Land and Resources

The surface of the Danish mainland is generally low; the average elevation is about 30 m (about 100 ft) above sea level.

Physical Characteristics

A low range of hills in the east central portion of the Danish mainland includes Yding Skovhøj (173 m/568 ft), the highest point in Denmark. The western coast of the mainland is low and rimmed by dunes and sandbars. The east coast, which is slightly higher in elevation, is indented by a series of fjords that penetrate deeply into the interior. The Limfjorden, the most northerly of these indentations, extends in a generally east to west direction across the entire breadth of the peninsula from the Kattegat to the North Sea.

Climate

Denmark has a temperate maritime climate. The mean temperature in summer is about 16° C (about 61° F); in winter, about 0° C (about 32° F). Changes in wind direction cause wide day-to-day temperature fluctuations. Average annual rainfall is about 610 mm (about 24 in).

Natural Resources

Some 60 percent of the total land area of Denmark is cultivable. Minerals are limited, and comprise, in large part, the clays, peats, and other deposits common to boggy country. The soil of Denmark is almost entirely podzolic in character and gray in color. It abounds in acid solutions that drain its minerals and must be heavily fertilized for intensive cultivation.

Plants and Animals

Relatively little wild vegetation remains in Denmark, because much of the land is under cultivation. In the forests, which cover about 10 percent of the country, are conifers, beeches, oaks, and ash. Several varieties of ferns and mosses common to middle Europe also are found. Natural animal life is limited to deer and such small mammals as the fox, squirrel, and hare; wildfowl and other birds; and numerous species of freshwater fish.

Population

The Danish people are closely related to those of Norway and Sweden.

Population Characteristics

About 85 percent of the Danish population lives in urban areas. The population (1995 estimate) of Denmark proper is 5,192,000, giving the country an overall population density of about 121 persons per sq km (about 312 per sq mi). The population (1994 estimate) of Greenland was about 55,379, and that of the Faroe Islands (1994 estimate) was about 46,804.

The capital is Copenhagen, mostly on the island of Sjælland, with a population (1992 estimate, metropolitan area) of 1,339,395. Other major cities, with their 1994 estimated metropolitan area populations, include the seaport of Århus, 274,535; Odense, 181,824, the capital of Fyn County; and Ålborg, 158,141, an administrative center.

Religion

Lutheranism, the established religion of Denmark, is adhered to by almost all Danes; however, complete toleration is extended to all religions.

Language

Danish is the official language, and many Danes also speak a second language, usually English.

Education

Organized institutional education in Denmark had its beginnings in the latter part of the 11th century, with the founding of cathedral schools under church auspices and grammar schools. The University of Copenhagen was founded in 1479. Throughout the early modern period the educational system was administered in conjunction with the established church. Religious instruction was, therefore, required in all the state schools. In 1739, under the influence of the teacher and dramatist Ludvig Holberg, the Danish language replaced Latin as the language of instruction. An important experiment, at Sorø, by the German educational reformer Johann Bernhard Basedow was the introduction of nature study and handicrafts into the curriculum.

In the mid-19th century, the first program of adult education was originated in Denmark at the Folk High School in Rødding, Jutland. Under the leadership of Bishop Nikolaj F. S. Grundtvig and Kristen Kold, the school became a model for similar institutions in Europe and the United States. The gymnastic institute of France Nachtegall (1777-1847) and the International People's College, founded in 1921 at Helsingør, introduced programs of study that were also of far-reaching influence. Recent trends in Danish education have been an expanded program of rural education, the extension of higher education, and the raising of the level of teacher training.

Elementary education has been compulsory since 1814 and is, for the most part, free. All children must attend school from age 7 to 14. Primary education consists of a nine-year comprehensive school; all students may continue school through the tenth year, and gifted students are encouraged to continue their studies. Denmark's adult literacy rate is nearly 100 percent.

Elementary and Secondary Schools

In the early 1990s Denmark had about 2127 primary and lower secondary schools, with a total annual enrollment of more than 613,000 students.

