The Queens of the Kalmar Union: ‘Sed in hoc negocio longe prestancius exhibuit se regina quam rex’

In the research on the Kalmar Union, the focus has mainly been on the kings as personae agens of the development. Even though one could not avoid treating Queen Margaret Valdemarsdatter as the founder of the Union, she has often been portrayed as genderless in political terms. Her successors, on the other hand, disappeared into historical obscurity or were mentioned more in passing sentences. Yet the queens had a considerable influence on the cohesion of the Union, just as Dorothea of Hohenzollern and Christine of Wettin played a role in restoring or maintaining the dynastic claims of the Oldenburg family. This article will therefore attempt to shed light on the political role of these princesses within the Kalmar Union and at the same time try to find reasons for the damnatio memoria of these queens.