While these things were in progress, Christian, who had no intention of imposing himself on the Danes by force of arms, but wished, on the contrary, to be freely called to the throne, and by the people themselves,[[352]] had marched against the enemies of Denmark, and was besieging that powerful town of Lübeck which had brought confusion on his country. The Grand Master, Magnus Gjoë, Ove Lunge, another member of the Diet, and two bishops set out to announce to him his election. Informed of their mission he went to meet them, and received them at the cloister of Preetz, in Holstein, situated above Eutin and the charming lake of Ploen. Christian accepted with gratitude, dignity, and modesty the crown which was offered to him as the only man who had power to save the kingdom. Soon afterwards he went to Horsens, in Jutland, situated at the head of a gulf formed by the sea to the north of the Little Belt. At this place the States of Jutland and Fionia met in a great assembly on a plain near the town. Christian was here proclaimed king; and, on his knees, with hands raised towards heaven, he took the oath in use at the election of a monarch; saving, however, the necessary changes which might be made, with the assent of the Diet, particularly with respect to the property and the privileges of the bishops. From the very beginnings of the Reformation, the prelates had incessantly resisted its progress. They had imprisoned or banished the reformers, had deposed a king, and as soon as the throne was vacant had endeavored to place on it a boy whom they assumed to keep under their own guardianship. Everywhere and at all times they had taken the position of masters of the country. And now their star was paling, a dark veil hung over their destinies, and the sun ‘that ariseth with healing in his wings’ was about to radiate freely his light and heat.[[353]]
There was still, however, much to do. Oldenburg’s soldiers, under the command of a pirate, had invaded the north of Jutland, and had spread there, as they did everywhere, ruin and desolation.
Rantzau who was in command of the royal troops expelled them. Oldenburg went to Copenhagen, and being determined to push on the war vigorously, demanded of the gentry their silver plate and the jewels, necklaces, and bracelets of their wives and daughters. But at the call of the new king, Sweden, having no desire to see its butcher, the terrible Christian II., reascend the throne of Scandinavia, despatched an army into Scania which pursued the Lübeckers as far as Malmoe. Christian III., for want of a fleet, passed the Little Belt in ordinary boats. The German army was defeated in two engagements. More than two hundred German lords perished in these fights; and the famous Archbishop Troll, the friend of Christian the Cruel, who, in conjunction with Hoya, was in command of the army of the invaders, was severely wounded and died. At length the spring of 1535 permitted the vessels of Sweden and Prussia to join those of Denmark. This fleet touched at the island of Zealand, and the king and the army encamped at a distance of four leagues from Copenhagen, and soon invested the city. The siege lasted a year; and during this time Christian III. overran the other provinces for the purpose of driving away the enemy.
In the midst of these struggles and conflicts the Reformation was making its way without the co-operation of the king. Its adherents were gradually regaining possession of the churches and offices of which they had been deprived by the bishops in the fatal year 1533. Christian undertook a journey into Sweden; and the order, peace, and prosperity which prevailed in that country, since the Reformation achieved the victory over the Romish hierarchy, attracted his attention, and convinced him more than ever that in this victory was to be found the source of the welfare of the individual and the community.
The Lubeckers Repulsed.
At the same time the Lübeckers were beginning to be weary of an unrighteous, burdensome, and unsuccessful war. The elector of Saxony, with other princes and some of the free towns of Germany, looking on the young Christian as one of their own body, offered to mediate between Lübeck and him. A congress was accordingly opened at Hamburg. It was arranged that all hostilities should cease between the king and the state of Lübeck, and that Copenhagen and the other towns still in rebellion should be pardoned if they made their submission. But these towns refused to surrender, in the confidence that Queen Mary of Hungary, governess of the Netherlands, the sister-in-law of Christian II., would send them aid. Necessity at last brought about what inclination refused. Copenhagen, in which the Count of Oldenburg had shut himself up, could no longer hold out. There was no more bread in the town. Those who had a little barley or oats ate them uncooked, lest the smoke should reveal the fact, and the famishing should come and carry off what remained. In a little while this emaciated population had nothing to live on but horses, dogs, and cats; and for this kind of food a very high price was charged.
