Sophia Magdalen of Brandenburg-Kulmbach
| Sophie Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach | |
|---|---|
Portrait by Andreas Brünniche, c. 1740
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| Queen consort of Denmark and Norway | |
| Tenure | 1730–1746 |
| Born | 28 November 1700 Castle Schonberg |
| Died | 27 May 1770 (aged 69) Christiansborg Palace |
| Burial | Roskilde Cathedral |
| Spouse | Christian VI of Denmark |
| Issue |
Frederick V of Denmark Louise, Duchess of Saxe-Hildburghausen |
| House | House of Hohenzollern |
| Father | Christian Heinrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth-Kulmbach |
| Mother | Sophie Christiane of Wolfstein |
| Religion | Lutheranism |
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 The Royal Lathe, Sophie... like other queens of her day, devoted much of her time turning items of ivory or precious woods. |
Sophie Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach (28 November 1700 – 27 May 1770) was queen-consort of Denmark and Norway as the wife of King Christian VI of Denmark and Norway.
She was born in Castle Schonberg, to Christian Heinrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth-Kulmbach by his wife, Countess Sophie Christiane of Wolfstein. She was raised at the court of the Queen of Poland, Christiane Eberhardine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, in Saxony.
King Frederick IV of Denmark allowed his son, Crown Prince Christian, to find a suitable bride. During a trip through Europe accompanied by Chancellor Ulrik Adolf Holstein the Crown Prince met Sophie Magdalene while she was serving as lady-in-waiting of the Queen of Poland at the Pretzsch Castle. She came from a small (the Margraviate of Kulmbach was not greater than Lolland-Falster), insignificant, relatively poor and large German princely family (she had 13 siblings); however, the King gave his permission. In the Crown Prince's letters he wrote that he fell for the Sophie Magdalene's intense religiosity, which matched with his own beliefs. It would affect his later reign. The wedding took place on 7 August 1721 at Pretzsch Castle in Saxony.
A French envoy to the Danish court sent a description home of the 20-year-old Crown Princess:
About the Crown Prince, the French diplomat made one unflattering description:
Sophie Magdalene's religiosity and strong influence of Pietism was expressed when in 1737 she founded at Vallø Castle the Noble Vallø Foundation for Unmarried Daughters (Danish: Det Adelige Stift Vallø for ugifte døtre), a home for aging and aristocratic unmarried ladies. She never forgot that she came from a poor noble family, and always supported her siblings. As a queen, she received several of her relatives in Denmark. Her younger sister, Sophie Caroline, Dowager Princess of Ostfriesland, was appointed by her as abbess at Vallø, with an annual pension of 16,600 thalers, a large sum in those times.
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