Danish Monarch. Born the son of Frederick II of Denmark and Norway, and Sophia of Mecklenburg at Frederiksborg Castle in Hillerød, Denmark. In 1588, at the age of 11 he ascended the throne upon the death of his father as Christian IV. He was overseen by a regency until 1596 when he came of age. He married Anna Catherine of Brandenburg in 1597 and they had one son. Christian was recognized as a heavy drinker, gambler, and carouser in the courts of Europe, but also was credited with building of a significant navy, building fortresses along the Swedish frontier, subsidizing students, building a residential college in Copenhagen, and supporting his country in financial crisis with his vast personal fortune. He set Denmark's mercantilist policies and founded companies. Many cities were founded and built under Christian including Kristiania (present day Oslo.) In 1611 Denmark declared war on Sweden which was ultimately settled with the Peace of Knäred in January 1613. Assuming the role of Defender of the Protestant Faith in 1624. Christian then led an army of about 20,000 mercenaries against the Holy Roman Emperor, Ferdinand II, and was decisively defeated at Lutter-am-Barenberg. Schleswig, Holstein, and Jutland were overrun and plundered; Stralsund was besieged by imperial troops. Christian and Gustavus II of Sweden lifted the siege of Stralsund, but in 1629 the Danes sued for a separate peace, ending their participation in the Thirty Years War. Christian made overtures to Poland, Russia, and the German Emperor about an alliance against Sweden. Sweden subsequently declared war on Denmark in 1643. The following year Swedish forces overran Jutland. The Swedes won vast concessions in the Treaty of Bromsbero in 1645 and withdrew, leaving Denmark famine and plague ridden, and Christian defeated and discredited. He died less than three years later at Copenhagen.