Hundt, Michael (Hrsg.) Vorschmak

Geschichte der dänischen Könige

On 9 September 1724, King Frederick IV of Denmark received the three-and-a-half-year-old child prodigy Christian Henrich Heineken from Lübeck in a private audience. The young visitor brought with him a printed introduction to the history of the Danish kings, written by his teacher, as a gift. The present became a unique work of art thanks to the 250 colour illustrations, which were hand-drawn by the boy's mother, Catharina Elisabeth Heineken, who worked as a painter in Lübeck. The Vorschmak spans a historical arc from the mythological prehistory and early history of Denmark in the 9th century to the beginning of the 18th century, introducing the reader to the turbulent historical developments of the Nordic country through the succession of kings. The Vorschmak was written in 1724, at the end of this development. Its view of history is typical of the time and focuses on the kings and their actions.