Christine Sophie Holstein
Encyclopedia
Christine Sophie Holstein (30 October 1672 – 27 June1757) was a politically influential Danish
salon
hostess.
Daughter to Count Conrad von Reventlow
(1644–1708), Danish Grand Chancellor (prime minister), and Anna Margrethe Gabel (1651–1678), she married Count Niels Friis (1665–1699) in 1688 and statesman count Count Ulrik Adolph von Holstein in 1700, and belonged to the highest aristocracy in Denmark. In 1707, she was granted Seekamp estate (a part of today's Kiel
-Schilksee) in then Slesvig as her own fief by her father.
From 1712, the king had a relationship with her half-sister, Anna Sophie Reventlow, and in 1721, he made her queen. Holstein had a large influence over her sister and her royal brother-in-law: she was called “madame la grande chancellière” (Madame Grand Chancellor), and her views were presented through her sister to the king and to the government, thereby making her an important politician in the 1710s and 1720s. She held a salon in her palace in Copenhagen
, and it was well known by foreign ambassadors that she was one of the most powerful people during the reign of Frederick IV of Denmark
.
In 1730, Fredrick IV died and his son banned Anne Sophie Reventlow from court and fired Holstein's husband. Holstein lost all power and spent the rest of her life with her family.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
salon
Salon (gathering)
A salon is a gathering of people under the roof of an inspiring host, held partly to amuse one another and partly to refine taste and increase their knowledge of the participants through conversation. These gatherings often consciously followed Horace's definition of the aims of poetry, "either to...
hostess.
Daughter to Count Conrad von Reventlow
Conrad von Reventlow
Conrad von Reventlow was the first Prime Minister of Denmark from 1699 until his death. His Chancellorship occurred during the reign of Frederick IV.-Biography:...
(1644–1708), Danish Grand Chancellor (prime minister), and Anna Margrethe Gabel (1651–1678), she married Count Niels Friis (1665–1699) in 1688 and statesman count Count Ulrik Adolph von Holstein in 1700, and belonged to the highest aristocracy in Denmark. In 1707, she was granted Seekamp estate (a part of today's Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
-Schilksee) in then Slesvig as her own fief by her father.
From 1712, the king had a relationship with her half-sister, Anna Sophie Reventlow, and in 1721, he made her queen. Holstein had a large influence over her sister and her royal brother-in-law: she was called “madame la grande chancellière” (Madame Grand Chancellor), and her views were presented through her sister to the king and to the government, thereby making her an important politician in the 1710s and 1720s. She held a salon in her palace in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, and it was well known by foreign ambassadors that she was one of the most powerful people during the reign of Frederick IV of Denmark
Frederick IV of Denmark
Frederick IV was the king of Denmark and Norway from 1699 until his death. Frederick was the son of King Christian V of Denmark and Norway and Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel .-Foreign affairs:...
.
In 1730, Fredrick IV died and his son banned Anne Sophie Reventlow from court and fired Holstein's husband. Holstein lost all power and spent the rest of her life with her family.