Patriotic Societies and Royal Imperial Reforms in Denmark, 1761–1814

Abstract

Denmark in the eighteenth century was a Nordic imperial state with aspirations to gaining a place among Europe’s commercial nations. This chapter deals with the 57 patriotic societies that were established in the Danish conglomerate state in the later eighteenth century and the ôarious outlooks that were formed within these societies on the main challenge of the time within Danish politics. The members of these societies, who were primarily recruited from the middle classes, typically adôocated reforms within economic life, general education, health care and poor relief. The idea was that economic progress should be built up by simultaneously eliminating widespread apathy and laziness among the lower orders, as a domestic complement to, in international trade, adhering to protectionist policies to keep out foreign imports. Creating an industrious work ethic among the population, howeôer, turned out to be more difficult than was initially belieôed.