Sophia Magdalena of Denmark
| Sophia Magdalena of Denmark | |
|---|---|
Sophia Magdalena portrayed in 1765, the year before her marriage, by Carl Gustav Pilo
|
|
| Queen consort of Sweden | |
| Tenure | 12 February 1771 – 29 March 1792 |
| Born |
3 July 1746 Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Died | 21 August 1813 (aged 67) Ulriksdal Palace, Sweden |
| Burial | Riddarholmen Church |
| Spouse | Gustav III of Sweden |
| Issue More... |
Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden |
| House | Oldenburg |
| Father | Frederick V of Denmark |
| Mother | Louise of Great Britain |
Sophia Magdalena of Denmark (Danish: Sofie Magdalene; 3 July 1746 – 21 August 1813) was Queen of Sweden as the spouse of King Gustav III.
Princess Sofie Magdalene was born on 3 July 1746 at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen as the eldest surviving child of King Frederick V of Denmark and his first consort, the former Princess Louise of Great Britain. She was the heir presumptive to the throne of Denmark from the death of her elder brother in 1747 until the birth of her second brother in 1749, and retained her status as next in line to the Danish throne after her brother until her marriage. She was therefore often referred to as Crown Princess of Denmark.
In the spring of 1751, at the age of five, she was betrothed to Gustav, the heir apparent to the throne of Sweden, and she was brought up to be the Queen of Sweden. The marriage was arranged by the Riksdag of the Estates, not by the Swedish royal family. The marriage was arranged as a way of creating peace between Sweden and Denmark, which had a long history of war and which had strained relations following the election of an heir to the Swedish throne in 1743, where the Danish candidate had lost. The engagement was met with some worry from Queen Louise, who feared that her daughter would be mistreated by the Queen of Sweden, Louisa Ulrika of Prussia. The match was known to be disliked by the Queen of Sweden, who was in constant conflict with the Parliament; and who was known in Denmark for her pride, dominant personality and hatred of anything Danish, which she demonstrated in her treatment of the Danish ambassadors in Stockholm.
After the death of her mother early in her life, Sophia Magdalena was given a very strict and religious upbringing by her grandmother and her stepmother, who considered her father and brother to be morally degenerate. She is noted to have had good relationships with her siblings, her grandmother and her stepmother; her father, however, often frightened her when he came before her drunk, and was reportedly known to set his dogs upon her, causing in her a lifelong phobia.
...
Wikipedia