygiene, and diseases in poor neighborhoods and recommended reforms. He believed that the government had a duty to ensure the health and education of its citizens. Struensee also believed that this care should apply to unmarried mothers and the mentally ill. Over time, Struensee earned a good reputation with the Schleswig-Holstein nobility. In 1768, because he was known for a new kind of therapy for mental illness, Struensee was called to treat 18-year-old King Christian VII of Denmark and Norway while he was staying in Altona.

King Christian VII of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

When King Christian VII was not quite two years old, his mother Queen Louisa, daughter of King George II of Great Britain, died at age 27 due to complications from a miscarriage. The next year, his father King Frederik V of Denmark and Norway made a second marriage to Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. By all reports, Christian seemed to be an intelligent child and was taught in Danish, German, and French. However, he had a nervous disposition and was poorly educated and terrorized by a brutal governor, Christian Ditlev Reventlow, Count of Reventlow.

Queen Caroline Matilda; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1766, Christian VII succeeded to the Danish and Norwegian thrones after the early death of his father at age 42. Since there was a connection between the British and Danish royal families and both families were Protestant, it was natural that a British bride should be sought for Christian. The choice fell upon fifteen-year-old Princess Caroline Matilda, his first cousin, the daughter of Christian’s deceased maternal uncle Frederick, Prince of Wales. On October 1, 1766, a proxy marriage was held at St. James’s Palace in London, with Caroline Matilda’s brother King George III standing in for King Christian VII. Caroline Matilda arrived in Copenhagen on November 8, 1766, and married Christian in person later that day in the Christiansborg Palace Chapel in Copenhagen, Denmark.

A copperplate engraving depicting the first dance of King Christian VII and Queen Caroline Mathilde of Denmark at their wedding at Christiansborg Palace; Credit – Wikipedia

It was soon clear that Christian VII was not quite normal. It is unknown if Christian’s mental illness was caused by the brutal treatment of the Count of Reventlow, possible porphyria inherited from his Hanover mother, or schizophrenia. Christian’s behavior wandered into excesses, especially sexual promiscuity. He publicly declared that he could not love Caroline Matilda because it was “unfashionable to love one’s wife”. His symptoms included paranoia, self-mutilation, and hallucinations. Christian wandered the streets of Copenhagen visiting the city’s taverns and brothels with his favorite Count Frederik Vilhelm Conrad Holck. It was becoming clearer and clearer that Christian could not fulfill his role as king.

In May of 1768, Christian VII took a long tour of Europe, including stays in Altona, Paris, and London. The trip had been arranged because it was believed that new environments could change Christian’s behavior. It was on this journey that he became acquainted with Johann Friedrich Struensee. Struensee was the first person who understood that Christian was seriously ill. When Christian came home from the trip, Struensee accompanied him and was employed as Christian’s personal physician. Struensee could handle Christian’s instability, which was a great relief to the king’s advisers, and Christian developed confidence in him.

Princess Louise Auguste of Denmark, probably the child of Queen Caroline Matilda and Johann Friedrich Stuensee; Credit – Wikipedia

Because of Christian VII’s confidence in him, Struensee gained political power. In 1770, Struensee became Master of Requests and Minister of the Royal Cabinet. Within a short time, Struensee tried to reform the entire Danish state in the spirit of the Enlightenment. He also became the lover of the ill-treated Caroline Matilda, whose marriage was less than satisfactory. In 1771, when Caroline Matilda gave birth to her daughter Louise Auguste, no one doubted that Struensee was the father of the princess, who was given the unflattering nickname la petite Struensee, although Christian VII officially acknowledged her as his daughter. Eventually, Queen Dowager Juliana Maria maneuvered a coup that would bring about the fall of Struensee and discredit Caroline Matilda.

