This weekend I watched A Royal Affair, a Danish movie about a real event in its history. The movie with English subtitles was released in 2012 and is now available on DVD.

In 1766, Caroline Matilda of Great Britain, sister to George III, was married to King Christian VII and became Queen of Denmark and Norway. Her husband was mentally ill and the marriage was not happy, but under the influence of his German physician, Johann Friedrich Struensee, he passed many enlightened laws improving the lot of the Danish people, laws such as abolishing torture, freeing the serfs, eliminating censorship.

Struensee also became the Queen’s lover and fathered a daughter by her.

The film dramatizes the complicated relationship among these three people, the king, the queen and the doctor, which ends tragically with the arrest of Struensee, the banishment of the queen and the usurping of the king’s power by his step-mother and half-brother. The progressive reforms were eliminated and the country lapsed into a reactionary period until Caroline and Christian’s son began his rule.

Read about the true story. It is fascinating!

The movie is beautifully acted, especially by the actors playing the three main characters. This was the first movie by the actor playing the king. He was not yet out of drama school, but he does a fabulous job.

And it was a dramatic piece of history that was new to me. It was connected to “our” period, as well – Caroline Mathilda was the Prince Regent’s aunt.

Did you see the movie? What did you think of it? Did you know this piece of history?

I’m busy finishing book 3 in the Masquerade Club series. It is due tomorrow. Wish me luck that I turn it in on time!