The soldiers who had nothing at all entered houses to snatch, from those who still had any thing left, any poor food, and carried it off, harassing them at the same time with shameful treatment. These unfortunates sought with eagerness after every thing that seemed capable of sustaining life. Men and women who were mere shadows wandered about hither and thither, scaring those who met them; and they were seen dragging themselves upon the ramparts exposed to the fire of the enemy and stooping to pluck from the soil any wild herbs. Some, when they felt that death was approaching, left their beds and dragged themselves along to the cemetery, as their relatives would certainly have no strength to carry them thither, and they lay down to die on the earth which was to cover them. Others, impatient for the end of the long agony, exposed themselves to the shots of the besiegers. Pity was nowhere to be found; and when some of these wretched victims abandoned themselves to cries and lamentations—‘Off with you!’ said the chiefs, ‘you are not so badly off as they were at the siege of Jerusalem, where parents ate their own children.’[[354]] There was more charity in the prince who was besieging them. Duke Albert of Mecklenburg, who had married a niece of the elder Christian, and was hoping to inherit his crown, was one of the leaders shut up in Copenhagen. His wife being confined, the young king sent her victuals in great abundance for the sustenance of herself and of all her connections.
The King’s Entry Into Copenhagen.
At last came the catastrophe of this tragedy. The townsmen and the soldiers, subdued by hunger, offered to capitulate. Christian’s first intention was that they should surrender at discretion; but his generous disposition soon prevailed, and he promised pardon to all his enemies. The Duke of Mecklenburg and the Count of Oldenburg proceeded on foot to the royal camp, their heads uncovered and white bâtons in their hands.[[355]] They made a public confession of their offences, and falling on their knees they asked pardon of the king. Christian gave a stern reception to the Count of Oldenburg, whose ambition had plunged Denmark into a most cruel war. He reminded him of the pillage, the conflagrations, and the murders which he had ordered in the states of a prince of his own blood, and urged him to repent. Then he raised him up, saying at the same time that he was willing still to acknowledge him as his kinsman, although he had shown himself his most cruel enemy.[[356]] As for the Duke of Mecklenburg, the king attributed his offence to weakness, and treated him with forbearance. The deputies of the town afterwards presented themselves and were received with a kindliness that won their hearts. The king made his entry into the capital on the 8th of August, accompanied by the queen, the members of the Diet, and the principal officers of his army. The inhabitants, wasted, pale and tottering, crawled out to see him pass, and had scarcely strength to utter a shout of joy. Many houses had been destroyed by cannon shot; and almost all the churches were thrown down. The emotion and pity which the king felt at this spectacle were depicted on his countenance. His presence was now to put an end to these calamities. He re-entered the town as a king, but also as a father. A similar entry was to take place, at the close of the century, into a capital of higher importance, and on the part of a prince more illustrious. But there was a great difference between Christian III. and Henry IV. The prince of the North did not ascend the throne as the king of France did, ‘to have on his head the feet of the pope.’[[357]]
And now, what had he to do? To bind up the wounds of the kingdom and to give it a new life. Christian felt it necessary to consult the principal members of the Diet. Six days after his entry into Copenhagen he called together, under the seal of secrecy, the Grand Master Magnus Gjoë, the Grand Marshal Krabbe, Rosenkranz, Brahe, Guldenstiern, Friis, Bilde, and some other enlightened members of the senate, and laid his thoughts before them. They came to a unanimous conclusion that the bishops were the chief cause of the troubles in the realm, and that while they were in power its prosperity was impossible. Were they not the authors of this interregnum which had plunged Denmark into an abyss of misfortunes? Had they not rejected the only king who was capable of saving the country? Had they not exercised in his stead tyrannical authority? Was not their temporal power contrary to the Scriptures, a tissue of usurpations and a fatal institution? The people declared for the Reformation. It was, therefore, the duty of the king and of the Diet to take the necessary steps for its complete establishment; and the first thing to do was to deprive the bishops of a power condemned by God and by man. But if they should find that this matter is to be brought before the Diet would they not attempt to raise their partisans? To prevent this their persons must be secured. Sharp remedies for sharp maladies. ‘He leadeth princes away spoiled and overcometh the mighty.’[[358]]