Contemporary woodcarving of the arrest of Struensee; Credit – Wikipedia

Early on the morning of January 17, 1772, following a ball at the court theater at Christiansborg Palace, Christian VII was awakened and forced to sign orders for the arrest of Struensee, his friend Count Enevold Brandt, and Caroline Matilda. Caroline Matilda was immediately taken to Kronberg Castle in Helsingør, Denmark, immortalized as Elsinore in William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, to await her fate. She was allowed to keep her daughter with her, but the four-year-old Crown Prince Frederik stayed with his father. Upon hearing of Caroline Matilda’s arrest, Struensee confessed to his relationship with her, and eventually, Caroline Matilda also confessed. 34-year-old Struensee and his friend Brandt were condemned to death and both suffered a brutal execution on April 28, 1772. In the presence of thousands of people, their right hands were severed first, then their bodies were broken on the wheel, and finally, they were beheaded. Struensee’s parents were both still alive when he was executed.

Johann Friedrich Struensee and his friend Count Enevold Brandt are beheaded; Credit – Wikipedia

The bodies of Stuensee and Brandt were put on public display at the execution site for two years until only their bones were left. Exactly what happened to their remains is unknown. By tradition, it is said that Struensee and Brandt’s remains were buried at the Vestre Cemetery in Copenhagen and that in the 1920s, their coffins were placed in the burial chapel under the German-speaking St. Peter’s Church in Copenhagen However, according to St. Peter’s Church, Struensee and Brandt are not in the burial chapel, but are buried in the churchyard. There has never been an investigation to determine if Struensee and Brandt are buried at St. Peter’s Church.

Queen Caroline Matilda was also punished. Her marriage was dissolved on April 6, 1772. She lost her title of Queen and was forcibly separated from her children whom she never saw again. Caroline Matilda was not quite 20-years-old. Originally, it was decided that Caroline Matilda was to be held in custody for life at Aalborghus Castle in Aalborg, Denmark, but her brother King George III intervened. King George III sent Sir Robert Murray Keith, a British diplomat, to negotiate her release from Danish imprisonment. On May 28, 1772, Caroline Matilda was sent to Celle in her brother’s Kingdom of Hanover and lived the rest of her life at Celle Castle. Her imprisonment was not to last long. Caroline Matilda died of “a putrid fever and sore throat,” probably scarlet fever, on May 10, 1775, at the age of 23. She was buried at the Stadtkirche St. Marien (link in German) in Celle next to her great-grandmother Sophia Dorothea of Celle, Electoral Princess of Hanover, wife of the future King George I of Great Britain, who suffered a similar fate.

After the fall of Struensee, Christian VII’s stepmother Dowager Queen Juliana Marie and her son, Christian’s half-brother Hereditary Prince Frederik reinstated the Council of State. Christian was only nominally king from 1772 onward. Between 1772 and 1784, Denmark was ruled by Queen Dowager Juliana Marie, Hereditary Prince Frederik, and Cabinet Secretary Ove Høegh-Guldberg. From 1784, Christian’s son, the future King Frederik VI, ruled permanently as a prince regent.

Christian lived in isolation with a caretaker. When he was behaving too violently, he was locked up in his room or tied to his chair. His only involvement with the government was when he had to sign “Christian Rex” on formal papers. On March 13, 1808, in Rendsburg, Schleswig (then in Denmark, now in Germany) King Christian VII died from a stroke at the age 59. He was buried in Frederik V’s Chapel at Roskilde Cathedral in Roskilde, Denmark.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Da.wikipedia.org. 2020. Adam Struensee. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Struensee> [Accessed 8 May 2020].
• Da.wikipedia.org. 2020. Johann Friedrich Struensee. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Friedrich_Struensee> [Accessed 8 May 2020].
• De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Adam Struensee. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Struensee> [Accessed 8 May 2020].
• De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Johann Friedrich Struensee. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Friedrich_Struensee> [Accessed 8 May 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Johann Friedrich Struensee. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Friedrich_Struensee> [Accessed 8 May 2020].
• Flantzer, Susan, 2016. Caroline Matilda Of Wales, Queen Of Denmark And Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/caroline-matilda-of-wales-queen-of-denmark-and-norway/> [Accessed 8 May 2020].
• Flantzer, Susan, 2016. King Christian VII Of Denmark And Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-christian-vii-of-denmark/> [Accessed 8 May 2020].
• Hadlow, Janice. A Royal Experiment. New York: Picador, 2014. Print.
• Tillyard, Stella. A Royal Affair: George III and His Scandalous Siblings. New York: Random House, 2006. Print.
• Williamson, David. Brewer’s British Royalty. London: Cassell, 1996. Print.

