October 2025: Torfæus’ successor? An interview with Jes Fabricius Møller, Historiographer to the Chapter of the Royal Orders in Denmark

During my research on Torfæus, I read extensively about the duties of official historiographers in 17th century Denmark. Little did I know, however, that a similar position still exists. The role of kongelig ordenshistoriograf (Historiographer to the Chapter of the Royal Orders) is still an official title in Denmark. Out of curiosity, I interviewed the current one: Jes Fabricius Møller, associate professor of history at the University of Copenhagen. His work focuses in particular on N.F.S. Grundtvig (1783-1872), but his research interests include, of course, monarchic history.

LS: Can you describe your tasks as historian of the royal order?

JFM: The position of kongelig ordenshistoriograf was established by King Frederik VI in 1808, and since then there have been ten of us. Frederik VI insisted that recipients of an order had to deserve it, and therefore the reasons had to be documented. Still nowadays, every recipient of an order or a medal is asked to submit an autobiography: I check and collect them, and I grant access to their digitization. Moreover, I have the role of historical advisor for the Royal Court. This implies, for instance, fact-checking the home page, providing ideas for official speeches, answering questions from the general public and so on.

LS: How do you see your role as a historian today?

JFM: There is no continuity between my role and the one of a royal historiographer under absolutism as Torfæus was. It is, nevertheless, a very interesting position that requires navigating between being relevant as an advisor to the Head of State while protecting an intellectual integrity, but I am fortunate to be able to integrate both aspects.

LS: What role do you think that official narratives and dynastic historiography play in Danish national consciousness and cultural life nowadays? I do not come from a monarchic country, and I feel I can only partly understand the role that these narratives have in the shaping of a collective consciousness.

JFM: It is very difficult to explain, but I think I would have taken you to the square in front of Christiansborg Palace on January 14th, 2024, when Frederik X was proclaimed King. The atmosphere of the crowd in that moment made evident to everyone why monarchy is still relevant in Denmark. But you also have to keep in mind that kings and presidents have a lot in common: In the republics of Europe, presidents normally reside in former royal palaces, with guards in splendid uniforms and elaborate ceremonies. Their function of embodying the state is very much the same as that of a modern monarch in a constitutional monarchy such as Denmark.

LS: Turning now to more historical questions: what do you think is Saxo’s role in Danish historical consciousness?

JFM: Saxo was the first to see that historical writings could give medieval Danes the impression that they had the same value and dignity as many other European peoples. He did so by starting with the question of the origins of the Danish people. At that time, it was essential to address these issues, whether by referencing the Bible or classical literature. But history serves the same purpose of nation building still today.

LS: At least from Gustav Ludvig Baden’s Danmarks Riges Historie (1829), the narrative on Gorm the Old as the first king of Denmark has been accepted as a historical paradigm. Does this prevailing narrative leave space for others no longer seen as paradigmatic, such as the descent lines presenting Dan or Skjöldr as first kings?

JFM: The Jelling runic stones and their mention of King Gorm and his queen Tyra play an important role as evidence for a dynastic consciousness that prevails until today. Tracing a reliable dynastic line dating back before Gorm remains very difficult. It is certain that there have been kings before him: we just don’t know much about them – and, frankly, also very little about Gorm. But, yes, there are some elements going beyond the paradigm of Gorm as the first king. In 1892, King Christian IX and his queen Louise received from the landowning elite a silver decorative element for the festive table representing King Skjöldr arriving on a boat. Christian IX was a distant German cousin of his immediate predecessor, and when he ascended the throne in 1863 he was not very popular. But with time his popularity rose. I understand the gift of the landowners as their recognition of him as a legitimate heir to what in their view was the very ancient Danish kingdom[1].

LS: So you would not define yourself as a successor of Torfæus?

JFM: Not as a servant of an absolute monarch, for sure. My task is to advise the institution on historical matters from an academically informed viewpoint. Otherwise, I would not have taken this job.

I would like to thank Jes Fabricius Møller for this conversation and for offering this interesting overview!

[1] The centerpiece is known as Godsejerplateauetand was realized by the jeweller Anton Michelsen. As recently as 2023, it was still used as a table decoration for a private event at Kolding Castle: https://nyheder.tv2.dk/lokalt/2023-07-16-dronning-margrethe-markerede-historisk-milepael-i-kolding (last accessed 30.09.2025). On the domestication of the Glücksburg dynasty under King Christian IX, see Møller, J. F. (2015). Domesticating a German Heir to the Danish Throne. In F. L. Müller, & H. Mehrkens (Eds.), Sons and Heirs. Succession and Political Culture in Nineteenth-Century Europe (pp. 129-146). Palgrave Macmillan.