- Dorothea of Brandenburg
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For other uses, see Dorothea of Brandenburg (disambiguation).
Dorothea of Brandenburg Queen of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, the Wends and the Goths, Duchess of Schleswig, Holstein, Stormarn and Dithmarschen, Countess of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst 
Contemporary portrait of Queen Dorothea Queen consort of Denmark Tenure 1445–1448 (first time)
1449–1481 (second time)Queen consort of Norway Tenure 1445–1448 (first time)
1450–1481 (second time)Queen consort of Sweden Tenure 1457–1464 (first time)
1457–1464 (second time)Spouse Christopher III of Denmark
Christian I of DenmarkIssue John
Margaret, Queen of Scots
Frederick IHouse House of Hohenzollern Father John, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach Mother Barbara of Saxe-Wittenberg Born c. 1430/1431
BrandenburgDied 10 November 1495
KalundborgBurial Roskilde Cathedral Religion Roman Catholicism Dorothea of Brandenburg (Germany, 1430/1431 – Denmark, November 10, 1495) was the consort of Christopher of Bavaria and Christian I of Denmark. She was queen of Denmark (1445–1448 and 1449–1481), Norway (1445–1448 and 1450–1481) and Sweden (1447–1448 and 1457–1464) two times each. She also served as regent in Denmark during the absences of her spouse.
Contents
Family
Dorothea was born in 1430 or 1431 to John, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach, and Barbara of Saxe-Wittenberg (1405–1465). She had two sisters: Barbara (1423–1481), who became the Marchioness of Mantua, and Elisabeth (14??-1451), who married Joachim I Mlodszy, Duke of Pomerania (14??-1451).
On 12 September 1445, Dorothea married Christopher of Bavaria, the King of Denmark from 1440 to 1448, Sweden from 1441 to 1448 and Norway from 1442 to 1448. The wedding was held in Copenhagen. She was crowned queen of the three kingdoms on 14 September 1445.
After Christopher's death, Dorothea married the next elected king of Denmark, King Christian I, on 28 October 1449. In 1457, she became queen of Sweden for the second time, and was crowned in Uppsala Cathedral.
Biography
Dorothea was given control over fiefs in all three Nordic kingdoms with a value of 45,000 Rhine guilders, as well as an additional collection of fiefs valued at 15,000 guilders in Oberpfalz. When she was widowed in 1448, there were marriage negotiations with Albert VI, Archduke of Austria, and King Casimir IV Jagiellon, but when Christian of Oldenburg was chosen as the new king of Denmark, it was agreed that he should marry her instead.
As a widow, Dorothea's many fiefs were considered a problem. At her second wedding, she renounced her existing fiefs in Denmark and Norway, which were replaced with Kalundborg and Samsø in Denmark and Romerike in Norway. Her claim over her territories in Sweden, however, was something she would not give up. For the rest of her life, she fought to regain control over them. In 1451, war erupted between the countries over her inheritance. She gained control over Närke and Värmland in 1457, but lost them in 1464. In this affair, she requested the assistance of the popes from 1455, and she succeeded in having the Swedish regent Sten Sture the Elder excommunicated. This disrupted separate political negotiations with Sweden for many years, and her son, John, King of Denmark, who became king of Sweden in 1497, had the excommunication rescinded as soon as she died in 1495. She also fought with her uncle, Frederick II, Elector of Brandeburg, over the inheritance left after her father, John, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach, died in 1464.
Dorothea served as regent during the absence of her spouse. She was granted the slotsloven, which meant she had the right to command all the castles in Denmark. She was a powerful political figure due to her strong economic position, both with regard to her husband and her son. She even acquired fiefs from her husband when she lent him money he could not pay back. In 1460, her spouse acquired Holstein and Schleswig, but only on the condition that he could pay his creditors: Dorothea paid the fee demanded of Christian, and made it possible for him to make these territories a part of Denmark. She acquired a large economic influence in Holstein and Schleswig, and by 1470 she was the de facto ruler of those lands. In 1479, she acquired Holstein and in 1480 Schleswig from her husband as a security for a loan he was unable to pay back, and at the time of his death, she ruled the duchies as her own territories. Her eldest son John opposed her grant of Schleswig-Holstein to her younger son Frederick. The dispute was not solved until 1487, when she divided Schleswig-Holstein between her sons.