Specialized Schools

In the early 1990s some 360 folk high schools, agricultural schools, home economics schools, and other specialized high schools and vocational schools had a total yearly enrollment of about 223,000 students. Many of the schools are private, but the state contributes to their support.

Universities and Colleges

Among the universities in Denmark are Ålborg University (1974); Århus University (1928); the University of Copenhagen, the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University (1856), and the Technical University of Denmark (1829), all in Copenhagen; and Odense University (1964). Other institutions include the Århus School of Architecture (1965); the Copenhagen Business School (1917); and the Royal Danish Conservatory of Music (1867) and Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts (1754), both in Copenhagen.

Culture

The Royal Theater in Copenhagen presents drama, opera, and ballet under the auspices of the ministry of cultural affairs. The Royal Theater was founded in 1748, and an annex, the New Stage, was opened in 1931.

Denmark is famous for beautifully designed ceramics, silverware, porcelain, and home furnishings. Copenhagen has a permanent exhibition of arts and crafts where artisans from all over the country may display and sell their work.

All major cities and most provincial towns have public libraries, with about 50 million volumes on the shelves. The Royal Library, in Copenhagen, founded in 1673, serves as the national library of Denmark. It contains collections of music, manuscripts, maps, and pictures. Among the collections are 5000 incunabula, books printed in the second half of the 15th century.

Of about 25 major museums, the most important is the Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle (in Hillerød), mainly built between 1600 and 1620. It contains some 10,000 exhibits. The Rosenborg Castle in Copenhagen, also a 17th-century building, holds a collection of arms, apparel, and furniture, as well as the crown jewels. The Thorvaldsens Museum, also in Copenhagen, contains the works of the famous 19th-century Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen. Also of note are the National Museum in Copenhagen, displaying exhibits on Danish history; the Louisiana Museum, a museum of contemporary art located north of Copenhagen; the Natural History Museum, in Århus; and the Viking Ship Museum, in Roskilde.

Literature

Literature is an important part of Danish culture, and many of the country's writers are known worldwide. Ludvig Holberg is acknowledged to be the literary father of Denmark, as his poetry and drama pioneered the wide acceptance of the Danish language. Hans Christian Andersen, a 19th-century Danish writer, is best known for his many fairy tales, which are considered classics of children's literature. Another 19th-century thinker and writer who remains influential is the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. Novelists Henrik Pontoppidan and Johannes V. Jensen were each awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in the first half of the 20th century, while the writings of Isak Dinesen and Martin A. Hansen are just two of the more recent Danish writers who have also achieved widespread recognition. See Danish Literature.

Art and Music

The Royal Museum of Fine Arts, in Copenhagen, houses a collection of paintings, sculpture, prints, and drawings by Danish artists, as well as works of 19th- and 20th-century Norwegian and Swedish artists. The capital is the home of the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Royal Orchestra, and the Royal Danish Ballet. The Danish composer Carl August Nielsen was conductor of the Royal Society and the Music Society in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He wrote operas, symphonies, and music for piano, violin, and string quartet.

Economy

Denmark has traditionally been an agrarian country. Since the end of World War II (1939-1945), however, manufacturing and services have gained in importance. The proportion of the labor force in agriculture declined from an estimated 14 percent in 1965 to about 5 percent in the early 1990s. Danish ships, which operate in foreign waters, contribute substantially to the economy. The country is also profitably involved in foreign investments, shipbuilding, and foreign construction. The annual national budget in the early 1990s included about $49 billion in revenues and $55 billion in expenditures.

Agriculture

For many years Danish governmental policy favored small landholdings, and the merger of small holdings to form large estates was discouraged by law. However, legislation passed in 1989 legalized the formation of larger farms. About 75 percent of the farms of Denmark were less than 50 hectares (124 acres) in size in the early 1990s. Most agricultural activity is concentrated in Jutland.

Of the more than 2.7 million hectares (some 6.8 million acres) under cultivation, about 60 percent are devoted to cereals, mainly barley, oats, wheat, and rye; the rest are planted with fodder and other crops, including flax, hemp, hops, and tobacco. Annual agricultural production in the early 1990s included 3,583,000 metric tons of wheat, 2,974,000 metric tons of barley, 2,974,000 metric tons of sugar beets, and 308,000 metric tons of rye. The meat and dairy industries are important, especially the production of pork products.

