Christian VI of Denmark - Reign and Personality

Reign and Personality

To posterity Christian VI is known foremost as a religious ruler. He was deeply devoted to Pietism, and during his entire reign he tried to impart its teachings to his subjects. The religious pressure he imposed, along with his lack of personal charm, made him one of the most unpopular of Denmark's absolutist kings. Later historians have tried to rehabilitate his reputation. They have stressed that he was not quite so intolerant as had been said and that he was an industrious and scrupulous bureaucrat. The negative impression, however, has lasted over the years.

Christian's central domestic act was the introduction of the so-called adscription of 1733 (in Danish, stavnsbånd), a law that forced peasants to remain in their home regions, and by which the peasantry was subject to both the local nobility and the army. Though the idea behind this law was probably to secure a constant number of peasant soldiers, it later was widely regarded as the ultimate subjugation of the Danish peasantry. Therefore, this act, too, damaged Christian VI's reputation. The act was abolished in 1788.

The Pietist views of King Christian of course influenced much of his ecclesiastical polity. On the surface the king was victorious, but both parsons and many common people secretly resisted the king's influence. After his death, Pietism lost its official sponsorship. This did not mean that it was without effect. It influenced much of the poetry of the age, among others, that of the great hymn writer Hans Adolph Brorson. Another lasting result of the king’s efforts was the introduction of confirmation in 1736.

In addition to pietism and adscription, there were numerous "building activities" connected to Christian VI, and he was probably the greatest Danish builder of the 18th century. His queen also made a notable effort. Among their works are Christiansborg Palace (built 1732–42, burned 1794, rebuilt), Hirschholm Palace in North Zealand in current day Hørsholm municipality (built 1737–39, demolished 1812) and the Eremitage (built 1734–36, still standing). These expensive buildings were erected with the purpose of representing the power and wealth of the Danish realm, but they also became an economic burden on the subjects.

Christian's foreign policy was a peaceful one, and Denmark kept strictly neutral. In both trade and commerce, it was an age of advancement; some new companies and banks were founded.

Personally, Christian VI was a puritan of simple habits, and a man with a tendency to shun human society. From his youth, he was sickly, and several diseases led to his early death.

On his death in 1746, Christian VI was interred in Roskilde Cathedral. The neoclassical memorial designed and produced by sculptor Johannes Wiedewelt was commissioned by the king's widow. The marble monument was completed in 1768, but not installed at Roskilde Cathedral until 1777. The monument includes a sarcophagus and two female figures, "Sorgen" ("Sorrow") and "Berømmelsen" ("Fame"). This was the first neoclassical sarcophagus in Denmark and is considered to mark the start of neoclassicism in Denmark.