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2020

Anna Sophie von Reventlow, Queen of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

From 1711 – 1712, Anna Sophie von Reventlow was the mistress of Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway. From 1712 – 1721, she was the bigamous wife of Frederik IV, and then she was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1721 until 1730 when she was expelled from the Danish court by Frederik IV’s son and successor Christian VI, King of Denmark and Norway.

Clausholm Castle, Anna Sophie’s family home; Credit – By Nico at the Danish language Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6672277

Anna Sophie von Reventlow was born on April 16, 1693, at Clausholm Castle, her family home, in the eastern part of the Jutland Peninsula of Denmark. She was one of the ten children of Conrad von Reventlow, Count Reventlow of Clausholm and his second wife Sophie Amalie von Hahn. Anna Sophia had seven elder half-siblings from her father’s first marriage to Anna Margarete von Gabel. Conrad von Reventlow, Count Reventlow of Clausholm served Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway as Grand Chancellor, the highest-ranking non-monarchial government official at that time, similar to a Prime Minister. Nothing is known about Anna Sophie’s childhood but it is assumed that she was not well educated because her letters show that she wrote poorly in Danish, French, and German.

Among Anna Sophie’s siblings were:

Notable half-siblings from her father’s first marriage:

• Christian Detlev von Reventlow, Count Reventlow of Clausholm (1671 – 1738), was a Danish military leader and Royal President of the city of Altona, married Benedikte Margrethe von Brockdorff and had eleven children
• Christine Sophie von Reventlow (1672 – 1757), was an influential advisor to her sister Anna Sophie and brother-in-law King Frederik IV, married (1) Count Niels Friis, had one son (2) Count Ulrik Adolf von Holstein of Holsteinsborg, no children

Anna Sophie’s notable full siblings:

• Anna Margrethe (1682 – 1710), married Hans Schack, 2nd Count of Schackenborg, had four children
• Ulrikke Eleonor (1690 – 1754), married Ferdinand Anton Gyldenløve, a grandson of Frederik III, King of Denmark and Norway by his mistress Margrethe Pape, had two sons

Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1695, Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway had married Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow with whom he had five children although three sons died in infancy. Frederik began a relationship with Elisabeth Helene von Vieregg, a lady-in-waiting to his unmarried sister Princess Sophia Hedwig of Denmark and Norway in 1699. In 1703, without divorcing his wife Queen Louise, Frederik made a bigamous marriage to Elisabeth. After Elisabeth died in 1704 due to childbirth complications giving birth to a son Frederik Gyldenløve, Frederik IV gave her an elaborate funeral. Little Frederik Gyldenløve lived for only nine months.

After the death of Elisabeth, Frederik began an affair with her lady-in-waiting, Charlotte Helene von Schindel (scroll down in the article). In 1709, Frederik wanted to again make a bigamous marriage but received strong opposition from the church which told him that the law against bigamy also applied to kings. Charlotte and Frederik had a daughter in 1710 who died in infancy.

After losing interest in his mistress Charlotte Helene von Schindel in 1711, Frederik IV then fell in love with 19-year-old Anna Sophie after meeting her at a masked ball. In 1712, Frederik abducted Anna Sophie from her parents’ home Clausholm Castle and took her to Skanderborg Castle where they were married bigamously as Frederik’s wife Queen Louise was still alive. Frederik IV installed Anna Sophie in a house on Bag Børsen (present-day Slotsholmsgade 8), close to Copenhagen Castle in Copenhagen and she was given the title Duchess of Schleswig. In 1713, Frederik gave Vallø Castle to Anna Sophie.

