1725-1750

The conclusion of the Great Nordic War in 1720 was the beginning of a long Danish period of peace. Christian VI succeeded Frederik IV in 1730, and his was the first reign during which Denmark was not at war. However, the Kingdom went through an economic crisis which was part of the reason for the introduction of adscription in 1733. In the same year Denmark bought the island of St Croix in the Caribbean, which together with the nearby islands of St Thomas and St John constituted the Danish West Indies. African slaves were imported in large numbers for the sugar plantations on the islands.

Christian VI and Queen Sophie Magdalene were strongly influenced by the strict Pietist movement, and that put a dampener on court life. That changed when Frederik V became King in 1746.

It was not only court life that blossomed in the 1740’s; the French Rococo style, which was replacing Late Baroque, also really caught on. The Court Master Builder, Niels Eigtved, began the work of building the new part of Copenhagen, Frederiksstaden, which was built over the following years, with the four mansions of Amalienborg Palace at its center.