Editing Christian IX (section)

==Early life==

===Birth and family===
{{see also|Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg}}
{{stack|[[File:Gottorf.jpg|thumb|Prince Christian's birthplace [[Gottorf Castle]] in Schleswig-Holstein, seat of the royal governors of the duchies of [[Duchy of Schleswig|Schleswig]] and [[Duchy of Holstein|Holstein]] (2007)]]}}
Christian IX was born between 10 and 11 a.m. on 8 April 1818 at the residence of his maternal grandparents, [[Gottorf Castle]], near the town of [[Schleswig, Schleswig-Holstein|Schleswig]] in the [[Duchy of Schleswig]], at the time a [[fief]] under the Crown of Denmark.<ref name="kongeligedaab">{{cite book|first1=Lone|last1=Hindø|first2=Else|last2=Boelskifte|chapter=Døbt i Gottorp Sloskapel|trans-chapter=Baptised in the Gottorp Castle Chapel|title=Kongelig Dåb. Fjorten generationer ved Rosenborg-døbefonten|trans-title=Royal Baptisms. Fourteen generations at the Rosenborg baptismal font|publisher=Forlaget Hovedland|year=2007|isbn=978-87-7070-014-6|language=da|page=83}}</ref> Born as a prince of [[Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck]], he was the fourth son of [[Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg|Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck]], and [[Princess Louise Caroline of Hesse-Kassel]].<ref name=Burke280>{{cite book |editor-last=Montgomery-Massingberd |editor-first=Hugh |editor-link=Hugh Massingberd |title=Burke's Royal Families of the World |volume=1: Europe & Latin America |publisher=[[Burke's Peerage Ltd]] |location=London |year=1977 |page=280 |isbn=0-85011-023-8}}</ref> He was named after his mother's cousin [[Christian VIII of Denmark|Prince Christian Frederick of Denmark]], the later King Christian VIII, who was also his [[Godparent|godfather]]. Together with his wife, [[Caroline Amalie of Augustenborg]], he had traveled from [[Augustenborg, Denmark|Augustenborg]] to Gottorp so that he could hold his godson at the christening, which was held at the end of May in the chapel of Gottorp Castle.<ref name="kongeligedaab"/>

[[File:Prins Vilhelm 1785-1831.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Prince Christian's father [[Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg|Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck]], from 1825 [[House of Glücksburg|Duke of Glücksburg]]]]
Prince Christian's father was the head of the ducal house of [[Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck]], a junior male branch of the [[House of Oldenburg]]. The family descended from King [[Christian III of Denmark]]'s younger son, [[John the Younger, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg]], whose grandson [[August Philipp, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck|Duke August Philipp]] severed his ties with Denmark and emigrated to Germany where he acquired the [[Manorialism|manor]] of [[Haus Beck]] in [[Westphalia]], after which the lineage was named Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck.{{sfn|Bramsen|1992|p=50}} His sons and their descendants went into [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussian]], [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish]] and [[Russian Empire|Russian]] service, until his great-great-grandson, Prince Christian's father, again went into Danish military service, where he was stationed in Holstein.{{sfn|Bramsen|1992|p=63}} It was there that he had met and married Prince Christian's mother, who was a daughter of [[Prince Charles of Hesse-Kassel|Landgrave Charles of Hesse]], an originally German prince, who, however, had grown up at the Danish court and had married [[Frederick V of Denmark|King Frederick V]]'s youngest daughter, [[Princess Louise of Denmark (1750–1831)|Princess Louise of Denmark]]. Prince Charles had made a career in Denmark, where he was a Danish [[field marshal]] and [[Governor|Royal Governor]] of the duchies of [[Duchy of Schleswig|Schleswig]] and [[Duchy of Holstein|Holstein]].{{sfn|Bramsen|1992|p=48}}

Through his father, Prince Christian was thus a direct male-line descendant of King [[Christian III of Denmark]] and an (albeit junior) [[agnatic]] descendant of [[Hedvig of Holstein]] (countess of Oldenburg), mother of King [[Christian I of Denmark]], who was the "Semi-Salic" heiress of her brother [[Adolf of Schauenburg]], last Schauenburg duke of Schleswig and count of Holstein. As such, Prince Christian was eligible to succeed in the twin duchies of [[Schleswig-Holstein]], but not first in line. Through his mother, he was thus a great-grandson of Frederick V, great-great-grandson of [[George II of Great Britain]] and a descendant of several other monarchs, but had no direct claim to any European throne.

