Christian VII of Denmark

Christian VII Of Denmark

Christian VII (Danish: Christian den Syvende 29 January 1749 – 13 March 1808) was an Oldenburg monarch who ruled as King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1766 until his death. He was the son of Danish King Frederick V and his first consort Louisa, daughter of King George II of Great Britain.

For his motto he chose: "Gloria ex amore patriae ('glory through love of the fatherland'.)" His royal advisers differed depending on who won power struggles around the throne, but from the 14th April 1784 until Christian VII 's death in 1808 it was his son, later King Frederick VI, who unofficially acted as royal head of state.

Christian VII's reign was marked by mental illness which affected government decisions. For example, he became submissive to the progressive and radical thinker Johann Friedrich Struensee, his personal physician, who rose steadily in power in the late 1760s, to a "de facto" regent of the country, where he introduced widespread progressive reforms.