History of Schleswig-Holstein extremely harsh. King Christopher was only left in effective control of the small island of Langeland and faced the impossible task of raising 100,000 silver marks to redeem his country. Denmark had effectively been dissolved and was left without a king between 1332 and 1340. Gerhard, however, was assassinated in 1340 by a Dane. In 1340, King Valdemar IV of Denmark began his more than twenty-year-long quest to reclaim his kingdom. While succeeding in regaining control of Zealand, Funen, Jutland, and Scania he, however, failed to obtain control of Schleswig, and its ducal line managed to continue its virtual independence.
Reformation in Denmark–Norway and Holstein for a year due to the disagreement. In the mean time, the Council of the Realm governed the country, allowing the bishops to decide what could be preached in their respective dioceses. Moreover, Hans Tausen was accused of heresy and banished from Zealand but the bishop of Roskilde called him back after only one month. Discontent with the nobility taking over control of the country through the Council made citizens from Malmö and Copenhagen along with peasants, especially from northern Jutland, rally around exiled King Christian II. The Council had furthermore decided to join a Netherlandic–Slesvigian–Holsatian alliance instead of Lübeck