Magda von Dolcke

Magda von Dolcke (28 February 1838 – 22 October 1926) was a Danish stage actress and the director of a travelling theatre company. She was primarily active in Sweden and Denmark, where she also performed under the stage name Rosalinde Thomsen.

Dolcke grew up in the Duchy of Holstein, but returned to Denmark where she made her debut as an actress at the Royal Danish Theatre in 1859. During her career she performed in Denmark, Germany, and Sweden. She was known to have had high-profile affairs with the Norwegian writer Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson in 1860 and with King Oscar II of Sweden in 1874. She withdrew from her career and public life after being married in the 1880s in Copenhagen. Bjørnson left Denmark in December 1860, though they continued to exchange intimate letters. He briefly returned to visit her in 1872.

In 1873, she received an invitation to perform at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm, Sweden, under the condition that she learn Swedish.

On 14 March 1874, her performance of The Maid of Orleans was attended by King Oscar II. At this point, she had a relationship with the king, during which the queen, Sofia of Nassau, left for Germany, officially for her health. Dolcke spend six years in Sweden, performing at the Royal Dramatic Theatre, touring on stage, and eventually directing her own theatre company.

Dolcke briefly returned to Denmark in April 1879 to tour, before performing again in Sweden, this time in Gothenburg. Shortly thereafter, she married a businessman and factory owner from Copenhagen, and retired from public life.