In 1475 and 1488, Dorothea visited the reigning popes (Sixtus IV and Innocent VIII) in Rome and her sister Barbara in Mantua. In 1488, she also met Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III in Innsbrück. She was described as cold, practical and frugal. As a widow, she stayed mainly at Kalundborg castle. She died on 25 November 1495, and is interred next to her second husband in Roskilde Cathedral.
Children
- Oluf of Denmark (1450–1451)
- Canute of Denmark (1451–1455)
- John (1455–1513), Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, King of Denmark, Norway and Sweden
- Margaret (1456–1486), married King James III of Scotland in 1469
- Frederick I (1471–1533), King of Denmark and Norway
Ancestry
Ancestors of Dorothea of Brandenburg 16. John II, Burgrave of Nuremberg 8. Frederick V, Burgrave of Nuremberg 17. Elisabeth of Henneberg 4. Frederick I, Elector of Brandenburg 18. Frederick II, Margrave of Meissen (=#28) 9. Elisabeth of Meissen 19. Mathilde of Bavaria (=#29) 2. John, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach 20. Stephen II, Duke of Bavaria 10. Frederick, Duke of Bavaria 21. Elisabeth of Sicily 5. Elisabeth of Bavaria 22. Bernabò Visconti 11. Maddalena Visconti 23. Beatrice Regina della Scala 1. Dorothea of Brandenburg 24. Rudolf II, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg 12. Wenceslas I, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg 25. Agnes of Lindau-Ruppin 6. Rudolf III, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg 26. Francesco di Carrara, Count of Padua 13. Cecilia di Carrara 3. Barbara of Saxe-Wittenberg 28. Frederick II, Margrave of Meissen (=#18) 14. Balthasar, Landgrave of Thuringia 29. Mathilde of Bavaria (=#19) 7. Anna of Thuringia 30. Albert, Burgrave of Nuremberg 15. Margarete von Nürnberg 31. Sophie of Henneberg References
- Åke Ohlmarks: Alla Sveriges drottningar (All the queens of Sweden) (Swedish)
- Herman Lindvist: Historien om alla Sveriges drottningar (History of all the queens of Sweden) (Swedish) (2006)
- http://www.kvinfo.dk/side/597/bio/498/origin/170/ (in Danish)
- Anne J. Duggan: Queens and queenship in medieval Europe
External links
Succession
Dorothea of BrandenburgBorn: 1430/1431 Died: 10 November 1495Royal titles Preceded by
Philippa of EnglandQueen consort of Denmark
1445–1448Vacant Queen consort of Sweden
Queen consort of Norway
1445–1448Succeeded by
Catherine of BjurumVacant Queen consort of Denmark
1449–1481Succeeded by
Christina of SaxonyPreceded by
Catherine of BjurumQueen consort of Norway
1450–1481Queen consort of Sweden
1457–1464Succeeded by
Christina AbrahamsdotterDanish Royal Consorts Henri de Laborde de Monpezat (1972–present) · Ingrid of Sweden (1947–1972) · Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1912–1947) · Louise of Sweden (1906–1912) · Louise of Hesse-Kassel (1863–1898) · Caroline Amalie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg (1839–1848) · Marie Sophie of Hesse-Kassel† (1808–1839) · Caroline Matilda of Great Britain† (1766–1775) · Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel† (1752–1766) · Louise of Great Britain† (1746–1751) · Sophia Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach† (1730–1746) · Anne Sophie Reventlow† (1721–1730) · Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow† (1699–1721) · Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel† (1670–1699) · Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1648–1670) · Anne