The coronation of the Danish monarch was a religious ceremony in which the accession of the Danish monarch was marked by a coronation ceremony. It was held in various forms from 1170 to 1840, mostly in Lund Cathedral in Lund, St. Mary's Cathedral in Copenhagen and in the chapel of Frederiksborg Palace in Hillerød.

Enthronements of the Danish monarch may be historically divided into three distinct types of rituals: the medieval coronation, which existed during the period of elective monarchy; the anointing ritual, which replaced coronation with the introduction of absolute monarchy in 1660; and finally the simple proclamation, which has been used since the introduction of the constitutional monarchy in 1849.

Coronations of the elective monarchy

Historically an elective monarchy, the Danish kings had been elected and acclaimed at the Thing assemblies; this continued even after the tradition of coronations began. Ultimately, the acclamation rite only ceased with the introduction of hereditary monarchy in 1660, the 1657 acclamation of crown prince Christian (the later Christian V of Denmark) being the last occasion. The first coronation in Scandinavia took place in Bergen in Norway in 1163 or 1164. The first coronation in Denmark was that of Canute VI in St. Bendt's Church in Ringsted in 1170. The only Danish kings between 1170 and 1448 to not be crowned were Valdemar III, Valdemar IV, and Olaf II.

The medieval monarchs used various locations for their coronations, with Lund Cathedral in Lund, the archepiscopal seat of Denmark, being the most preferred. Other locations include Viborg, Vordingborg, Kalmar and Ribe. After the accession of the House of Oldenburg to the Danish throne in 1448, the coronations were held in St. Mary's Cathedral in Copenhagen, and usually performed by the Bishop of Zealand.

The coronation ritual (as of 1537) began with a procession of the ruler and his consort into St. Mary's cathedral in Copenhagen, followed by the Danish Crown Regalia. The monarch was seated before the altar, where he swore to govern justly, preserve the Lutheran religion, support schools, and help the poor. Following this, the king was anointed on the lower right arm and between the shoulders, but not on the head. Then the royal couple retired to a tented enclosure where they were robed in royal attire, returning to hear a sermon, the Kyrie and Gloria, and then a prayer and the Epistle reading.

Following the Epistle, the king knelt before the altar, where he was first given a sword. After flourishing and sheathing it, the still-kneeling monarch was crowned by the clergy and nobility, who jointly placed the diadem upon their ruler's head. The sceptre and orb were presented, then returned to attendants. The queen was anointed and crowned in a similar manner, but she received only a sceptre and not an orb. Finally, a choral hymn was sung, following which the newly crowned king and queen listened to a second sermon and the reading of the Gospel, which brought the service to an end.Hoffmann (1990)

Anointings of the absolute monarchy

With the introduction of absolute monarchy in 1660, the full coronation ritual was replaced with a ceremony of anointing, where the new king would arrive at the coronation site already wearing the crown, where he was then anointed.

The anointings were held in the chapel of Frederiksborg Palace in Hillerød, with the exception of the 1767 anointing of King Christian VII which was held in the chapel of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen.

Proclamations of the constitutional monarchy

This rite was in turn abolished with the introduction of the Danish constitution in 1849. Today the crown of Denmark is only displayed at the monarch's funeral, when it sits atop their coffin. The present king, Frederik X, did not have any formal enthronement service; a public announcement of his accession was made from the balcony of Christiansborg Palace, with the new sovereign being proclaimed by his prime minister at the time, Mette Frederiksen, then cheered with a ninefold "hurrah" by the crowds below.

Historical list of coronations

Coronations Date Site Picture Name Reign Other regnal titles Ref25 June 1170 St. Bendt's Church Canute VI 25 June 1170 – 12 November 1202 1202 Lund Cathedral Valdemar II 1202–1241 1218 Schleswig Valdemar the Young 1215–1231 30 May 1232 Lund Cathedral Eric IV 1232–1250 1 November 1250 Unknown Abel with Matilda of Holstein 1250–1252 25 December 1252 Lund Cathedral Christopher I with Margaret Sambiria 1252–1259 25 December 1259 Viborg Eric V 1259–1286 25 December 1287 Lund Cathedral Eric VI 1286–1319 15 August 1324 Vordingborg Christopher II with Eric For Christopher II: 1320 – 1326; 1329 – 2 August 1332 For Eric: 1321–1326; 1329–1332 17 June 1397StorkyrkanEric VII 1396 – 24 September 1439King of NorwayKing of Sweden 1 January 1443Ribe CathedralChristopher IIIwith Dorothea of Brandenburg9 April 1440 – 5 January 1448King of NorwayKing of Sweden 28 October 1449St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenChristian Iwith Dorothea of Brandenburg1 September 1448 – 21 May 1481King of NorwayKing of Sweden18 May 1483St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenJohnwith Christina of Saxony21 May 1481 – 20 February 1513King of NorwayKing of Sweden11 June 1514St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenChristian IIwith Isabella of Austria20 February 1513 – 13 April 1523King of NorwayKing of Sweden7 August 1524St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenFrederick Iwith Sophie of Pomerania13 April 1523 – 10 April 1533Elected King of Norway12 August 1537St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenChristian IIIwith Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg4 July 1534 – 1 January 1559King of Norway20 August 1559St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenFrederick IIwith Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow1 January 1559 – 4 April 1588King of Norway29 August 1596St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenChristian IVwith Anne Catherine of Brandenburg4 April 1588 – 28 February 1648King of Norway23 November 1648St. Mary's Cathedral, CopenhagenFrederick IIIwith Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg28 February 1648 – 9 February 1670King of Norway

Anointings (1660–1849) Date Site Picture Name Reign Other regnal titles7 June 1671Frederiksborg Palace ChapelChristian V9 February 1670 – 25 August 1699King of Norway15 April 1700Frederiksborg Palace ChapelFrederick IV25 August 1699 – 12 October 1730King of Norway6 June 1731Frederiksborg Palace ChapelChristian VI12 October 1730 – 6 August 1746King of Norway4 September 1747Frederiksborg Palace ChapelFrederick Vwith Louise of Great Britain6 August 1746 – 14 January 1766King of Norway1 May 1767Christiansborg Palace ChapelChristian VIIwith Caroline Matilda of Great Britain14 January 1766 – 13 March 1808King of Norway31 July 1815Frederiksborg Palace ChapelFrederick VIwith Marie of Hesse-Kassel13 March 1808 – 3 December 1839King of Norway28 June 1840Frederiksborg Palace ChapelChristian VIIIwith Caroline Amalie of Augustenburg3 December 1839 – 20 January 1848King of Norway(prior of being king of Denmark)

Proclamations (1849-present) Date Site Picture Name Reign Prime Minister16 November 1863Christiansborg PalaceChristian IX15 November 1863 – 29 January 1906Carl Christian Hall30 January 1906 Amalienborg PalaceFrederick VIII29 January 1906 – 14 May 1912Jens Christian Christensen15 May 1912Christian X14 May 1912 – 20 April 1947Klaus Berntsen20 April 1947 Christiansborg PalaceFrederik IX20 April 1947 – 14 January 1972Knud Kristensen15 January 1972Margrethe II14 January 1972 – 14 January 2024Jens Otto Krag14 January 2024Frederik X14 January 2024 – presentMette Frederiksen

See also Coronations Monarchy of Denmark Coronation Chair of Denmark

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