Christian III reigned as King of Denmark from 1534 and King of Norway from 1537 until his death in 1559. During his reign, Christian formed close ties between the church and the crown. He established Lutheranism as the state religion within his realms as part of the Protestant Reformation, and was the first King of Denmark-Norway.
Edward Foxe was an English churchman, Bishop of Hereford. He played a major role in Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon, and he assisted in drafting the Ten Articles of 1536.
The Count's Feud, also called the Count's War, was a war of succession that raged in Denmark in 1534–36 and brought about the Reformation in Denmark. In the international context, it was part of the European wars of religion. The Count's Feud takes its name from the Protestant Count Christopher of Oldenburg, who supported the Catholic King Christian II, deposed in 1523, over the election of Christian III, a staunch Protestant who had already implemented Lutheranism as the state religion in Schleswig and Holstein in 1528.
Jürgen Wullenwever was burgomaster of Lübeck from 1533 to 1535, a period of religious, political and trade turmoil.
Infanta Beatrice of Portugal was a Portuguese princess by birth and Duchess of Savoy by marriage to Charles III, Duke of Savoy. She was the ruling countess of Asti from 1531 to 1538.
Klemen Andersen "Skipper Clement" was a Danish merchant, captain, privateer and leader of the peasant rebellion that was part of the civil war known as the Count's Feud.
JohanRantzau was a German-Danish general and statesman known for his role in the Count's Feud. His military leadership ensured the succession of Christian III to the throne, which brought about the Reformation in Denmark.
Mogens Gøye was a Danish statesman and Steward of the Realm, whose enormous wealth earned him the derogatory nickname "the King of Northern Jutland". Gøye was the Royal councillor of Danish Kings John I, the feuding Christian II and Frederick I, and Christian III. He was a key supporter of the Reformation in Denmark-Norway and Holstein. Often lauded by elder Danish historians as a knightly, social liberal upper-class idealist, Gøye is today viewed as a realist statesman understanding the need of a government and a moderate political attitude of the nobility.
Albrecht VII, the Handsome, Duke of Mecklenburg in Güstrow, was a minor ruler in North Germany of the 16th century. He also asserted claims to Scandinavian thrones based on the royal lineage of the House of Mecklenburg.
Frederick II, Count Palatine of the Rhine, also Frederick the Wise, a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty, was Prince-elector of the Palatinate from 1544 to 1556.
Vincens Lunge was a Danish-Norwegian noble, member of the Norwegian realm council (Riksråd) and the foremost representative of King Christian III of Denmark in Norway.
The Reformation in Denmark–Norway and Holstein saw the transition from Catholicism to Lutheranism in the realms ruled by the Danish-based House of Oldenburg in the first half of the sixteenth century. After the break-up of the Kalmar Union in 1521/1523, these realms included the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway and the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, whereby Denmark also extended over today's Gotland and Øsel in Estonia.
Stygge Krumpen was a Danish clergyman and bureaucrat, who was the secretary of king Christian II of Denmark and the last catholic bishop of the Diocese of Børglum from 1533 to 1536, having been coadjutor bishop since 1519. He was the brother of Danish marshal Otte Krumpen. With them, the Krumpen family died out.
Events from the 1520s in Denmark.
Events from the 1570s in Denmark.
Events from the year 1609 in Denmark.
Truid Gregersen Ulfstand was a Danish nobleman, landowner, and privy council member. He was active in Norway in the 1530s during the time that the country was entering into a real union with Denmark, and was a commander in the Danish civil war known as The Count's Feud.
Peder Svave was a Pomerania-born Danish-Norwegian diplomat and privy councillor. He owned Gjorslev Manor south of Copenhagen.