Catherine of Brandenburg† (1597–1612) · Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow† (1572–1588) · Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg† (1534–1559) · Sophie of Pomerania†‡ (1523–1533) · Isabella of Austria†‡ (1515–1523) · Christina of Saxony†‡ (1481–1513) · Dorothea of Brandenburg†‡ (1445–1448 & 1449–1481) · Philippa of England†‡ (1406–1430) · Helvig of Schleswig (1340–1374) · Euphemia of Pomerania (1326–1330) · Ingeborg Magnusdotter of Sweden (1296–1319) · Agnes of Brandenburg (1273–1286) · Margaret Sambiria (1252–1259) · Matilda of Holstein (1250–1252) · Jutta of Saxony (1239–1250) · Eleanor of Portugal (1229–1231) · Berengaria of Portugal (1214–1221) · Dagmar of Bohemia (1205–1213) · Gertrude of Bavaria (1182–1197) · Sophia of Minsk (1157–1182) · Helena of Sweden (1156–1157) · Adela of Meissen (1152–1157) · Lutgard of Salzwedel (1144–1146) · Malmfred of Kiev† (1134–1137) · Ulvhild Håkansdotter‡ (1130–1134) · Margaret Fredkulla† (1104–1130) · Boedil Thurgotsdatter (1095–1103) · Ingegerd of Norway‡ (1086–1095) · Adela of Flanders (1080–1086) · Margareta Hasbjörnsdatter (1076–1080) · Gunnhildr Sveinsdóttir‡ (1050–1052) · Gyda of Sweden (1048–1049) · Emma of Normandy† (1017–1035) · Sigrid the Haughty†‡ · Gunhild of Wenden† · Tove of the Obotrites† (970–986) · Gyrid of Sweden (952–970) · Thyra (900–935)† also Queen of Norway · ‡ also Queen of SwedenNorwegian Royal Consorts Sonja Haraldsen (1991–present)
Maud of Wales (1905–1938) · Sophia of Nassau^ (1872–1905) · Louise of the Netherlands^ (1859–1871) · Josephine of Leuchtenberg^ (1844–1859) · Désirée Clary^ (1818–1844) · Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp^ (1814–1818) · Marie Sophie of Hesse-Kassel* (1808–1839) · Caroline Matilda of Great Britain* (1766–1775) · Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel* (1752–1766) · Louise of Great Britain* (1746–1751) · Sophia Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach* (1730–1746) · Anne Sophie Reventlow* (1721–1730) · Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow* (1699–1721) · Landgravine Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel* (1670–1699) · Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1648–1670) · Anne Catherine of Brandenburg* (1597–1612) · Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow* (1572–1588) · Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg* (1534–1559) · Sophie of Pomerania*^ (1523–1533) · Isabella of Austria*^ (1515–1523) · Christina of Saxony*^ (1481–1513) · Dorothea of Brandenburg*^ (1450–1481) · Catherine of Bjurum^ (1449–1450) · Dorothea of Brandenburg*^ (1445–1448) · Philippa of England*^ (1406–1430) · Margaret I of Denmark^ (1363–1380) · Blanche of Namur^ (1335–1343) · Euphemia of Rügen (1299–1312) · Isabel Bruce (1293–1299) · Margaret of Scotland (1281–1283) · Ingeborg of Denmark (1263–1280) · Rikissa Birgersdotter (1251–1257) · Margrét Skúladóttir (1225–1263) · Christina of Norway (1209–1213) · Margaret of Sweden (1189–1202) · Estrid Bjørnsdotter (1170–1176) · Ragna Nikolasdatter (114?–1157) · Ingrid of Sweden (1134–1136) · Christine of Denmark (1132–1133) · Malmfred of Kiev* (1116–1130) · Blathmin Ní Briain (1103) · Ingebjørg Guttormsdatter (1103–1123) · Margaret Fredkulla* (1101–1103) · Ingerid of Denmark (1067–1093) · Elisiv of Kiev (1045–1066) · Emma of Normandy* (1028–1035) · Astrid of Sweden (1019–1035) · Sigrid the Haughty*^ (1000–1014) · Tyra of Denmark (998–1000) Gunhild of Wenden* · Tove of the Obotrites* (970–986) · Gunnhild, Mother of Kings (931–934) · Gyda of Hordaland (872–930)*also Queen of Denmark
