Editing Frederick II of Denmark (section)

=== Later reign ===
During the eighteen remaining years of his reign, Frederik would come to drew extensively on the lessons he learned in the [[Northern Seven Years' War]] with [[Eric XIV of Sweden]]. In the peacetime years, he maintained a rather peripatetic court, moving from residence to residence throughout the Danish countryside, spending a fair share of his time in [[hunting]]. This allowed him the opportunity to meet members of the [[Riksråd|Council]] individually and informally, in their home regions. As was required of the Danish King, he did summon the [[Council of the Realm (Denmark)|Council of the Realm]] once annually to meet at the ''herredag'', but most of his business with the council was done on a one-to-one basis.<ref name=":15">Lockhart, Paul D., page 40</ref> This ensured a very close personal bond with each member of the council while minimizing the opportunity for the council to oppose him as a full body. Frederik's personable disposition also helped,<ref name=":33" /> and so, too, did the informal nature of court life under Frederik II. The king [[Hunting|hunted]], [[Banquet|feasted]], and drank with his noble [[councillor]]s and [[adviser]]s, and even with visiting [[Dignitary|foreign dignitaries]], treating them as his equal peers and companions rather than as political opponents or inferiors. The eighteenth-century chronicler [[Ludvig Holberg]] claimed that when dining at his court, Frederik would frequently announce that 'the king is not at home', which signalled to his guests that all court [[Formality|formalities]] were temporarily suspended, and that they could talk and joke as they pleased without restraint. The Danish court of Frederick II may have appeared to be unsophisticated to outside observers, but the openness and bawdiness of court life served Frederik's political purposes.<ref name=":15" /> In 1585, he visited Norway for the first and only time as king, but only went to [[Bohuslen]].<ref>[http://nbl.snl.no/Frederik_2 Norsk biografisk leksikon – Frederik II]</ref>

==== Financial situation ====
The great cost of the [[Northern Seven Years' War]], some 1.1&nbsp;million [[Danish rigsdaler|rigsdaler]], was recovered chiefly from higher taxation on both Danish and Norwegian farm properties.<ref name=":16">Lockhart, Paul D., page 41</ref> After state finances collapsed in the aftermath of the war, King Frederick II called [[Peder Oxe]] home to address the kingdom's economy. The taking over of Danish administration and finances by the able councillor, provided a marked improvement for the national treasury. Councillors of experience, including [[Niels Kaas]], [[Arild Huitfeldt]], and [[Christoffer Valkendorff]], took care of the domestic administration. Subsequently, government finances were put in order and Denmark-Norway's economy improved. One of the chief expedients of the improved state of affairs was the raising of the [[Sound Dues]]. Oxe, as lord treasurer, reduced the national debt considerably and redeemed portions of [[crown land]]s.<ref>{{cite web|title=Christian III, Peder Oxe and the 1557 Meeting of the Great Council: Royal Purges and Succession|url=http://www.historisktidsskrift.dk/summary/108_387.html|access-date=15 August 2016|publisher=historisktidsskrift.dk}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Oxe, Peder, 1520–75, Rigshofmester|url=https://runeberg.org/dbl/12/0497.html|access-date=15 August 2016|publisher=Dansk biografisk Lexikon}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=''Frederik 2'' (Danish Kings and their History)|url=http://www.danskekonger.dk/eng/biografi/FreII.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100729205146/http://www.danskekonger.dk/eng/biografi/FreII.html|archive-date=29 July 2010|access-date=10 May 2010}}</ref>