Editing Margaret I of Denmark (section)

==Reputation and legacy==
[[File:Margareta, 1353-1412, drottning av Danmark Norge och Sverige - Nationalmuseum - 15053.tif|thumb|right|Imaginary portrait of Margaret in coronation robes, posthumous, by an unknown artist and date, currently housed in [[Nationalmuseum]].]]
[[Elise Otté|E.C. Otte]] writes in 1874, that "[i]f Margaret could have been certain of being followed on the throne by rulers as able and just as she had been, this Act of the Union of Calmar might have worked for the good of the three kingdoms. For it was quite true, as the Queen said, that each one alone was a poor weak state, open to danger from every side, but that the three united would make a monarchy, strong enough to defy the attacks and schemes of the Hanse traders and all foes from the side of Germany, and would keep the Baltic clear of danger from foreigners. However no ruler came after Queen Margaret equal to her, as there had been none before her to be compared to her."{{sfn|Otte|1874|p=180}}

According to [[Steinar Imsen|Imsen]], her political genius has never been contested, but her motives have always been the target of much debate. During the first half of the nineteenth century, she was usually depicted as an idealist who fought to counterbalance the German influence. After the [[Second Schleswig War|defeat]] of Denmark by the Prussians in 1864, the image of Margaret the nationalist prevailed. Later she was increasingly regarded as a Machiavellist who primarily fought for her power and dynastic interests.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Schaus|first1=Margaret|title=Women and Gender in Medieval Europe: An Encyclopedia|date=2006|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=9780415969444|page=510|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aDhOv6hgN2IC&pg=PA510}}</ref>
[[File:Roskilde Drottning Margareta Anne-Marie Carl-Nielsen 02.JPG|thumb|left|Equestrian statue in [[Roskilde]] in eastern Denmark]]
In Sweden, such a republican (opposed to monarchy) as [[Vilhelm Moberg]] lauded Margaret as adverse to warfare and called her the greatest monarch the [[Nordic countries]] ever had.<ref>{{cite book|last=Petersson|first=Erik|author-link=:sv:Erik Petersson (författare)|year=2023|url=http://libris.kb.se/bib/l2cvjpqlj5l9j5k9|access-date=9 December 2024|title=Drottning Margaretas dröm|trans-title=Queen Margaret's Dream|page=274|isbn=9789127176645}}</ref> Professor {{ill|Kjell Kumlien|de||sv}} wrote in 1949:

<blockquote>She made reality of political plans and aspirations which had previously been tried without nearly as much success by both Swedish and Danish kings. The reason why she succeeded must be sought in no small part in her own eminent political talent, distinguished by strength and endurance as well as flexible and winning negotiating skill. In an uncanny way, her person and deeds are united in the deeply felt communality of the Nordic kingdoms ...{{sfn|Petersson|2023|p=322}}</blockquote>
[[File:Erik af Pommern og Margrete 1. - kongehyldningsmonumentet i Viborg.jpg|thumb|Statue of Margaret and Erik in [[Viborg, Denmark|Viborg]], Denmark.]]
In ''The Middle Ages: Dictionary of World Biography'', Volume 2, McFadden opines that "Margaret's achievement at a time when all Scandinavia was being threatened by German cultural and economic domination was to unite the kingdoms and not only hold back the Germans but also regain lands lost to the south. At the time of her death, the Scandinavian Union was by far the most powerful force in the Baltic; it was also the second largest accumulation of European territory under a single sovereign."{{sfn|Magill|2012|p=62}}

The 2021 film ''[[Margrete: Queen of the North]]'' (Danish: {{lang|da|Margrete den Første}}) tells the story of her reign, especially the creation of the Nordic Union army and how she dealt with the [[False Olaf]].<ref>[https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/margrete-queen-of-the-north-movie-review-2021 "Review: ''Margrete: Queen of the North''"] by Peter Sobczynski, 17 December 2021, [[RogerEbert.com]]</ref>