Vallø Castle; Credit – By Flemming – DSC_0125, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17230727

Anna Sophie’s mother, by then a widow, did not support her daughter’s bigamous marriage, and mother and daughter did not reconcile until 1718. Anna Sophie did, however, receive support from her influential half-sister Christine Sophie who often visited her. Frederik IV preferred to spend time with Anna Sophie instead of Queen Louise and so Anna Sophie’s home became more or less a court, with gatherings of the nobility who were seeking Frederik IV’s favor. Because Frederik IV did not wish to be so public about his bigamous marriage to Anna Sophie, she was regarded by many as just his official mistress.

Queen Louise died on March 15, 1721, aged 53, and was buried at Roskilde Cathedral, the traditional burial site of the Danish royal family, in Roskilde, Denmark. On April 4, 1721, Frederik IV and Anna Sophie were married in a second formal wedding conducted with great ceremony. Although the marriage was still scandalous, it was not declared morganatic and Anna Sophie was crowned as Queen of Denmark and Norway at Frederiksberg Palace in May 1721. Neither of the two surviving children of Frederik IV and his first wife, Crown Prince Christian (future King Christian VI) nor the unmarried Princess Charlotte Amalie, kissed her hand as required by the ceremony.

Anna Sophie as Queen of Denmark and Norway, circa 1730; Credit – Wikipedia

Although Crown Prince Christian behaved with respect towards Anna Sophie, he detested her and blamed her for his father’s ill-treatment of his mother. Princess Charlotte Amalie overcame her disapproval of Anna Sophie and eventually came to like her. In 1725, King Frederik IV made an addition to his will that guaranteed Anna Sophie’s rights as Queen Dowager after his death and made Crown Prince Christian sign it.

After Anna Sophie’s coronation, Frederik IV dismissed several officials and replaced them with relatives of Anna Sophie who were known as the Reventlowske Bande (Reventlow Gang). Anna Sophie was accused of nepotism but it is not known whether she used political influence or if Frederik IV wished to strengthen her role at court by appointing those loyal to her to powerful positions.

Anna Sophie enjoyed the theater and founded, and then supported, the Lille Grønnegade Theater, the first public theater in Denmark. She was known to be generous to those in need, both privately and publically, and came to be called “The Protector of the Poor.” In 1729, Anna Sophie created the charity Dronning Anna Sofies Stiftelse (Foundation of Queen Anna Sophie) to benefit the poor.

Anna Sophie and King Frederik IV had six children. Three were born before the legal marriage in 1721 but none survived. The three children born after the 1721 marriage were styled as Prince/Princess of Denmark and Norway but none of them survived infancy either. The deaths of all the children of Frederik IV and Anna Sophie were seen by many as divine punishment for their bigamous marriage.

• Frederika Sophie von Reventlow (born and died before1721), died in infancy
• Frederica Conradine von Reventlow (born and before 1721), died in infancy
• Stillborn (before 1721)
• Princess Christiana Amalia (1723 – 1724), died in infancy
• Prince Frederik Christian (1726 – 1727), died in infancy
• Prince Karl (1728 – 1729), died in infancy

Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway died on October 12, 1730, the day after his 59th birthday, and was buried at Roskilde Cathedral, the traditional burial place for the Danish royal family, in a tomb adjacent to the tomb of his first wife Queen Louise. Frederik IV’s son, Christian VI, King of Denmark and Norway, did not follow the instruction in his father’s will to guarantee Anna Sophie’s rights as Queen Dowager. Christian VI’s opinion was that Anna Sophie had taken advantage of his father during his ill health and that she had caused his family pain and suffering during the years of her open adultery.

