Denmark–Germany relations
Denmark |
Germany |
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Denmark and Germany are full members of NATO and of the European Union. The border between the countries, which lies in the Schleswig region, has changed several times through history, the present border was determined by referendums in 1920. The Danish-German border area has been named as a positive example for other border regions.[1] Substantial minority populations live on both sides of the border, and cross-border cooperation activities are frequently initiated.[2][3]
History
Reformation
Lutheranism
German impact on Danish culture and society
Second Schleswig War
The Second Schleswig War was the second military conflict as a result of the
Denmark fought Prussia and Austria. Like the First Schleswig War (1848–51), it was fought for control of the duchies because of succession disputes concerning the duchies of Holstein and Lauenburg when the Danish king died without an heir acceptable to the German Confederation. Decisive controversy arose due to the passing of the November Constitution, which brought the Duchy of Schleswig closer to the kingdom of Denmark in violation of the London Protocol, after the German Confederation had rejected the previous state constitution (Helstatsforfatning).
The war ended on 30 October 1864, when the Treaty of Vienna caused Denmark's cession of the Duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, and Saxe-Lauenburg to Prussia and Austria. The war resulted in a German victory.
End of World War I
Denmark, despite having remained neutral all throughout World War I, still ended up involved in the negotiations following the defeat of Germany, due to US President Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points listing the different people of Europe's right to self-determination amongst its principles, and the substantial Danish minority living in the Southern Jutland/Northern Schleswig area. Eventually, it was decided that the question of national affiliation for the people living in the area would be settled through a democratic election.
In accordance with negotiations, the Southern Jutland/Northern Schleswig area was split into three different zones. After an agreement between the Danish government, who declared they had no real interest in the third, southernmost zone, and the British prime-minister
The elections could not be arranged until the
World War II
Operation Weserübung was the code name for
In the early morning of 9 April 1940, Germany invaded Denmark and Norway, ostensibly as a preventive maneuver against a planned, and openly discussed, Franco-British occupation of both these countries. After the invasions, envoys of the Germans informed the governments of Denmark and Norway that the Wehrmacht had come to protect the countries' neutrality against Franco-British aggression. Significant differences in geography, location and climate between the two countries, however, made the actual military operations very dissimilar.
Strategically, Denmark's importance to Germany was as a staging area for operations in Norway, and of course as a border nation to Germany which would have to be controlled in some way. Given Denmark's position in relation to the Baltic Sea the country was also important for the control of naval and shipping access to major German and Soviet harbours.
Small and relatively flat, the country was ideal territory for German army operations, and Denmark's small army had little hope. Nevertheless, in the early morning hours, a few Danish troops engaged the German army, suffering losses of 16 dead and 20 wounded. The Germans lost an unknown number of casualties, with 12 armoured cars and several motorcycles and cars destroyed. Four German tanks were damaged. One German bomber was also damaged.[5] Two German soldiers were temporarily captured by the Danes during the brief fighting.[6]
At 04:00 on 9 April 1940, the German ambassador to Denmark,
As the German demands were communicated, the first German advances had already been made, with forces landing by ferry in Gedser at 04:15 and moving north. German Fallschirmjäger units had made unopposed landings and taken two airfields at Aalborg, the Storstrøm Bridge as well as the fortress of Masnedø.[6]
At 04:20 local time, 1,000 German infantrymen landed in Copenhagen harbour from the minelayer
At 05:45, two squadrons of German Bf 110s attacked
The invasion of Denmark lasted less than six hours and was the shortest military campaign conducted by the Germans during the war. The rapid Danish capitulation resulted in the uniquely lenient
