Each country in Europe had to figure out how they were going to deal with the Protestant Reformation. In Italy and Spain, it was really easy: We ain’t budging. But in countries like Denmark, it took war. The Danish King Christian III not only won a battle against Catholic bishops but preached in the pulpits and one of his key appointments was for the bishop of the diocese that included Copenhagen. Peder Palladius filled that role until his death on January 3, 1560, and was a major influence as Denmark moved away from the Roman Catholic Church. Fredrik’s Church in Copenhagen is surrounded by statues of famous Danish Christians such as Kierkegaard, Canute the Great, and Palladius (pictured here).
