Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Denmark

Who was Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Denmark?

Frederick (Danish: Frederik) (11 October 1753, Copenhagen – 7 December 1805, Copenhagen), was a Hereditary Prince of Denmark and Norway. He was the surviving son of the second marriage of King Frederick V of Denmark with Juliana Maria of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel.

Hereditary Prince Frederick acted as regent on behalf of his half-brother King Christian VII from 1772 to 1784. He is said to have been physically disabled.

Frederick was born at Christiansborg Palace 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. This meant that in time he would succeed the Prince-Bishop then in office, Frederick August. This plan had to be abandoned, however, and Frederick stayed in Denmark as a junior member of the royal family.

He married Duchess Sophia Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1758-1794) in Copenhagen on 21 October 1774. She was a Princess and Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, a daughter of Duke Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Princess Charlotte Sophie of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

Hereditary Prince Frederick in 1790His half-brother King Christian VII of Denmark suffering from a severe mental illness (believed to have been schizophrenia), and having been divorced from his wife, Queen Caroline Mathilde (who was then exiled), Prince Frederick was designated as Regent 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.

He acted as regent until the coup of 1784, when Crown Prince Frederick (the future Frederick VI of Denmark), the then 16-year-old son of King Christian, took power and regency.

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 Frederick 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. 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.