A notable feature of agriculture in Denmark is the influence of the cooperative movement. Cooperative associations dominate the production of dairy products and bacon. A large percentage of the agricultural produce of the country is sold through marketing cooperatives. Most cooperatives are organized in national associations, which are members of the Agricultural Council, the central agency for the cooperatives in dealings with the government and industry and in foreign trade.

Forestry and Fishing

The forest resources of Denmark are negligible. All forests have been government reserves since 1805. The large Danish fishing fleet (over 3200 motorized vessels) plays a significant role in the economy. The total annual catch in the early 1990s was about 1.8 million metric tons, almost all of which were marine fish. The most important fish caught are herring, salmon, and cod.

Mining

All Danish subsurface resources are the property of the nation. Kaolin is found on the island of Bornholm, but the deposits are not of high quality, and it is used chiefly in the manufacture of coarse earthenware and brick. Natural gas and petroleum are recovered from offshore North Sea fields; the output of crude oil was about 58.5 million barrels annually in the early 1990s. Other minerals produced commercially are limonite, lignite, cryolite, limestone, chalk, and marl. Large quantities of salt have been discovered in Jutland, where sand reserves are expected to yield titanium, zircon, and yttrium.

Manufacturing

The principal industrial establishments of Denmark are food-processing plants and factories producing metals, machinery (notably marine and railroad diesel engines), clothing, and textiles. Danish furniture has been in demand throughout the world since the 1920s. Other important industries include iron founding; shipbuilding; brewing; and the manufacture of cement, chemicals, drugs, electronic equipment, earthenware, porcelain, stoves, bicycles, and paper.

Energy

Almost all Denmark's electricity is produced in thermal plants using coal or petroleum products. In the early 1990s the country had an installed electricity-generating capacity of about 11.2 million kilowatts, and annual production was approximately 34.2 billion kilowatt-hours. There have also been efforts to develop renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power.

Currency and Banking

The Danish currency is the krone, or crown (5.54 kroner equal U.S.$1; 1995). The National Bank of Denmark (1818) is the bank of issue and is the center of Danish finance, with head offices in Copenhagen. In addition, several large commercial banks have branches throughout the country. The country also has nearly 460 saving bank branches.

Foreign Trade

In the mid-1960s West Germany replaced Great Britain as the major supplier of the Danish market. Today, Germany is still Denmark's leading export and import partner, but Great Britain remains among the largest importers of Danish products.

Until the early 1960s livestock, processed meat (chiefly ham), and dairy products constituted the bulk of exports. Industrial exports have grown steadily and, since 1961, have exceeded agricultural exports. In the early 1990s yearly exports were valued at about $33 billion, and annual imports at about $30 billion. Major Danish imports are machinery, primary metals and metal products, transportation equipment, fuels and lubricants, and various consumer goods.

Transportation

Because of the discontinuous terrain of Denmark, ferries are important in the transportation system. They link Jutland with the Baltic islands, the Baltic islands with one another, and both Jutland and the Baltic islands with Germany, Sweden, and Norway. Denmark has about 3000 km (about 1865 mi) of operated railroad track, more than 80 percent of which is part of the Danish State Railways system. The main rail route leads south through Jutland to Hamburg, Germany. Motor vehicle traffic runs on about 71,063 km (about 44,159 mi) of roads. Danish Airlines is part of the Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS). Danair provides domestic air service. The international airport is at Kastrup, near Copenhagen. In August 1991 Denmark signed an agreement with Sweden for the construction of a rail and road system across the strait between Copenhagen and Malmö. The project was scheduled for completion in 1997.

Communications

The government telephone service owns and operates long-distance lines, but most local services in Denmark are operated by private companies. Radio and television programs are produced by the state-owned Radio Denmark, which operates three national radio channels and a national television network. Programs on these channels are commercial-free, and are supported by licensing fees from set owners. There is also a commercial television network, which began broadcasting in 1988. Denmark had more than 40 major daily newspapers, with a combined circulation of approximately 1.7 million in the early 1990s.