Christian VI granted Anna Sophie an allowance but confiscated all her property, and banished her to Clausholm Castle, her family home. She was allowed to be styled Queen Anna Sophie but not Queen Anna Sophie of Denmark and Norway or Queen Dowager. Anna Sophie spent the remainder of her life under house arrest at Clausholm Castle and was never granted permission to leave. She spent her time developing the gardens at Clausholm Castle, engaging in charitable works for the peasants on the estate, and in religious devotions.

When Anna Sophie, aged 49, died at Clausholm Castle on January 7, 1743, Christian VI allowed her to be buried at Roskilde Cathedral, but in the Trolle Chapel which is on the opposite side of the cathedral, far away from his parents’ tombs in the chancel of the cathedral. Her three children, born after her 1721 marriage, were also re-buried in the Trolle Chapel on Christian VI’s orders.

Tombs of Anna Sophie and three of her children; Credit – By FaceMePLS – originally posted to Flickr as Roskilde cathedral, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6821429

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of Denmark Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• Kingdom of Denmark Index
• Danish Orders and Honours
• Danish Royal Burial Sites: House of Oldenburg, 1448 – 1863
• Danish Royal Burial Sites: House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, 1863 – present
• Danish Royal Christenings
• Danish Royal Dates
• Danish Royal Residences
• Danish Royal Weddings
• Line of Succession to the Danish Throne
• Profiles of the Danish Royal Family

Works Cited

• Da.wikipedia.org. 2020. Anna Sophie Reventlow. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Sophie_Reventlow> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Anne Sophie Reventlow. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Sophie_Reventlow> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Conrad Von Reventlow. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conrad_von_Reventlow> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• Flantzer, Susan., 2020. Frederik IV, King Of Denmark And Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/frederik-iv-king-of-denmark-and-norway/> [Accessed 1 May 2020].

by Susan Flantzer © Unofficial Royalty 2020

Elisabeth Helene von Vieregg

Elisabeth Helene von Vieregg; Credit – Wikipedia

Elisabeth Helene von Vieregg was born on May 4, 1679, probably at her father’s estate in Wattmannshagen, now in Lalendorf in the German state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania. She was the only daughter and the eldest of the three children of Adam Otto von Vieregg and Anna Helene von Wolffersdorff. Her father was the Chamber President of the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Güstrow and Prussian Minister of State and Privy Councilor. From 1698 to 1706, Elisabeth’s father was a Prussian envoy in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1699, Elisabeth became a lady-in-waiting to Princess Sophie Hedwig of Denmark and Norway, the sister of Crown Prince Frederik, and caught his attention, and he gave Elisabeth a diamond ring as a gift. After succeeding to the throne as Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway in August 1699, he began a secret relationship with her despite having married Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow in 1695. Their relationship remained a secret until 1701 when a letter from Elisabeth’s father defending the relationship was made public.

On September 6, 1703, without divorcing his wife Queen Louise, Frederik IV made a bigamous marriage to Elisabeth. On the same day, Elisabeth was created Countess of Antvorskov and was given Antvorskov Castle, a Catholic monastery before the Protestant Reformation. In 1585, it became illegal to use the name Antvorskov Abbey to refer to the property, and so it was called Antvorskov Castle.

Antvorskov Castle, 1749; Credit – Wikipedia

On June 18, 1704, Elisabeth gave birth to a son, Frederik Gyldenløve. Following the practice of his predecessors, Frederik IV gave his illegitimate children the surname Gyldenløve which means Golden Love. After giving birth, Elisabeth developed complications and died on June 27, 1704, aged 25. She was greatly mourned by Frederik IV who gave her a lavish funeral and commanded that the bells of three churches should ring for two hours. Elisabeth was buried at the Church of Our Savior in Copenhagen, Denmark. Her son lived for only nine months and was buried with Elisabeth.

