Background
Abel was born in 1252 as the third and posthumous son of King Abel of Denmark, Duke of Schleswig, by his wife, Mechtild of Holstein.
Abel was born in 1252 as the third and posthumous son of King Abel of Denmark, Duke of Schleswig, by his wife, Mechtild of Holstein.
Abel died on Easter Day 1279 in Svendborg and was buried in the city’s Greyfriars’ Abbey. At his death, he left only a daughter Margaret, who entered the convent of Zarrentin in Mecklenburg and donated her father’s properties to her relatives, the counts of Holstein. They later sold it to King Eric VI of Denmark.
As a member of the ducal family, he held several fiefs in Southern Denmark.