Labor

More than half the total Danish population is employed; roughly 20 percent of the labor force is engaged in manufacturing and handicrafts. Women make up about 46 percent of the work force. In the 1960s and 1970s the country suffered severe shortages of skilled workers. Most skilled workers, technicians, and handicraft workers are union members. The Danish Confederation of Trade Unions had about 1.5 million members in more than 23 principal affiliated unions in the early 1990s.

Government

Denmark is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy, governed under a constitution of 1953. Margaret II succeeded to the throne on the death of her father, Frederick IX, in 1972.

Executive

National executive power is nominally vested in the Danish sovereign, but the real head of government is the prime minister. The prime minister, appointed by the sovereign, must have the support of a majority of the legislature.

Legislature

Legislative power in Denmark is vested jointly in the sovereign and in a unicameral legislature, called the Folketing, or diet. The concurrence of sovereign and Folketing is necessary for the enactment of legislation, a declaration of war, and the signing of a peace treaty. The legislative term is four years, but the sovereign may dissolve the Folketing before the end of the term. The 179 members are popularly elected; the Faroe Islands and Greenland are each represented by two members. Elections are conducted chiefly on the basis of proportional representation. All Danes over 18 years of age who are permanent residents are eligible to vote and to stand for election to the Folketing. Measures passed by the legislature may be submitted to a referendum with the consent of one-third of the members; if at least 30 percent of the eligible voters disapprove the measure, it is defeated.

Judiciary

Judicial power in Denmark is vested in 82 lower courts presided over by individual judges; two high courts, each with a panel of judges; and a supreme court, which sits in Copenhagen.

Local Government

District councils of between 7 and 31 members, headed by elected mayors, administer the approximately 275 municipalities of Denmark. The city of Copenhagen is administered by a 55-member city council and by a smaller executive body. County councils headed by mayors administer the 14 counties. The ministry of interior supervises the counties, the city of Copenhagen, and the borough of Frederiksberg. Local committees supervise the municipalities.

Political Parties

The Social Democratic party, founded in 1871, has long been the largest party of Denmark; it has a membership of about 100,000. Other leading parties include the Conservative People's party, Socialist People's party, and Liberal party.

Health and Welfare

Health insurance, covering all of the Danish population, provides free medical care and hospitalization, payment for some essential medicines, and some dental care. Most hospitals are municipal. Single persons are entitled to a pension at age 67. Pension rates are adjusted annually in accordance with changes in the cost-of-living index. Other benefits include employment injuries insurance; unemployment insurance; social assistance for the aged, blind, and disabled; and provisions for the care of children, including daytime care for children of couples when both work.

Defense

Denmark is a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Conscription is universal, and all recruits receive at least nine months of military training. The army maintains a strength of about 16,900 soldiers. The navy includes a small fleet and a coast-defense force and has about 4500 members. The Royal Danish Air Force, with approximately 6300 members, is tactically under NATO command. Each service has a volunteer home guard. The volunteer home guard comprises about 69,200 members.

History

Knowledge of Danish antiquity is derived largely from archaeological research. Some historians believe that Danes inhabiting the southern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula migrated to the Jutland Peninsula and the adjacent islands in the Baltic Sea in the 5th and 6th centuries. Evidence of major public structures—including a canal, a long bridge, and the ramparts across the neck of Jutland now called the Danevirke—in the 8th century attests to the presence of a fairly strong central authority in Jutland on the eve of the Viking age. Within a century of their first raid on the British Isles in the 780s, the Danes were masters of the part of England that became known as the Danelaw. Under King Harold Bluetooth in the 10th century, political consolidation increased, and the Christianization of the Danes was begun. Harold's son, Sweyn I, conquered all of England in 1013 and 1014. Sweyn's son, Canute II, who ruled England (1016-1035) and Denmark (1018-1035), completed the Christianization of Denmark.

