page_title: List of Danish monarchs
section_title: Pre House of Knýtlinga Danish monarchs
hierarchical_section_title: List of Danish monarchs / Pre House of Knýtlinga Danish monarchs
caption_attribution_description: The Small Sigtrygg runestone
context_page_description: This is a list of Danish monarchs, that is, the kings and queens regnant of Denmark. This includes:
  The Kingdom of Denmark
  Personal union of Denmark and Norway
  The Kalmar Union
  Union of Denmark, Norway and Sweden
  Union of Denmark and Norway
  The Kingdom of Denmark-Norway
  The Kingdom of Denmark
  Iceland
  Greenland
  Faroe Islands
  The House of Oldenburg held the Danish Crown between 1448 and 1863, when it passed to the house of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, a cadet branch of the same house, patrilineally descended from King Christian III of Denmark. The kingdom had been elective until 1660, when it became hereditary and absolutist. Until 1864 Denmark was also united in a personal union with the duchies of Holstein and Saxe-Lauenburg, and in a political and personal union with the Duchy of Schleswig.
context_section_description: The exact date of origin of the Kingdom of Denmark is not established, but names of Danish kings begins to emerge in foreign sources from the 8th century and onwards.  Danish and Nordic legendary stories, chronicles and sagas often have accounts of Danish kings and dynasties stretching further back in time than the 7th century, but the historicity of the content and interpretations of these stories are often put to doubt.
  Chochilaicus—see Hugleik and Hygelac—c. 515 AD, mentioned by Gregory of Tours (538–594). Hugleik, according to the written sources, suffered a defeat in 515 during a naval expedition to the Frankish Empire. Hugleik is the first Danish king mentioned in European sources.
  Ongendus (Angantyr): c. 710 Saint Willibrord wrote about when he visited the Danes, at the time ruled by Ongendus.
  Harald, named as former king in relating 9th-century events, perhaps model for legendary Harald Wartooth. Related to the Frisian king Redbad II who in 754 had to flee to "the land of the Danes" where King Harald reigned ("Daniae Regi Heraldi").
  Sigfred: 770s–790s
  Gudfred: 804–810, mentioned as Danish king in the Treaty of Heiligen 811.
  Hemming: 810–811/812 The Treaty of Heiligen was signed in 811 between the Danish King Hemming and Charlemagne.
  Sigfred, nephew of Gudfred, and Anulo (Anlaufr), grandson or nephew of Harald, fought for the throne and both were killed, perhaps model for the legendary Sigurd Hring: c. 812
  Harald Klak and his brothers Ragnfrid and Hemming Halfdansson: 812–813 and again from 819/827. From 826 he and his household lived in exile with the Frankish emperor Louis the Pious, he was baptized by the bishop of Mainz in Ingelheim am Rhein. The last reference of Harald in the written sources are in the Annals of Fulda which records his execution for treason in 852.
  Sons of Gudfred: 814–820s
  Horik I: (814) 827–854, King of the Danes (at first ruling jointly with his unnamed brothers). The Frankish annals mention Horik on numerous occasions during the next couple of decades.
  Horik II: 854–860s. He is believed to have been the immediate successor of Horik I, but the annals are silent about the name of the Danish king for a few years after the disaster of 854.  In 857, Horik II allowed Rorik to occupy the part of the kingdom between the sea and the Eider. Horik II was still alive in 864, when a letter was addressed to him by Pope Nicholas I.
  Late 9th century kings
  Bagsecg: c. 860s–871
  Halfdan: 871–877
  Sigfred: c. 873–891 It is generally assumed that he was the immediate successor of Horik II, although that is not certain.  His year of succession is unknown, but it was between 864 (when Horik II was still king) and his first appearance as king in the Frankish annals in 873. Sigifrid was baptized in 882.
  Gudfred: 880s
  Heiligo (Halga): 890s (?), described by Adam of Bremen as the immediate predecessor of the House of Olof.
  The "House of Olaf": late 9th century and early 10th century. This dynasty is described by Adam of Bremen, and members of this claimed dynasty are commemorated by the two Sigtrygg Runestones, which represent contemporary evidence that some of these kings controlled at least part of Denmark.
  Olof the Brash, said by Adam to have been a Swede who defeated Heiligo and took the crown.
  Gyrd and Gnupa, sons and joint successors of Olof, according to Adam. Gnupa is named by Widukind of Corvey as leader of the Danes in 934, and appears on the Sigtrygg Runestones.
  Sigtrygg, son of Gnupa, memorialized on the Sigtrygg Runestones, presumably dating from shortly after 934.
caption: The Sigtrygg Runestones of the "House of Olaf": was raised after king Sigtrygg by his mother. 934 AD.
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