After the fall of Johann Friedrich Struensee in 1772, Hereditary Prince Frederick was installed as regent, acting on behalf of his half-brother, King Christian VII, who was mentally unstable.

After the coup of 1784, when the king's son Crown Prince Frederick took power and regency, he was left without influence at the court.

His elder half-brother, King Christian VII, who had a severe mental illness (believed to have been schizophrenia), and had been divorced from his wife, Caroline Matilda of Great Britain (who was then exiled), Prince Frederick was designated as regent of Denmark-Norway in 1772, when 18 years old.

His regency was mostly nominal, the power being held by his mother, Queen Juliane Marie, and minister Ove Høegh-Guldberg.

The book suggests that Frederick was himself in love with the Queen and jealous of her lover Johann Friedrich Struensee – which is not firmly attested in historical sources.