Events:
1559 – Elizabeth I of England the evening before her coronation to make a procession throughout London.

1724 – Phillip V of Spain, the first Bourbon king of Spain abdicates the throne in favour of his son, Louis. Louis would sadly die before the year was out, and Phillip would assume the throne again, until his death, as his second son was a minor.

1814 – Frederick VI of Denmark signs the Treaty of Kiel, which gives Norway to Sweden, in exchange for Sweden giving the Danes its lands in Pomerania.

1972 – Magarethe II of Denmark becomes Queen. She is the first Queen regnant since 1412, and the first monarch since 1513 not named Frederick or Christian.

Birthdays:
1131 – Valdemar I of Denmark is born. He was the grandson of Eric I and became King in 1157, after having been thrust into a civil war. During latter, there was a banquet with two pretenders to the throne, Sweyn III Grathe and Canute V, as well as Valdemar and his most trusted adviser and friend, Absalon. Hosted by Sweyn, who tried to dispose of all of them, only Valdemar and Absalon escaped, starting a war in which Sweyn would be ultimately defeated and killed, enabling Valdemar to claim the throne. He would spend time reorganizing a war tattered country and rebuilding, helping with the rise of the Danes as a European power, peaking with his son Valdemar II.

1507 – Catherine of Austria is born to Joanna of Castile shortly after the death of her father, Phillip of Habsburg. She was the only of her sibilings, which inlcuded future Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, to be born in Spain. She became Queen of Portugal when she married John III. Before John’s death, Catherine had a great influence in court, even starting a tribunal on the Inquisition in Portugal. Together with her brother-in-law, she would later spend time as a joint regent for her grandson, in his minority.

1767 – Maria Theresa, Archduchess of Austria is born in Italy to Grand Duke Leopold, future Holy Roman Emperor, and his wife Maria Luisa. She was named for her grandmother, the formidable Austrian Empress Maria Theresa. She later became Queen consort of Saxony when she married Anthony of Saxony, first by proxy in Florence, then in Dresden. The latter wedding was supposed to include a trip to Prague, and in their honour Mozart’s Don Giovanni should have premiered. However, they could not meet their schedule.They would have four children, none of which survived age 2, and would only hold the title of Queen for a short time, until the Napoleonic Wars ended.

Deaths:
1892 – Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale, died of influenza just a week after his 28th birthday, and shortly after his engagement to Princess Victoria Mary of Teck. He was the son of Edward, Prince of Wales (future Edward VII) and Princess Alexandra and was being groomed to become Prince of Wales and the eventual King of the United Kingdom. His brother, George, would take his place in line, and would bond with the inconsolable Victoria Mary, whom he would eventually marry.

1972 – Frederick IX of Denmark dies at age 72 of apparent cardiac arrest. He had become King in 1947, after spending time in the Danish navy. His brother Knud was expected to become King after Frederick’s death, since he only had daughters, but the Acts of Succession were changed in 1953, letting daughters accede to the throne if there were no sons. His daughter, Margarethe, is the current Queen of Denmark. During his regency, especially in the 1960s, Denmark saw a lot of other modern changes, including its transition to a welfare state, and women being allowed to enter the labour market.

Have an awesome day!!