DENMAR K. 



629 



History. 



Frederic 

 Duke of 

 Holstein 

 proclaimed 

 Iriag of 

 Denmark. 



The wise 

 enactments 

 of Chris- 

 tian repeal- 

 ed. 



Alliance 

 betw<en 



Gustavus 

 and FredC' 

 Tic. 



ing, *' How the ancient customs of the kingdom, re- 

 specting shipwrecks, were contrary to the divine laws ?" 

 To which the king again replied, " Thou shalt not kill, 

 thou shalt not steal." 



As soon as the flight of Christian was known to Fre- 

 deric Duke of Holstein, his uncle, he entered Jutland, 

 where he was proclaimed king : the capitulation which 

 the clergy and nobility obliged him to sign, limited 

 and controuled his power exceedingly, while it extend- 

 ed their privileges and rights. By all the former capi- 

 tulations, which the Danish sovereigns had signed, these 

 orders of men had never been able to obtain a legal 

 sanction to the right which they claimed over the lives 

 of their farmers ; all they could obtain was the right 

 of judging them for small offences; but by one of the 

 articles of the capitulation, which Frederic signed, the 

 nobles obtained, formally, not only the right of life and 

 deatli over their farmers, but also that of condemning 

 them to lose all their goods, whenever they supposed 

 that they had acted illegally: this power the king could 

 not in reality bestow, since by the fundamental laws of 

 the constitution of Denmark, the farmers formed a dis- 

 tinct order of the state, and had always been recogni- 

 sed, though not always treated as such. The oppres- 

 sion and tyranny to which this extended right of the 

 nobility gave rise, was so galling and insupportable, 

 that the people began to entertain those feelings and 

 sentiments which afterwards made them concur in that 

 revolution, which entirely changed the constitution of 

 Denmark. In a letter written about this time by a 

 Danish ecclesiastic to his friend, published by Pontop- 

 pidan, it is expressly stated, that " the people in gene- 

 ral are of opinion, that they had better suffer patiently 

 the tyranny of one person, than have so many tyrants 

 at a time, whose insatiable avarice and pride are not to 

 be borne." With respect to the clergy m particular, 

 they obliged Frederic to burn that law of Christian the 

 Second, which prevented the robbing of vessels that 

 were shipwrecked, as contrary to the laudable customs 

 of the country. As soon as Frederic felt himself se- 

 cure in the throne, he turned his thoughts against 

 Sweden ; at first he entertained hopes that he should be 

 able to deprive Gustavus of that kingdom; and for that 

 purpose he sent ambassadors to the Swedish senate, 

 complaining of the election of that monarch, in prejudice 

 to his superior right, and in direct violation of the 

 union of Calmar. But the Swedish nation were too 

 well satisfied with Gustavus, to feel any inclination to 

 dethrone him, and too conscious of their own power to 

 be apprehensive of the designs of Frederic. When the 

 Danish ambassadors opened their business before the 

 diet, the members of it not only refused to give them 

 any countenance, but they openly declared before them, 

 that they would extend the privileges of Gustavus be- 

 yond what any former monarch had possessed, by 

 granting the power to declare peace and war. Gus- 

 tavus, on his part, treated the ambassadors with great 

 attention and respect ; but in order to impress upon 

 their minds the state of preparation for war in which 

 he had placed Sweden, he reviewed the troops before 

 them, and carried them to inspect the arsenals, &c. In 

 consequence of the report of the ambassadors, and of the 

 behaviour of a skilful agent whom Gustavus sent to 

 the court of Copenhagen, an alliance was formed be- 

 tween the two monarchs. But shortly afterwards, a 

 cause of difference arose between them : Norby, who 

 commanded the Danish fleet, refused to acknowledge 

 Frederic, commenced pirate, and committed great ra- 

 vages on the shipping of Lubeck and the other Hanse 



Towns : they complained to Gustavus, who resolved to 

 chastise Norby, and at the same time attempt to gain 

 possession of the isle of Gothland, in which the admiral 

 had taken shelter, and which had formerly belonged 

 to Sweden. Norby now expressed his willingness to 

 submit to Frederic, provided he would protect him 

 from the Swedes : the admiral was accordingly relieved ; 

 but disputes arose between the two monarchs respect- 

 ing Gothland; and the Swedish monarch besieged 

 Wesby, the principal town in the island. Frederic, 

 however, having thrown considerable supplies into it, 

 Gustavus, convinced he could not reduce it, raised the 

 siege. 



In 1526, an attempt was made to reinstate Christian 

 by Margaret of Austria: for this purpose she sent some 

 ships into the Baltic, but nothing was effected. Fre- 

 deric's attention at this time was principally occupied 

 by the religious disputes which arose in his kingdom : 

 he himself had embraced the Protestant religion, but 

 the nation was divided into two parties, 'Tilled with the 

 most bitter rancour against each other. The policy of 

 Frederic on this occasion was liberal and enlightened : 

 he published an edict, prohibiting all his subjects, un- 

 der very severe penalties, from laying any restraints on 

 conscience, or in any manner depriving a man of his 

 fortune, reputation, or liberty, on account of his religi- 

 ous opinions; the doctrines of the reformed religion 

 were also permitted to be preached openly, without 

 the least molestation. This edict was soon afterwards 

 ratified at a general diet of the states, at which it was 

 also decreed that the religious of all orders should be 

 permitted to marry, and live in any part of the king- 

 dom they thought proper, without respect to particular 

 monasteries, &c. In consequence of this decree, the 

 abbeys and cloisters were deserted : Lutheranism now 

 spread rapidly ; the city of Malmo publicly prohibited 

 mass, and the other superstitions of the Romish church; 

 and its example was soon followed by the other cities 

 and towns : the New Testament was also translated in- 

 to the Danish language. 



The. progress of the reformed religion, and the coun- 

 tenance and support which Frederic gave to it, render- 

 ed him very obnoxious to the clergy; and Christian, in- 

 formed of the state of Denmark, resolved to make ano- 

 ther attempt to regain the throne. He was enabled, by 

 the assistance of the emperor, his brother-in-law, to 

 raise a considerable force in the Netherlands, with 

 which he invaded Norway : at first he gained a footing 

 there, and was joined by all the malcontents, especially 

 by those who still adhered to the Roman Catholic reli- 

 gion. Frederic was alarmed, and sought the assistance 

 of Gustavus and of the Landgrave of Hesse, both of 

 whom, principally because they considered the cause of 

 the reformed religion might be injured by the success 

 of Christian, sent him powerful reinforcements. At the 

 same time, Frederic equipped a fleet, which came up 

 with Christian's fleet before Babus : here they attacked 

 them: the engagement continued the whole day, when 

 it ended in the total destruction of the fleet, which had 

 brought Christian from the Low Countries to Norway. 

 Thus cut off from all chance of escape by sea, this un- 

 fortunate prince endeavoured to penetrate into Sweden ; 

 but in this attempt he was opposed by a body of 3000 

 Swedish horse. He was soon afterwards compelled to 

 surrender, the Danish generals engaging themselves to 

 grant him a safe passport into the Netherlands ; but 

 this engagement was most shamefully broken ; Chris- 

 tian was carried to Soldenberg, in the isle of Alsen, 

 where he was shut up in a dungeon, with only a dwarf 



History. 



Religious 

 disputes. 



Universal 

 tolera ion 

 established 



by law. 



Christian 

 attempts to 



recover the 

 throne. 



Is defeated, 



And sur- 

 renders. 