Expansion and Prosperity

In the late 12th and early 13th centuries, the Danes expanded to the east. They conquered the greater part of the southern coastal areas of the Baltic Sea, establishing a powerful and prosperous realm twice the size of modern Denmark. In this era of expansion, feudalism in Denmark attained its zenith. The kingdom became wealthier and more powerful than it had ever been. Most of the country's once-free peasantry saw their rights reduced. Marked economic progress was made in this era, principally in the development of the herring-fishing industry and livestock raising. This progress was the basis for the rise of merchants and craftsmen and of a number of guilds.

Growing discord between the Danish crown and the nobility led to a struggle in which the nobility, in 1282, compelled King Eric V to sign a charter, sometimes referred to as the Danish Magna Carta. By the terms of this charter, the Danish crown was made subordinate to law, and the assembly of lords, called the Danehof, was made an integral part of the administrative institutions.

A temporary decline in Danish power after the death of Christopher II in 1332 was followed, in the reign of Waldemar IV, by the reestablishment of Denmark as the leading political power on the Baltic Sea. However, the Hanseatic League, a commercial federation of European cities, controlled trade.

The Kalmar Union and The Reformation

In 1380 Denmark and Norway were joined in a union under one king, Olaf II, a grandson of Waldemar IV, and with Norway came Iceland and the Faroe Islands. After Olaf's death in 1387, his mother, Margaret I, reigned in his stead. In 1389 she obtained the crown of Sweden and began the struggle, completed successfully in 1397, to form the Union of Kalmar, a political union of the three realms. Denmark was the dominant power, but Swedish aristocrats strove repeatedly—and with some success—for Sweden's autonomy within the union. The Kalmar Union lasted until 1523, when Sweden won its independence in a revolt against the tyrannical Christian II led by Gustav Vasa, who was elected king of Sweden as Gustav I in that year.

Also in 1523 Christian II was driven from the Danish throne. There followed a period of unrest, as Lübeck, the strongest Hanseatic city, interfered in Danish politics. With help from Sweden's king, Lübeck's interference was ended and Christian III consolidated his power as king of Denmark. During his reign (1534-1559) the Reformation triumphed in Denmark, and the Lutheran church was established as the state church. At this time the Danish kings began to treat Norway as a province rather than as a separate kingdom. Commercial and political rivalry with Sweden for domination of the Baltic Sea resulted in the indecisive Nordic Seven Years' War (1563-1570) and the War of Kalmar (1611-1613) between Sweden and Denmark.

The intervention of Christian IV in the religious struggle in Germany on behalf of the Protestant cause in the 1620s led to Danish participation in the Thirty Years' War. Continued rivalry with Sweden for primacy in the north led to the Swedish Wars of 1643 to 1645 and 1657 to 1660, in which Denmark was badly defeated and lost several of its Baltic islands and all of its territory on the Scandinavian Peninsula except Norway.

Absolute Monarchy

Economic reverses resulting from these defeats had far-reaching consequences in Denmark. The growing commercial class, hard hit by the loss of foreign markets and trade, joined with the monarchy to curtail the power and privileges of the nobility. In 1660, capitalizing on the nobility's unpopularity after its poor military performance in the Swedish Wars, Frederick III carried out a coup d'état against the aristocratic Council of the Realm. The monarchy, which until then had been largely dependent for its political power on the aristocracy, was made hereditary, and in 1661 it became absolute. The tax-exemption privileges of the nobility were ended, and nobles were replaced by commoners in the nation's administrative apparatus. Important administrative reforms were also introduced.

In the 18th century Denmark began the colonization of Greenland; Danish trade in East Asia expanded; and trading companies were established in the West Indies, where Denmark acquired several islands. In 1788 constraints on the liberties of the peasants were abolished, and in the following decades an agricultural enclosure movement greatly enhanced the production of foodstuffs.

During the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815), efforts by England to blockade the European continent led to naval clashes with Denmark. Copenhagen was twice bombarded by British fleets, first in 1801 and again in 1807, and the Danish navy was destroyed. As a result, Denmark was largely cut off from Norway, and the Danish monarch reluctantly sided with Napoleon. By the Peace of Kiel (1814) Denmark ceded Helgoland to the British and Norway to Sweden; in return, Denmark was given Swedish Pomerania, which it later exchanged for Lauenburg, previously held by Prussia.

