Peder Griffenfeld (born Peder Schumacher, 1635-1699) rose through the ranks of the royal court. He gained favour and trust from King Frederick III and drafted the 1665 King's Law that justified the absolute monarchy.
Upon the ascension of King Christian V, Griffenfeld became his principal adviser in 1670. In 1673, the king elevated him to the highest aristocratic rank of count, and he became the Chancellor of Denmark.
He centralized administration, encouraged trade and industry, and pursued a policy of peace to restore Danish prestige. But, at the same time, he also created a lot of enemies.
He was arrested in 1676 and tried for treason. He was sentenced to death but dramatically pardoned before execution, by King Christian V, who commuted the sentence to life imprisonment.
Griffenfeld spent the next 22 years as a prisoner, first in Copenhagen and later at Munkholmen fortress in Trondheim, Norway, where he died in 1699.