Church of Our Saviour in Copenhagen, Denmark; Credit – Wikipedia

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Charlotte Helene von Schindel

After the death of Elisabeth Helene von Vieregg in 1704, Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway began an affair with her lady-in-waiting, Charlotte Helene von Schindel. Charlotte was born in 1690, the only daughter and the youngest of the three children of Wiglas von Schindel and Anna Helene von Horn. Charlotte’s father was a Hofmester, a senior official, at the Danish royal court. Her mother was responsible for the upbringing of Frederik IV’s son by Elisabeth Helene von Vieregg, Frederik Gyldenløve, who died when he was nine months old.

In 1709, Frederik again wanted to make a bigamous marriage but received strong opposition from Lutheran church leaders who told him that the law against bigamy also applied to kings. Charlotte and Frederik had a daughter in 1710 who died shortly before her first birthday. After the birth of her daughter, Charlotte was created Countess of Frederiksholm and received two estates Frederik had bought for her, Næsbyholm Castle in Næsby, Denmark, and Bavelse, a manor in Bavelse Sogn, Denmark.

Charlotte’s relationship with Frederik IV ended in 1711 when he entered into a relationship with Anna Sophie Reventlow who became Frederik’s mistress, bigamous wife, second legal wife, and Queen of Denmark. Charlotte was ordered to leave the Danish court and live at her estates. She claimed to be pregnant with Frederik’s child but the pregnancy claim turned out to be false. As Countess of Frederiksholm, Charlotte had an active social life and she had a relationship with Major-General Ernst Gotschalck von Bülow, the governor of Antvorskov Castle with whom she had a son, Frederik August Gotschalck von Bülow.

When King Frederik IV heard about the child, he ordered von Bülow to marry Charlotte. The wedding took place at the Antvorskov Castle Church on February 9, 1716. After the marriage, Frederik IV took away Charlotte’s estates, awarded her an annual pension, and ordered the couple to leave Denmark. They settled in Holstein in the Duchy of Holstein (now in Germany), where they lived until von Bülow died in 1721.

After her husband’s death, Charlotte lived with her sister in Silesia, then part of the Kingdom of Prussia, now located mostly in Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. She also lived in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia (now in Germany) before settling in Flensburg, Denmark (now in Germany) in 1750. Despite her annual pension, Charlotte died in poverty on April 6, 1752, aged 62.

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Works Cited

• Da.wikipedia.org. 2020. Charlotte Helene Von Schindel. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Helene_von_Schindel> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• Da.wikipedia.org. 2020. Elisabeth Helene Von Vieregg. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisabeth_Helene_von_Vieregg> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Elisabeth Helene Von Vieregg. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisabeth_Helene_von_Vieregg> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Charlotte Helene Von Schindel. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Helene_von_Schindel> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Elisabeth Helene Von Vieregg. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisabeth_Helene_von_Vieregg> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• Sv.wikipedia.org. 2020. Charlotte Helene Von Schindel. [online] Available at: <https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Helene_von_Schindel> [Accessed 1 May 2020].

by Susan Flantzer © Unofficial Royalty 2020

Sophie Amalie Moth; Credit – Wikipedia

Sophie Amalie Moth was a longtime mistress of King Christian V of Denmark and Norway. She was born in Copenhagen, Denmark on March 28, 1654, one of the eight children and the youngest of the four daughters of Paul Moth and Ida Burenneus. Sophie Amalie’s father Paul Moth (link in German) was a physician. In 1651, due to some well-placed contacts, Paul Moth received a call to the court of King Frederik III of Denmark and Norway in Copenhagen, Denmark. Shortly thereafter, he became the personal physician of King Frederik III. He also supervised the education of King Frederik III’s heir Crown Prince Christian, the future King Christian V of Denmark and Norway. Sophie Amalie grew up at the Danish court with her siblings.

