The 16th Century, 1500 - 1599 The End of The Union

In Northern Europe, people adopt the Lutheran form of Protestantism. Because of these changes their are many wars going on all over Europe and also in Denmark.

The Danish king, Christian the 2nd, is ready to democratize the Scandinavian countries, but the inhabitants are not ready. On the maps made in the 16th century Denmark is looking much more like it does today.

1500 The Ditmarshes

As usual there is a problem to get the people of the Ditmarshes to pay the taxes, because they have never felt they were a part of Denmark. When king Hans demands the taxes, they totaly refuse.

A good and very strong army crosses the borders of the Ditmarshes in the beginning of 1500.

Everything goes fine because of the winter, but suddenly a thaw is setting in and the army can only use the roads, and when the people of the Ditmarshes opens the dikes the Danish army is trapped.

1509 Navy

After our defeat in the Ditmarshes the Swedes begin once again to revolt. They do not want to be Danish. From 1501 and until 1512 there is a war between Denmark and Sweden.

In 1509 are 3 places in Denmark building ships day and night to make the first european navy. This is the beginning of one of the important navy fleets in Europe. After a few years Denmark rules the sea and the Swedes and their allies are beginning to be tired of the war. The 18th of April 1512 a peace agreement are signed between Denmark and Sweden.

1520 Stockholm

In 1513 dies king Hans and are followed by his son king Christian 2. After the peace agreement in 1512 there are still minor engagements between Denmark and Sweden and as the time goes by the Danes want to give the Swedes a final lesson. In 1520 a Danish army invades Sweden and finaly in september the Swedes are defeated. There have been so many wars between Denmark and Sweden and there is a lot of hate between the two people.

The 7th of November king Christian together with a Swede, Gustav Trolle want revenge, and over 80 leading Swedish persons are decapitated in Stockholm. It is a big mistake and from now on the Swedes really hate the Danes. King Christian is getting a surname, tyrant, in Sweden.

Shortly after decapitation of the many leading Swedish people, there was made a picture, which was circulating all over Europe. The picture shows the decapitation of also people from the church. Because of the pictures people all over Europe feels the Danes as people of the devil.

1523 Noble Revolt

King Christian is a king who wants other people than the nobles to have rights. In 1521 he and the government are making a lot of new laws. There are laws about removal of garbage, cleaning the houses, postal service, measure and weight, regulations about building houses, lawyers, justice, and schools.

The king is travelling to the Netherlands to get more inspiration. All over Sweden, Gustav Vasa is starting a new revolt. Lübeck become allied with the Swedes.

Nobles in Jutland and the church conspire against the king and offer the Danish crown to the duke of Slesvig, Frederik. King Christian is feeling his world is falling apart and desides to get help at foreign countries. While he is away Frederik, newly elected by the people of Jutland, is taking control of more and more of Denmark.

The laws given by king Christian are burnt. The army collected by king Christian is leaving because the king lacks money. The new king of Denmark is Frederik the 1st.

June the 6th 1523 Gustav Vasa is proclaimed as king of Sweden - the Union of Scandinavia has ended!

1533 Noble Republic

In a way there is once again civil war in Denmark. The middle-class is supporting king Christian, while the church and the nobles are supporting the new king Frederik. For restoring peace some of the laws made by king Christian became laws again. The government wants to get some new taxes, but because king Christian has collected a rather big army south of the border, the government withdraws the law about new taxes. King Christian hasn't got the money to hold the army and he must give up. When the noble government saw how weak the former king was, the law about the new taxes was passed.

In 1531 king Christian is returning to Norway, the northern part of Denmark. The people are very happy to have the king back and the 5th of January 1532 king Christian is receiving the homage of the Norwegian government.

The Danish government is making a deal with Lübeck and a navy is coming to Oslo. The king negotiates with the Danes and agrees to be sailed to Copenhagen for further negotiations with king Frederik. Instead king Christian is sailed to Sønderborg, where he became a prisoner for the rest of his life.

King Frederik dies the 10th of April 1533 and the government and the nobles can't agree on any new king. Denmark is now without a king we have a noble republic.

All over Denmark the middle-class and the lower-class people are trying to fight the rule of nobility government. At the same time people are changing their faith from the Catholicism to the Lutheranism.

People are tired of the way Denmark is ruled and in 1534 a new civil war starts. Count Christoffer is on king Christians side and attacks several regions of Denmark. Funen, Zealand, and Skaaneland are soon ruled by the count. At the same time one of the leaders of Denmark is choosen a new king whose name also is Christian. The new king is receiving the homage in Horsens, which is a town in Jutland. In September the revolt starts in the last part of Denmark where the count don't rule, Jutland. The new king's general, Johan Rantzau is now fighting against the rebels. Because he is a great strategist he soon take back the whole Jutland, at the same time the Swedes help the new Danish king and attack the eastern parts of Denmark. In 1535 the general is attacking Funen and later the same year he is attacking Zealand and lays siege to Copenhagen in the 24th of July. The 29th of July 1536 the capital surrenders after a whole year of siege. The whole Denmark is again ruled by one king, king Christian the 3rd.

On the island Møn the first burning of witches is taking place in the year 1540. The event is the start of many witchburnings in the next years, where people reports other people as witches.

1549 is the former king, Christian the 2nd, released from his prison in Sønderborg and the rest of his life he spend in the area of Kalundborg, a part of Zealand. The former king is relaxes by fishing and hunting. King Christian the 3rd dies in 1559 and is followed by his son, Frederik.

1559 The Fight of the National Arms

Sweden has in their national arm 3 crowns. The same 3 crowns have been in the Danish national arms since the start of the union between the Scandinavian countries in 1397.

	A Danish ship arrived to Stockholm in the end of 1559 and the ship had the Danish national arm. The king of Sweden ordered his son to get some soldiers to remove the 3 crowns away from the national arm. This is the start of a new hate between Denmark and Sweden.
Denmark		Sweden

In 1560 Sweden has copied the Danish national arm. Neither the Danes nor the Swedes want a new war, they try to negotiate, but only 4 years after the national arms event in Stockholm a new war begins between Denmark and Sweden. Swedish authorities confiscate 3 ships of the Danish navy on May the 30th, and 2 month later the Danes declare war against Sweden.

The war is very cruel from both sides and very expensive without any convincing victories. The Danish navy rules the sea. In 1565 when a Swedish fleet suddenly arrives in the Sound outside Copenhagen.

In Sweden the Danes have many victories. Denmark and Sweden are exhausted by 7 years of war, and when the Swedish king is dethroned in 1568 Sweden is asking for peace. Denmark is demanding a too big an indemnity and the war is going on for 1 more year.

German emperor suggests Sweden and Denmark to hold peace talks, and in 1570 there is peace again between the 2 countries. Denmark is getting the best results of the peace agreement.

In the town Maribo on the island Lolland are the rules for the noble virgins convent made more rigorous in 1572. If a noble nun is immoral she will be immured alive.

1584 Kronborg

In 1573 the famous Danish astronomer, Tycho Brahe is publishing his discovery of a new star, a super nova, in the constellation Cassiopeia. King Frederik supports him and gives him the island, Hven as entailed estate. The customs dues collected from ships passing the Sound have paid for the new and very magnificent castle, Kronborg which is finished in 1584 for the sum of 430,000 daler! - it is about 14,000,000,000 US$ in modern currency (1997). 1588 king Frederik dies and his son, who is 11 years old, follows him as king Christian.