Christian I of Denmark

Christian I (February 1426 – 21 May 1481) was a Scandinavian monarch under the Kalmar Union. He was King of Denmark (1448–1481), Norway (1450–1481) and Sweden (1457–1464). From 1460 to 1481, he was concurrently Duke of Schleswig and Count (from 1474: Duke) of Holstein. He was the first Danish monarch of the House of Oldenburg.

He was a son of Count Dietrich of Oldenburg and Hedwig of Holstein, a descendant of King Eric V of Denmark. In the power vacuum that arose following the childless death of King Christopher of Denmark, Sweden and Norway in 1448, Sweden elected Charles VIII king with the intent to reestablish the union under a Swedish king. Charles was elected king of Norway in the following year, but the counts of Holstein were more influential than the Swedes and the Norwegians together, and made the Danish Privy Council appoint Christian as king. His subsequent accessions to the thrones of Norway (in 1450) and Sweden (in 1457), restored the unity of the Kalmar Union for a short period. In 1460, following the childless death of his uncle, Duke Adolphus of Schleswig, Count of Holstein, Christian also became Duke of Schleswig and Count of Holstein.

Christian I (disambiguation)

Christian I generally refers to Christian I of Denmark. It may also refer to:

Christian I (archbishop of Mainz)

Christian I (c. 1130 – 23 August 1183), sometimes Christian von Buch, was a German prelate and nobleman. He was Archbishop of Mainz and Archchancellor of Germany from 1165 until his death 1183. He was originally elected archbishop in 1160 in a disputed election. He served the Emperor Frederick I as a diplomat in Italy on two occasions.

Biography

Christian was of the family of Beichlingen and ruled the small county of Buch. He entered the church under the patronage of Louis II, Landgrave of Thuringia, who helped him to the position of cathedral provost of Merseburg. In 1160, with the murder of the Archbishop Arnold of Mainz, Mainz was placed under an interdict. Some of the cathedral's canons fled to Frankfurt and there elected Christian archbishop. Others, however, elected Rudolf of Zähringen. The Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, however, convened the Synod of Lodi and had Pope Victor IV depose both candidates and raise Conrad of Wittelsbach to the episcopal seat on 20 June 1161.