Early Life
Frederick was born on 3 June 1843 in the Yellow Palace in Copenhagen as Prince Frederick of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, a junior male line of the House of Oldenburg descended from Christian III of Denmark and who had since ruled as non-souvereign dukes of successive duchies in Schleswig-Holstein for eight generations including his grandfather. His parents were Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and Louise of Hesse-Kassel.
In 1847, his father was chosen as the heir presumptive to the Danish throne, because Frederick's mother Louise of Hesse-Kassel was a close relative of the last Danish king of the Oldenburg main line (the other heirs of the House of Hesse renounced their claims to the Danish throne in favour of Louise and her husband). Accordingly, Frederick became a Prince of Denmark in 1847.
After his confirmation in 1860, Frederick was given a military education. In 1863, Prince Frederick was sent to do studies at the University of Oxford but when his father ascended the throne in November that year, he became Crown Prince and returned to Denmark.
As Crown Prince of Denmark, he was given a seat in the State Council and subsequently assisted his father in the duties of government.
In 1864, he formally took part in the Second Schleswig War against Austria and Prussia.
Read more about this topic: Frederick VIII Of Denmark
Famous quotes related to early life:
“Many a woman shudders ... at the terrible eclipse of those intellectual powers which in early life seemed prophetic of usefulness and happiness, hence the army of martyrs among our married and unmarried women who, not having cultivated a taste for science, art or literature, form a corps of nervous patients who make fortunes for agreeable physicians ...”
—Sarah M. Grimke (1792–1873)