Contemporary
Both Denmark and Germany are members of the European Union and NATO. Denmark has an embassy in Berlin, as well as a consulate general in Flensburg[9] and one in Hamburg.[10] Germany maintains an embassy in Copenhagen as well as a network of honorary consulates around Denmark. The Bonn-Copenhagen declarations of 1955 establishes mutual recognition of the minorities on both side of the border, assures full civil rights and the right to establish schools teaching in the minority language. Additionally, the Danish Ministry of Education (Undervisningsministeret) cooperated with the Bundes state of Baden-Württemberg's ministry of education, Kultusministerium, to develop and carry out an exchange programme between gymnasium students in both countries.[11] The official name of the programme is "Deutsch-Dänisches grenzenübergreifendes Schüleraustauschprogramm für die Entwicklung und den Beibehalt, essentieller kultureller Verständigung und prägenden Erfahrungen". The first exchange was officially carried out in April 2016 in the city of Mosbach, Baden-Württemberg. The second official exchange took place in Odense, Denmark, in May, followed by a third, but not final, successful visit in August 2016. Even though the programme is officially over, plans have been made for a comeback before the end of 2016. [12]
Border control
In the context of the
Resident diplomatic missions
- Denmark has an embassy in Berlin and consulates-general in Flensburg, Hamburg and Munich.[17]
- Germany has an embassy in Copenhagen.[18]
-
Embassy of Denmark in Berlin
-
Embassy of Germany in Copenhagen
See also
References
- ^ The European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI): "German-Danish Border Region". Archived from the original on 2019-07-23. Retrieved 2014-05-03.
- ^ Press releases from the European Commission: "Denmark (Syddanmark)-Germany (Schleswig-KERN) Cross-border Operational Programme "Syddanmark-Schleswig-K.E.R.N" 2007–2013". Archived from the original on 2017-12-01. Retrieved 2014-05-03.
- ^ Femern A/S – newsletter no. 25: "DialogForumNorden promotes cross-border cooperation". Archived from the original on 2014-05-03. Retrieved 2014-05-03.
- ^ According to the Constitution of Denmark § 4, "the Evangelical-Lutheran Church is the Danish people's church and is supported as such by the State" ("den evangelisk-lutherske kirke er den danske folkekirke og understøttes som sådan af staten")
- ^ Hooton 2007, p. 31.
- ^ a b c d e Gert Laursen: The German occupation of Denmark Archived October 15, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The Danish Jewish Museum: The operation against the Danish Jews in October 1943 Archived 2011-07-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Holocaust Education & Archive Research Team
- ^ Generalkonsulatet i Flensburg Archived 2016-11-21 at the Wayback Machine, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Denmark)
- ^ Generalkonsulat i Hamborg Archived 2016-11-21 at the Wayback Machine, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Denmark)
- ^ "Udviklingsplanens tredje fase – Undervisningsministeriet". www.uvm.dk. Archived from the original on 2014-08-11.
- German Foreign Office
- ^ Jørgensen, Martin (16 April 2019). "Midlertidig dansk grænsekontrol". Archived from the original on 6 October 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
- ^ "Grænsekontrollen ved den dansk-tyske grænse forlænges". Politiken. 12 April 2019. Archived from the original on 31 May 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
- dr.dk. Archivedfrom the original on 26 December 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
- ^ Danielsen, Mikkel; Aagaard, Thomas (14 May 2019). "Debat afslørede en sag, Enhedslisten og Dansk Folkeparti kan enes om: Grænsekontrollen skal bevares". Berlingske. Archived from the original on 15 May 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
- ^ "Embassy of Denmark in Berlin". Archived from the original on 2022-03-26. Retrieved 2022-03-27.
- ^ "Embassy of Germany in Copenhagen". Archived from the original on 2022-03-08. Retrieved 2022-03-27.
External links
- Danish general consulate in Flensburg (in Danish and German only)
- Danish general consulate in Hamburg (in Danish and German only)
- Danish general consulate in Munich (in Danish and German only)
- German Federal Foreign Office about the relations with Denmark
- German embassy in Copenhagen (in Danish and German only)
- Bonn-Copenhagen Declarations