Frederick VII (Frederik Carl Christian; 6 October 1808 – 15 November 1863) was King of Denmark from 1848 to 1863. He was the last Danish monarch of the older Royal branch of the House of Oldenburg and the last king of Denmark to rule as an absolute monarch. During his reign, he signed a constitution that established a Danish parliament and made the country a constitutional monarchy. Frederick's motto was Folkets Kærlighed, min Styrke (Danish for the People's Love, my Strength).
Family
Frederick was born at Amalienborg Palace to Christian VIII of Denmark and Duchess Charlotte Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. His maternal grandparents were Friedrich Franz I, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and Luise, Duchess of Saxe-Gotha.
Marriages
The king's first two marriages both ended in scandal and divorce. He was first married in Copenhagen on 1 November 1828 to his second cousin Princess Vilhelmine Marie of Denmark, a daughter of King Frederick VI of Denmark. They separated in 1834 and divorced in 1837. On 10 June 1841 he married for a second time to Duchess Caroline Charlotte Mariane of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, whom he divorced in 1846. On 7 August 1850 in Frederiksborg Palace, he morganatically married Louise Christina Rasmussen, whom he created Landgravine Danner in 1850 (), a milliner and former ballet dancer who had for many years been his acquaintance or mistress, the natural daughter of Gotthilf L. Køppen and of Juliane Caroline Rasmussen. This marriage seems to have been happy, although it aroused great moral indignation among the nobility and the bourgeoisie. Countess Danner, who was denounced as a vulgar gold digger by her enemies, but viewed as an unaffected daughter of the people by her admirers, seems to have had a stabilizing effect on him. She also worked at maintaining his popularity by letting him meet the people of the provinces.
Extramarital relations and possible offspring
The expectation that Frederick would not likely produce offspring, despite numerous affairs, was widespread, but sources rarely state the reasons. Some speculate that Frederick was infertile. During the reign of Frederick's father, Christian VIII, the succession question was already being brought forward. (See below: Succession crisis)
It has been claimed that Frederick did indeed father a son, Frederik Carl Christian Poulsen, born on 21 November 1843, as a result of his relationship with Else Maria Guldborg Pedersen (also referred to as Marie Poulsen), which took place after his first two unhappy marriages. This was first asserted in 1994. In 2009, a Danish woman, Else Margrethe ('Gete') Bondo Oldenborg Maaløe claimed to be the great-granddaughter of Frederik VII through Frederik Carl. Maaloe possesses four letters from Frederick to Marie Poulsen acknowledging paternity; these are quoted in her book, published in 2009. In all cases, however, extramarital offspring were and still are barred from the line of succession.
It has been claimed Frederick had a same-sex relationship with his friend, Carl Berling (1812–1871), publisher and owner of the newspaper Berlingske Tidende. The bisexual Berling had an illegitimate child with Louise Rasmussen, Carl Christian (1841–1908). Carl Christian was much liked by the King, to the extent that he insisted on signing the new constitution on Carl Christian's 8th birthday on 5 June 1849. To retain a tinge of decency, the King married Louise Rasmussen and the trio then moved into the royal castle, where Berling was appointed Chamberlain and remained until 1861. The public indignation within higher circles over Frederick's morganatic marriage is well-known, but reasons have rarely been explained in detail.
Reign
Frederick, who was the last king of the older branch of the Oldenburg dynasty, had a rather neglected childhood after the divorce of his parents. His youth was marked by private scandals and for many years he appeared as the problem child of the royal family. When he succeeded to the throne in January 1848, he was almost at once met by the demands for a constitution. The Schleswig-Holsteiners wanted an independent state while the Danes wished to maintain South Jutland as a Danish area. The king soon yielded to the Danish demands, and in March he accepted the end of absolutism, which resulted in the June Constitution of 1849. During the First War of Schleswig against the German powers in 1848–51, Frederick appeared as ”the national leader" and was regarded almost as a war hero, despite having never taken any active part in the struggles.