FREDERICK V, KING OF DENMARK AND NORWAY (1723 - 1766) Official letter signed (‘Friderich R’), in Danish, addressed to Osman III, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire «Kejser... OSMAN, Kejser Mustapha Son Kejser Mehmets Son ..Kejser Ibrahims..», Residenz Christiansborg, Copenhagen, 25 February 1757.

One page, 72 x 52.5 cm This an official letter from the King of Denmark and Norway, “ Frederick den femte af guds nåde konge til dannenarct og norge” to the Ottoman Sultan with mentions of the regions of Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem, Black sea, etc. Frederik V (1723-1766) was the King of Denmark and Norway from 1746 until 1766. The progress of commerce and trade marked his reign, and art and science prospered under his reign. During the 17th and 18th centuries, sugar production was profitable, and European rulers pursued to obtain colonies, including in the Caribbean, and Ste. Croix was an important destination for Denmark. In 1733, after 38 years of abandonment, Denmark bought the island of Ste. Croix in the Caribbean, which, together with the nearby islands of St Thomas and St John constituted the Danish West Indies. Until 1754 the region was controlled by the Danish West India Company. African slaves were imported in large numbers for the sugar plantations on the island. In 1754, King Frederick V took direct control of Saint Croix from the Danish West India company. Sultan Osman III (1699-1757) was the 25th Ottoman sultan and the 90th of the Islamic caliphs. Osman III lived in the Kafes for 51 years, where he was taken after the death of his father. His reign lasted three years: Osman III was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1754 until his death in 1757. Osman was responsible for a firman in 1757 that preserved the Status Quo of various Holy Land sites for Christians, Muslims, and Jews. 1756 and 1757, were the years that marked the start of the Denmark–Turkey relations in the field of trade. On 14 October 1756, an Agreement of Friendship and Trade was signed by Sultan Osman III and King Frederick V. In 1758, Denmark appointed an extraordinary representative to the Ottoman Empire.