King Christian X Denmark

1. King Christian X Denmark By: Emily Meinzer

2. King Christian x of Denmark was born on September 26th 1870 and died on April 20th 1947. His full name is Christian Carl Fredrick Albert Alexander Vilhelm. He was King of Denmark from 1912 to 1947 and the only official King of Iceland (as Kristjan X), between 1918 and 1944. He was born at Charlottenlund Palace in Gentofte Municipality near Copenhagen.

3. child of King Fredrick Vill of Denmark, and his wife, Princess Louise, only surviving King Christian X was the oldest son and child of King Charles XV of Sweden. Among his siblings were King Haakon Vll of Norway. King Christian married Princess Alexarine, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in Cannes on April 26th 1898; she eventually became his Queen Consort.

4. They had two children: Prince Fredrick (1899 – 1972), later King Fredrick lX of Denmark, Prince Knud (1900 – 1972), later Knud, Hereditary Prince of Denmark. Being something of an authoritarian and a ruler who strongly stressed the importance of royal Dignity and power in an age of growing democracy, Christian X did not seem fit for popularity.

5. However, a reign spanning two world wars and the role he was believed to have played under Nazi rule made him one of the most popular Danish monarchs of modern times. Christan x was the 1,100th Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece in Spain, the 849th Knight of the Order of the Garter in 1914 and the 265th Grand Cross of the Order of the Tower and Sword.

6. In contrast to his brother, King Haakon VII of Norway, and Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, who went into exile during the Nazi occupation of their countries, Christian X remained in his capital throughout the occupation of Denmark, being to the Danish people a visible symbol of the national cause (although it is important to note that Norway's King Haakon VII was forced to escape the invading Germans after refusing to accept a Nazi-friendly puppet regime).

7. During the Nazi occupation Christian's official speeches were often little more than an echoing of the government's official policy of cooperation with the occupying forces, this did not prevent him from being seen as a man of "mental resistance". In spite of his age and the precarious situation, he took a daily ride on his horse, "Jubilee" through his city—not accompanied by a groom, let alone by a guard.

8. While acknowledging greetings from the Danish population, he would studiously ignore the punctilious salutes of German military personnel. In 1942, Adolf Hitler sent the king a long telegram congratulating him on his 72nd birthday. The king's reply telegram was a mere, Meinen besten Dank. Chr. Rex (English: My best thanks, King Chr.). This perceived (and no doubt deliberate) slight greatly outraged Hitler and he immediately recalled his ambassador from Copenhagen and expelled the Danish ambassador from Germany.

9. German pressure also resulted in the dismissal of the government led by Vilhelm Buhl and its replacement with a new cabinet led by non-party member and veteran diplomat Erik Scavenius, who the Germans expected would be more cooperative. After a fall with his horse on 19 October 1942[1], he was more or less an invalid for the rest of his reign.

10. The role he had played in creating the Easter Crisis of 1920, had greatly reduced his popularity, but his obvious disdain for the German Wehrmacht, daily rides and the Telegram Crisis had once again made him popular to the point of being a beloved national symbol

11. Pictures