^also Queen of SwedenSwedish Royal Consorts Silvia Renate Sommerlath (1976–present)
Louise Mountbatten (1950–1965) · Victoria of Baden (1907–1930) · Sophia of Nassau* (1872–1907) · Louise of the Netherlands* (1859–1871) · Josephine of Leuchtenberg* (1844–1859) · Désirée Clary* (1818–1844) · Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp* (1809–1818) · Frederica of Baden (1797–1809) · Sophia Magdalena of Denmark (1771–1792) · Louisa Ulrika of Prussia (1751–1771) · Ulrika Eleonora (1720–1741) · Frederick of Hesse-Kassel (1718/1719–1720) · Ulrika Eleonora of Denmark (1680–1693) · Hedvig Eleonora of Holstein-Gottorp (1654–1660) · Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg (1620–1632) · Christina of Holstein-Gottorp (1599/1604–1611) · Anne of Austria (1592–1598) · Gunilla Bielke (1585–1592) · Catherine Jagellon (1568–1583) · Karin Månsdotter (1567–1568) · Catherine Stenbock (1552–1560) · Margaret Leijonhufvud (1536–1551) · Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg (1531–1533) · Isabella of Austria*^ (1520–1521) · Christina Gyllenstierna (1512–1520) · Mette Dyre (1504–1512) · Ingeborg Tott (1501–1503) · Christina of Saxony*^ (1497–1501) · Ingeborg Tott (1470–1497) · Christina Abrahamsdotter (1470) · Elin Gustavsdotter (Sture) (1466–1467) · Dorothea of Brandenburg*^ (1457–1464) · Catherine Karlsdotter (1448–1450) · Merete Lydekedatter (1448) · Karin Karlsdotter (1448) · Dorothea of Brandenburg*^ (1445–1448) · Philippa of England*^ (1406–1430) · Richardis of Schwerin (1365–1377) · Margareta Valdemarsdotter* (1363–1364) · Beatrice of Bavaria (1356–1359) · Blanche of Namur (1335–1363) · Märta Eriksdotter (1298–1318) · Hedwig of Holstein (1276–1290) · Sophia Eriksdotter (1260–1275) · Catherine Sunadotter (1243/1244–1250) · Helena Pedersdatter Strange (1229–1234) · Richeza of Denmark (1210–1216) · Ingegerd Birgersdotter (1200–1208) · Benedicta Ebbesdotter (1196–1199/1200) · Cecilia Johansdotter (1167–1190) · Christina Stigsdatter (1163/1164–1167) · Brigida Haraldsdotter (1160–1161) · Christina Björnsdatter (1156–1160) · Richeza of Poland (1148–1156) · Ulvhild Håkansdotter^ (1134–1148) · Richeza of Poland (1127–1130) · Ulvhild Håkansdotter^ (1117–1125) · Ragnhild Halstensdotter (1105–1117) · Ingegerd of Norway^ (1105–1118) · Helena (1088–1105) · Blotstulka (1084–1087) · Helena (1079–1084) · Gyla (1066–1067 & 1075–1079) · Astrid Njalsdotter (1050–1060) · Gunnhildr Sveinsdóttir^ (1022–1050) · Estrid of the Obotrites (1000–1022) · Aud Haakonsdottir of Lade (990s–995) · Świętosława of Poland*^ (late 10th century)*also Queen of Norway
^also Queen of DenmarkCategories:- 1430s births
- 1495 deaths
- Burials at Roskilde Cathedral
- Danish royal consorts
- House of Hohenzollern
- Medieval women
- Norwegian royal consorts
- Swedish queens
- Women of medieval Denmark
- Women of medieval Norway
- Women of medieval Sweden
- Regents of Denmark
- Regents
- Female regents
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