===Childhood===
[[File:Lyksborg slot 9-7-2005 nr 2.jpg|thumb|Prince Christian's childhood home, [[Glücksburg Castle]] in Schleswig-Holstein, seat of the [[Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg|eponymous ducal branches]] of the [[House of Oldenburg]] (2005).]]
Initially, the young prince grew up with his parents and many brothers and sisters at his maternal grandparents' residence at [[Gottorf Castle]], the habitual seat of the royal governors of the duchies of [[Duchy of Schleswig|Schleswig]] and [[Duchy of Holstein|Holstein]]. However, in 1824, the [[Anna Karoline af Nassau-Saarbrücken|dowager duchess of Glücksburg]], widow of [[Frederick Henry William, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg|Frederick Henry William]], the last duke of the [[Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (elder line)|elder line of the house Schleswig-Holstein-Sønderborg-Glücksburg]], who had himself died in 1779, died. [[Glücksburg Castle]], located a little south of [[Flensburg Fjord]], not far from city of [[Flensburg]], was now empty, and on 6 June 1825, Duke Friedrich Wilhelm was appointed Duke of [[Glücksburg]] by his brother-in-law, [[Frederick VI of Denmark|King Frederick VI of Denmark]]. Duke Friedrich Wilhelm subsequently changed his title to Duke of [[Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg]] and thus founded [[House of Glücksburg|the younger Glücksburg]] line.{{sfn|Bramsen|1992|p=78-82}}

Subsequently, the family moved to [[Glücksburg Castle]], where Prince Christian was [[child raising|raised]] with his siblings under their father's supervision. The Duke wrote to a friend: {{blockquote|I raise my sons with rigor, that these may learn to obey, without, however, failing to make them available to the requirements and demands of the present.{{sfn|Thorsøe|1889|p=523}}}} However, Duke Friedrich Wilhelm died of a cold that had developed into pneumonia at the age of just 46 on 17 February 1831 and, at the Duke's own discretion, scarlet fever, which had previously affected two of his children. His death left the duchess widowed with ten children and no money. Prince Christian was twelve years old when his father died.

===Education===
[[File:Frederik VI and family.jpg|thumb|left|Prince Christian's surrogate father, [[Frederick VI of Denmark]], whose queen [[Marie of Hesse-Kassel]] was his aunt and the two princesses his cousins.]]
Following the early death of his father, King Frederick VI, together with [[William of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld (1786-1834)|Prince William of Hesse-Philippstal-Barchfeld]], a close friend of the Duke, became [[legal guardian]]s of Prince Christian and his nine siblings.{{sfn|Thorsøe|1889|p=523}} That same year, Prince Christian wanted to be educated as a [[naval officer]], but during King Frederick VI's visit to Gottorp in 1831, shortly after Duke Wilhelm's funeral, the king agreed with his mother that Prince Christian would be sent to [[Copenhagen]] to receive an [[army officer]] training. Subsequently, in 1832, the year after his father's death, the 14-year-old Prince Christian moved to Copenhagen to be educated at the Land Cadet Academy, where he stayed at the house of Colonel Linde, the head of the Land Cadet Academy. He received private lessons at the academy and was rarely with the other [[cadets]].{{sfn|Thorsøe|1889|p=523}}<ref>{{cite web|url= https://henrypoole.com/hall_of_fame/hm-king-christian-ix-of-denmark/|title= HM King Christian IX of Denmark|publisher = Henry Poole & Co. |date= 17 June 2013|access-date= 15 August 2016}}</ref> On the other hand, the sonless royal couple took good care of the boy, as [[Marie of Hesse-Kassel|Queen Marie]] was his mother's sister and King Frederick VI his mother's cousin. Also, in 1838, Prince Christian's eldest brother, [[Karl, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg|Duke Karl of Glücksborg]], married the king and queen's youngest daughter, [[Princess Vilhelmine Marie of Denmark|Princess Vilhelmine Marie]], which further strengthened the bonds between them.

[[File:Det Gule Palae Copenhagen.jpg|thumb|Prince Christian's longtime home, the [[Yellow Palace, Copenhagen|Yellow Palace]] in Copenhagen (2006).]]
In 1835, Prince Christian was [[confirmation (Lutheran Church)|confirmed]] in the [[Garrison Church, Copenhagen|Garrison Church]] in Copenhagen. The following year, after completing his military education, he was appointed [[rittmeister]] at the [[Royal Horse Guards (Denmark)|Royal Horse Guards]] and was then housed in the [[Royal Horse Guards Barracks (Copenhagen)|Royal Horse Guards Barracks]] by [[Frederiksholms Kanal]] in central Copenhagen. There he lived under simple conditions until King Frederick VI in 1839 granted him a home in the [[Yellow Palace, Copenhagen|Yellow Palace]], an 18th century [[town house]] at 18 [[Amaliegade]], immediately adjacent to the [[Amalienborg]] Palace complex, the principal residence of the [[Danish royal family]] in the district of [[Frederiksstaden]] in central [[Copenhagen]], where he came to live until 1865.{{sfn|Thorsøe|1889|p=523}}

From 1839 to 1841, Prince Christian studied [[constitutional law]] and history with his half-cousin [[Prince Frederick William of Hesse-Kassel]] at the [[University of Bonn]] in Germany. It was there that in December 1839 he received the news of the death of his benefactor King Frederick VI and the accession of his mother's cousin, [[Christian VIII of Denmark|King Christian VIII]]. During the holidays he went on various excursions in Germany and also traveled to [[Venice]]. In 1841 he returned to Copenhagen. On the way home, he paid a visit to the court in Berlin, where he rejected an otherwise flattering offer from King [[Frederick William IV of Prussia]] to join the [[Prussian Army]].{{sfn|Thorsøe|1889|p=523-524}}