Constitutional Monarchy

A growing demand for constitutional government in Denmark led to the proclamation of the constitution of 1849. Denmark became a constitutional monarchy, civil liberties were guaranteed, and a bicameral legislature, which was to share legislative power with the Crown, was established. German nationalism in Schleswig and Holstein (see Schleswig-Holstein), both hereditary duchies held by the kings of Denmark, presented the Danes with serious problems in the wake of the Revolution of 1848. The two duchies had long been objects of dispute between Danish kings and German monarchs. With diplomatic aid from Russia, Denmark had prevailed in a first test of strength in mid-century, but in 1864 Prussia and Austria went to war with the Danes to prevent incorporation of Schleswig into Denmark's territory and constitutional structure. The Danes were defeated and lost possession of the two duchies and of other territory.

In 1866 the Danish constitution was revised, making the upper chamber (Landsting) more powerful than the lower house (Folketing). During the last decades of the 19th century, commerce, industry, and finance flourished; dairy farming and the cooperative movement were much expanded; and the working class grew in numbers. After 1880 the newly organized Social Democratic party played a major role in the Danish labor movement and in the struggle for a democratic constitution. The principle of parliamentary government was recognized in 1901, ending a long political deadlock between the Crown and the Landsting on one side and the Folketing, on the other side.

Modern Denmark

The country was neutral during World War I (1914-1918). In 1917 Denmark sold the Virgin Islands, in the West Indies, to the United States. Constitutional reforms enacted in 1915 established many of the basic features of the present governmental system. Universal suffrage went into effect in 1918. The same year Denmark recognized the independence of Iceland, but continued to exercise pro forma control of the foreign policy of the new state, and the Danish king remained Iceland's head of state. In 1920 North Schleswig was incorporated into Denmark as a result of a plebiscite carried out in accordance with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles; the southern part of Schleswig had voted to remain in Germany.

In May 1939 Denmark signed a ten-year nonaggression pact with Nazi Germany. In April 1940 Germany invaded and occupied Denmark, although the Danish government was able to maintain much control over its legal and domestic affairs until 1943. The Danish police helped Denmark's 6000 Jews to escape safely to neutral Sweden on the eve of their arrest and deportation. Great Britain occupied the Faroes, and in 1941 the United States established a temporary protectorate over Greenland, building various weather stations and air bases on the island. In 1944 Iceland, following a national referendum, severed all ties with Denmark and proclaimed itself a republic.

After World War II Denmark joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949. Subsequently it has become a member of other international organizations including the European Free Trade Association (1959) and the European Economic Community (1972).

In 1953 a revised constitution was adopted, creating a unicameral parliament, permitting female accession to the throne, and including Greenland as an integral part of Denmark. Greenland was granted home rule in 1979.

Four decades of dominance by the Social Democratic party ended with the 1968 elections. Hilmar Baunsgaard, leader of the Radical Liberal party, formed a coalition government that lasted until 1971, when Jens Otto Krag, a former Social Democratic prime minister, retained office. King Frederick IX died in 1972 and was succeeded by his daughter, Margaret II. Later that year Krag resigned and was replaced as prime minister and party leader by Anker Jørgensen. The Social Democrats suffered losses in the elections of late 1973, and Poul Hartling, a Liberal, formed a minority cabinet. Following elections in early 1975, however, Jørgensen returned to power, also at the head of a minority government. He retained his leadership until September 1982, when Poul Schlüter, a Conservative, was named to head a right-of-center coalition. Elections in January 1984 increased the plurality of the coalition, which retained power in the elections of September 1987, May 1988, and December 1990. In 1985 the Folketing passed legislation against future construction of nuclear power plants in the country, and the government agreed to help establish a Nordic nuclear-free zone. Disputes in the Danish government over NATO-related policies damaged Denmark's relationship with the organization, but good relations were largely restored by 1988. Destruction of lobster colonies in the strait between Denmark and Sweden in 1988 and other ecological disasters resulted in the passage of rigorous environmental protection measures by the Folketing.