King Christian V of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1667, Crown Prince Christian married Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel and between the years 1671 – 1687, the couple had seven children. Upon his father’s death in 1670, Crown Prince Christian succeeded him as Christian V, King of Denmark and Norway. Sophie Amalie’s relationship with King Christian V started shortly after he became king and it was arranged by Sophie Amalie’s mother.

Immediately, news of the relationship was spread throughout the Danish court. Although Christian V’s adultery caused an embarrassing situation for his wife, Queen Charlotte Amalie always made the most of her position as queen, both in her public life as well as in her private interactions with her husband. Sophie Amalie was also wise enough to treat Queen Charlotte Amalie with respect. She lived discreetly at court and never exerted influence besides asking for some favors for relatives, especially her brother Matthias Moth, who took advantage of the connection.

In 1677, Sophie Amalie was recognized as Christian’s official mistress and was created Countess of Samsøe. Between 1672 – 1682, Christian V and Sophie Amalie had six children who were all publicly acknowledged. Following the practice of his grandfather and father, Christian also gave his illegitimate children the surname Gyldenløve which means Golden Love. All the children also had Christian or Christiane among their names in honor of their royal father. The current Danish noble family of the Danneskiold-Samsøe descends from the eldest son of Sophie Amalie and King Christian V.

Christian Gyldenløve, eldest son of Sophie Amalie and Christian V; Credit – Wikipedia

Christian and Sophie Amalie had six children:

• Christiane Gyldenløve (link in Danish) (1672 – 1689), married Count Frederik Ahlefeldt (link in Danish), no children, died at age 17
• Christian Gyldenløve (1674 – 1703), married (1) Countess Charlotte Amalie of Danneskiold-Samsøe, daughter of an illegitimate son of King Frederik III, had two daughters (2) Dorothea Krag, had two sons
• Sophie Christiane Gyldenløve (1675 – 1684)
• Anna Christiane Gyldenløve (1676 – 1689)
• Ulrik Christian Gyldenløve (1678 – 1719), Danish Navy Admiral and Governor of Iceland
• A daughter (1682 – 1684)

Sophie Amalie and her children were financially secure because of the funds received from King Christian V and the crown treasury. King Christian V was an active participant in the children’s upbringing, education, and marriage negotiations. When his sons by Sophia Amalie reached the age of five or six, they were sent to be raised by King Christian V’s illegitimate half-brother Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve, Count of Laurvig.

Sophie Amalie was able to purchase properties with the funds she had received. These properties further ensured the financial security of Sophie Amalie and her children. In 1682, Sophia Amalie received several properties in Gottorp from Christian V. After the death of naval hero Niels Jue in 1697,  Sophia Amalie was given Thott Mansion, the mansion that Christian V had built for Juel. However, she immediately passed Thott Mansion on to her eldest son Christian Gyldenløve.

Jomfruens Egede; Credit – Af NPSE – Eget arbejde, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5789075

After the death of King Christian V in 1699, Sophie Amalie left the Danish court and retired to Jomfruens Egede, an estate she had purchased in 1674 in Fakse on the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark. Twenty years later, Sophie Amalie died on January 17, 1719, aged 64, at her home Jomfruens Egede. She was first buried at the Church of Our Lady in Copenhagen, Denmark. In 1734, Sophia Amalie and her eldest son Christian Gyldenløve were reinterred at Saint Peter’s Church in Copenhagen, Denmark.

St. Peter’s Church in Copenhagen; Credit – By Tanya Dedyukhina, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56793710

Works Cited

• Da.wikipedia.org. 2020. Sophie Amalie Moth. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie_Amalie_Moth> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• Dansk kvindebiografisk leksikon. n.d. Sophie Amalie Moth (1654 – 1719). [online] Available at: <https://www.kvinfo.dk/side/597/bio/1457/origin/170/> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Sophie Amalie Moth. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie_Amalie_Moth> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
• En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Sophie Amalie Moth. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie_Amalie_Moth> [Accessed 1 May 2020].

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.