Anne Catherine of Brandenburg
Frederick III of Denmark
Ulrik, Prince-Bishop of Schwerin
Anne Catherine of Brandenburg (26 June 1575 – 8 April 1612) was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1597 to 1612 as the first spouse of King Christian IV of Denmark.
Life
Anne Catherine was born in Halle (Saale) and raised in Wolmirstedt.[1] Her parents were Joachim Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg and his first wife Catherine of Brandenburg-Küstrin. Christian met her on his journey in Germany in 1595 and decided to marry her. In 1596, Anne Catherine and her parents were present at his coronation, and the next year, the marriage was arranged.
Her personal motto - which can be seen on top of the gate to the court yard of Frederiksborg Castle - was: "Rege me Jehova spirito sanctu tuo" ("Guide me, Jehovah, with your holy spirit.")
Anne Catherine became Queen of Denmark on 27 November 1597 when she was married to Christian IV. The wedding took place in the castle of Haderslevhus in South Jutland the year after the coronation of Christian IV. She was crowned queen in 1598. She was given Beate Huitfeldt as the head of her ladies-in-waiting. She had six children, among them Christian, the Prince-Elect, who died a year before his father, and Frederik III who introduced absolute monarchy in Denmark. Her son, Ulrik, was murdered in 1633. Their two daughters, Sophia and Elisabeth, and the elder son, Frederick, died at a very young age.
Queen Anne Catherine does not seem to have had much political influence. She often accompanied King Christian on his travels. In her time, she was praised for her modesty and deep religious feelings. There is no mention as to whether the marriage was happy or not, but her spouse took mistresses at the end of their marriage, notably with Kirsten Madsdatter. The building of the Rosenborg Castle began while she was queen, but the extent of her influence on the building and its interior is not known. Despite her good relationship with the Lutheran bishop, she called upon a Calvinist vicar to give her the last sacrament on her death bed.
She died in Copenhagen and was buried in the Roskilde Cathedral.
Issue
- Stillborn son (1598).[2]
- Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Denmark (15 August 1599 – 9 September 1599) died in infancy.
- Christian, Hereditary Prince of Denmark (10 April 1603 – 2 June 1647) married Magdalene Sibylle of Saxony.
- Princess Sophie (4 January 1605 – 7 September 1605) died in infancy.
- Princess Elisabeth (16 March 1606 – 24 October 1608) died in infancy.
- Frederick III (18 March 1609 – 9 February 1670) married Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg and had issue.
- Ulrik, Prince-Bishop of Schwerin (2 February 1611 – 12 August 1633) died unmarried.
Ancestry
References
- Article in the Dansk biografisk Lexikon (in Danish)
External links
- Queen Anna Cathrine[permanent dead link] at the website of the Royal Danish Collection
Anne Catherine of Brandenburg Born: 26 June 1575 Died: 8 April 1612 | ||
Royal titles | ||
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Preceded by Sophie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin | Queen consort of Denmark and Norway 1597–1612 | Succeeded by |
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- e
- Asfrid Odinkarsdatter [de] (– 930s –)
- Thyra (– 930s – 958(?))
- Gunhild (960s ?)
- Tove of the Obotrites† (970s ?)
- Gyrid of Sweden (980s)
- Sigrid the Haughty/Świętosława/Gunhild of Wenden†‡
- Emma of Normandy† (1018–1035)
- Gyda of Sweden (1048–1049)
- Gunnhildr Sveinsdóttir‡ (1050–1052)
- Margareta Hasbjörnsdatter (1076–1080)
- Adela of Flanders (1080–1086)
- Ingegerd of Norway‡ (1086–1095)
- Boedil Thurgotsdatter (1095–1103)
- Margaret Fredkulla† (1104–1130)
- Ulvhild Håkansdotter‡ (1130–1134)
- Richeza of Poland‡ (1134-1134)
- Ragnild Magnusdotter [no] (1134–1135)
- Malmfred of Kiev† (1134–1137)
- Lutgard of Salzwedel (1144–1146)
- Adela of Meissen (1152–1157)
- Helena of Sweden (1156–1157)
- Sophia of Minsk (1157–1182)
- Gertrude of Bavaria (1182–1197)
- Dagmar of Bohemia (1205–1213)
- Berengaria of Portugal (1214–1221)
- Eleanor of Portugal (1229–1231)
- Jutta of Saxony (1239–1250)
- Matilda of Holstein (1250–1252)
- Margaret Sambiria (1252–1259)
- Agnes of Brandenburg (1273–1286)
- Ingeborg Magnusdotter of Sweden (1296–1319)
- Euphemia of Pomerania (1320–1326 & 1329–1330)
- Elizabeth of Holstein-Rendsburg (1330–1331)
- Helvig of Schleswig (1340–1374)
- Philippa of England†‡ (1406–1430)
- Dorothea of Brandenburg†‡ (1445–1448 & 1449–1481)
- Christina of Saxony†‡ (1481–1513)
- Isabella of Austria†‡ (1515–1523)
- Sophie of Pomerania† (1523–1533)
- Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg† (1534–1559)
- Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow† (1572–1588)
- Anne Catherine of Brandenburg† (1597–1612)
- Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1648–1670)
- Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel† (1670–1699)
- Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow† (1699–1721)
- Anne Sophie Reventlow† (1721–1730)
- Sophia Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach† (1730–1746)
- Louise of Great Britain† (1746–1751)
- Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel† (1752–1766)
- Caroline Matilda of Great Britain† (1766–1775)
- Marie Sophie of Hesse-Kassel† (1808–1839)
- Caroline Amalie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg (1839–1848)
- Louise of Hesse-Kassel (1863–1898)
- Louise of Sweden (1906–1912)
- Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1912–1947)
- Ingrid of Sweden (1947–1972)
- Henri de Laborde de Monpezat (1972–2018)
- Mary Donaldson (2024–present)
- † also Queen of Norway
- ‡ also Queen of Sweden