Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel

Juliana Maria of Brunswick, (1729–1796), "(always called Juliane Marie)", was queen of Denmark between 1752 and 1766, second consort of king Frederick V of Denmark and Norway, mother of the prince-regent Hereditary Prince Frederick of Denmark and Norway and herself de facto regent 1772–1784.

Biography

Born as daughter of Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, she became the second consort and queen to king Frederick V of Denmark in 1752, one year after the death of his first consort Louise of Great Britain.

As a queen, she lived a quiet life. She became more important as a dowager queen. In 1766, she became a widow. In 1768, she participated in the banishment of Christian's mistress Støvlete-Cathrine‎, who was believed to have influence over him. In 1770, the new king, her stepson king Christian VII of Denmark, had become insane and the power had fallen in the hands of his consort Caroline Matilda of Wales and her lover Johann Friedrich Struensee. They had a liberal politics and issued a row of democratic laws that raised the opposition to the nobility. Juliane Marie then became the centre of the opposition, and she was one of the group that participated in the coup d'etat that brought down the government of Struensee by exposing his affair with the queen. In 1772, Struensee was executed and queen Caroline Mathilda was exiled.

The son of Juliane Marie, Hereditary Prince Frederick, was now made regent. In reality, he was the puppet of his mother, who was the real and undisputed ruler during his regency. Her government was one of extreme conservatism. She saved the privileges of the nobility and was regarded as the hero of the aristocracy and the saviour of their privileges.

In 1784, she and her son were deprived of their regency by the crown prince, King Frederick VI of Denmark.

Succession

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