Welcome to the Denmark Portal!
Velkommen til Danmarksportalen!

Flag Coat of arms
Location of Denmark within Europe

Denmark is the smallest and southernmost of the Nordic countries. Unified in the 10th century, it is also the oldest. Located north of its only land neighbour, Germany, south-west of Sweden, and south of Norway, it is located in northern Europe. From a cultural point of view, Denmark belongs to the family of Scandinavian countries although it is not located on the Scandinavian Peninsula. The national capital is Copenhagen.

Denmark borders both the Baltic and the North Sea. The country consists of a large peninsula, Jutland, which borders Schleswig-Holstein; many islands, most notably Zealand, Funen, Vendsyssel-Thy, Lolland, and Bornholm; and hundreds of minor islands often referred to as the Danish Archipelago. Denmark has historically controlled the approach to the Baltic Sea, and those waters are also known as the Danish straits.

Denmark has been a constitutional monarchy since 1849 and is a parliamentary democracy. It became a member of the European Economic Community (now the European Union) in 1973. The Kingdom of Denmark also encompasses two off-shore territories, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, both of which enjoy wide-ranging home rule. The Danish monarchy is the oldest existing monarchy in Europe, and the national flag is the oldest state flag in continuous use.

Selected biography

King Christian IV of Denmark and Norway. Painting by Pieter Isaacsz (1611-1616).

Christian IV of Denmark and Norway (April 12, 1577–February 28, 1648) was the longest reigning Danish monarch with a reign of 60 years. His reign was characterized by wars and rivalry with Sweden as well as his unsuccessful involvement in the Thirty Years' War. Christian is also remembered for founding a number of towns and a large number of buildings, including Børsen, Rundetårn and Holy Trinity Church in Kristianstad. He features in the Danish national play, Elverhøj (The Elf's Hill) and is the central figure in the Danish royal anthem Kong Christian stod ved højen mast.

Christian was the son of Frederick II and Sophia of Mecklenburg. Christian was born at Frederiksborg Palace in 1577, and succeeded to the throne on the death of his father (April 4, 1588), attaining his majority on August 17, 1596. ...

Recently selected: Ole Rømer - Karen Blixen - Bjørn Lomborg


Selected picture

The 2003 Roskilde Festival. Photo shows the Orange Stage.
The 2003 Roskilde Festival. Photo shows the Orange Stage.
The Roskilde Festival, one of the two biggest annual rock music festivals in Europe.

Photo credit: Bjarki Sigursveinsson

Selected article

Headquarters of the Schalburgkorps, a Danish SS unit, after 1943. The occupied building is the lodge of the Danish Order of Freemasons located on Blegdamsvej, Copenhagen.
Nazi Germany's occupation of Denmark was commenced by Operation Weserübung 9 April 1940, and lasted until the German forces withdrew at the end of World War II following their surrender to Allied forces on 5 May 1945. Contrary to the situation in other countries under German occupations during the war, most Danish institutions continued to function relatively unaffected until 1943. The Danish government remained in the country in an uneasy relationship between a democratic and a totalitarian system until German authorities dissolved the government following a wave of strikes and sabotage.

The occupation of Denmark was never an important objective for the German government. The decision to occupy its small northern neighbour was made to facilitate the invasion of the strategically more important Norway; and as a means against the expected British campaign in Norway. German military planners believed that a base in the northern part of Jutland, most importantly the airfield of Aalborg, would be essential to the invasion of Norway, and they began planning the occupation of parts of Denmark, but as late as February 1940, the decision to occupy Denmark had not yet been made. The issue was finally settled when Hitler personally crossed out the words die Nordspitze Jütlands (the Northern tip of Jutland) and replaced them with , a German abbreviation for Denmark.

Selected place

A view over Frederikshavn
Frederikshavn is a town in Frederikshavn municipality, Region Nordjylland on the northeast coast of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. Its name translates to "Frederik's harbour". Frederikshavn has a population of 23,331 (1 January 2010), and is an important traffic portal with its ferry connections to Sweden and Norway. The town is well known for fishing, and its fishing and industrial harbours. The Danish term "frederikshavner" ("Someone from Frederikshavn") is used to denote a quality plaice fish, probably the most popular eating fish in Denmark.

Due to its advantageous proximity to the entrance to the Baltic Sea, Frederikshavn has historically been a naval base of some strategic importance. Peder Tordenskjold barricaded himself here in the fortress that German troops had already built in the 17th century.

Categories

Category puzzle
Category puzzle
Select [►] to view subcategories

Denmark topics

Things you can do

TASKS

Geography stubs · People stubs · Denmark stubs in general
Help us extend these stubs and make them real articles!

  • Categorize:

Help us categorize Denmark-related articles

  • WikiProjects:

Have a look at WikiProject Denmark, WikiProject Faroe Islands, WikiProject Greenland and WikiProject Norse history and culture

  • Noticeboard:

Have a look at the Danish Wikipedians' notice board

  • Geotag:

Find coordinates for these locations and tag them: articles missing geocoordinate data

Related portals


Northern Europe


Other countries

Associated WikiMedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject: