Editing Christian IX (section)

===Appointment as an heir presumptive===
{{See also|London Protocol (1852)|Act of Succession (Denmark)}}
[[File:Princess Dagmar, Prince Vilhelm, Christian IX of Denmark and Princess Alexandra..JPG|thumb|left|Prince Christian as [[heir presumptive]] with his children [[Maria Feodorovna (Dagmar of Denmark)|Dagmar]], [[George I of Greece|William]] and [[Alexandra of Denmark|Alexandra]] in 1861.]]
In 1851, the Russian emperor recommended that Prince Christian advance in the Danish succession. And in 1852, the thorny question of Denmark's succession was finally resolved by the [[London Protocol (1852)|London Protocol]] of 8 May 1852, signed by the United Kingdom, France, Russia, [[Prussia]] and Austria, and ratified by Denmark and Sweden. Christian was chosen as [[heir presumptive]] to the throne after Frederick VII's uncle, and thus would become king after the extinction of the most senior line to the Danish throne. A justification for this choice was his marriage to [[Louise of Hesse-Kassel]], who as daughter of the closest female relative of Frederick VII was closely related to the royal family. Louise's mother and brother, and elder sister too, renounced their rights in favor of Louise and her husband. Prince Christian's wife was thereafter the closest female heiress of Frederick VII.

The decision was implemented by the Danish Law of Succession of 31 July 1853—more precisely, the ''Royal Ordinance settling the Succession to the Crown on Prince Christian of Glücksburg'' which designated him as second-in-line to the [[Danish throne]] following King Frederick VII's uncle. Consequently, Prince Christian and his family were granted the titles of Prince and Princess of Denmark and the [[Royal and noble styles|style]] of ''[[Highness]]''.<ref>[http://www.hoelseth.com/royalty/denmark/dkres18530731.html Royal Ordinance settling the Succession to the Crown on Prince Christian of Glücksburg]. from ''[http://www.hoelseth.com/royalty/royalty.html Hoelseth's Royal Corner]''. Retrieved 7 November 2011.</ref>

[[File:Bernstorff Slot Feb06.jpg|thumb|[[Bernstorff Palace]], Prince Christian's summer residence as [[heir presumptive]] (2006).]]
As second in line, Prince Christian continued to live in the Yellow Palace with his family. However, as a consequence of their new status, the family were also granted the right to use [[Bernstorff Palace]] north of Copenhagen as their summer residence. It became Princess Louise's favorite residence, and the family often stayed there. It was also at Bernstorff that their youngest son, [[Prince Valdemar of Denmark|Prince Valdemar]], was born in 1858.<ref name=Burke69/> At the occasion of Prince Valdemar's [[baptism]], Prince Christian and his family were granted the style of ''[[Royal Highness]]''. Although their economy had improved, the financial situation of the family was still relatively strained.

However, Prince Christian's appointment as successor to the throne was not met with undivided enthusiasm. His relationship with the king was cool, partly because the colorful King Frederick VII did not like the straightforward, military prince, and had preferred to see Christian's eldest son, the young Prince Frederick, take his place, partly because Prince Christian and Princess Louise openly showed their disapproval of the king's [[morganatic]] third wife, the actress Louise Rasmussen, who received the title [[Countess Danner]].{{sfn|Scocozza|1997|p=182}} Politically, Prince Christian also had little influence during his tenure as second-in-line. This was partly due to the distrust of the Countess Danner, partly due to Christian's perceived conservatism, which earned him the distrust of the powerful [[National Liberal Party (Denmark)|National Liberal Party]]. It was not before 1856 that the politician [[Carl Christoffer Georg Andræ]], to whom Prince Christian always felt close, secured him a seat in the [[Council of State (Denmark)|Council of State]].{{sfn|Scocozza|1997|p=183}}

The year 1863 became rich in significant events for Prince Christian and his family. On 10 March, his eldest daughter, [[Alexandra of Denmark|Princess Alexandra]] married the Prince of Wales (the future King [[Edward VII]] of the United Kingdom). On 20 March, his second son, Prince William was elected [[King of the Hellenes]] and ascended the [[Monarchy of Greece|Greek throne]] taking the name of King George I.<ref name=Burke69/> And in June 1863, Prince Christian himself became ''heir-presumptive'' upon the death of the elderly Prince Ferdinand before eventually becoming King Christian IX on 15 November that year.