Multimedia Mania/abacus-multimedia-mania.iso/dp/0017/00171.txt

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$Unique_ID{bob00171}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Denmark
The Constitution}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Henning Dehn Nielsen}
$Affiliation{Ministry of Foreign Affairs}
$Subject{denmark
danish
government
copenhagen
political
social
time
economic
war
foreign}
$Date{1990}
$Log{}
Title:       Denmark
Book:        Facts about Denmark
Author:      Henning Dehn Nielsen
Affiliation: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Date:        1990

The Constitution

     Thus the absolute monarchy was badly eroded by the time revolution spread
across the Continent in the early spring of 1848. Schleswig-Holstein interests
demanded immediate action, but an ultimatum to the government for a joint
constitution for the two duchies was foiled by the Liberal Party in
Copenhagen, who without threat of violence urged Frederik VII (1848-63) to
abandon absolutism and convene a democratic national assembly to draw up a
constitution for the whole country. Insurrection in Schleswig-Holstein sparked
off a three-year war. Initially, Prussia lent armed support against Denmark,
but as Russia and Austria eventually succeeded in quelling revolution in
Central Europe the Schleswig-Holsteiners were left to their own devices and
inevitable defeat.

     A libertarian constitution was drawn up for Denmark in 1849 and signed on
June 5. It extended such a broad franchise that overnight Denmark became far
and away the most democratic country in Europe. However, a reconstruction of
the entire monarchy, where special attention still had to be paid to the great
powers, was no easy task for the legislators. Finally, the Liberal Prime
Minister C. C. Hall saw no alternative but to provoke a political crisis.
Denmark adopted a new constitution that included Denmark and Slesvig but
excluded Holstein.

Loss of Slesvig

     As was to be expected, the German Confederation protested and promptly
placed Holstein under military occupation. But the Prussian Prime Minister,
Otto von Bismarck, considered there were good grounds for declaring war - a
struggle in which Denmark was ill-equipped to engage. War did in fact come in
February 1864 and lasted only a few months. Slesvig was lost, and for more
than fifty years the area remained a German possession, although the
population in the northern half of the province managed, despite extremely
great difficulties, to keep their Danish language and mental affinity with
Denmark alive. Defeat was a bitter pill. As in 1660 and again in 1814, it was
a serious and open question whether Denmark could survive as a nation. The
National Liberals, who represented chiefly the bourgeoisie of Copenhagen, no
longer enjoyed the confidence of the people, and government fell into the
hands of the farming population under the leadership of the landowners. A new,
more reactionary constitution, consolidating the power of the affluent as
rulers of the political scene, was passed in 1886.

Economic growth

     Despite political crisis, Denmark was nevertheless undergoing rapid
economic development. The favourable economic winds that had propelled the
popular movements in the 1830s persisted. British industrialization resulted
in an increase in the demand for Danish agricultural products, especially
grain. The steamship boosted foreign trade generally, and a new railway system
in Denmark helped to promote business activity. The loss of Holstein, the most
industrialized region in the realm, obliged the remainder of the country to
increase industrial production.

     Many light industries and a handful of heavier ones were established,
including breweries, sugar refineries, shipyards and cement manufacturing
plants, the latter being one of the very few industries for which raw
materials could be obtained from the Danish subsoil.

     Denmark found itself developing its finances, which were controlled for a
generation by the banker C.F. Tietgen, and a new proletariat of industrial
workers emerged. In 1871 a former officer, Louis Pio, attempted to organize a
socialist party.

     Despite political strife, the post-1864 period was a time of prosperity. In
1882 the world's first cooperative dairy was founded at Hjedding, near Varde in
Jutland.

     This first effort was unsuccessful, but the violent worker
demonstrations - repeatedly dispersed by the army - gave the Establishment
such a shock that they helped to keep the political situation unchanged for
the next thirty years.

Agricultural growth.

     The political cooperation between Denmark's farmers and landowners fell
apart during the 1870s, whereupon the farmers created the somewhat amorphous
Liberal Party; they felt it was time they themselves took over the reins of
power. But the landowners refused to budge, and for two decades, 1875-94, the
government was headed by an obstinate landowner, J.B.S. Estrup, who relied
occasionally on provisional legislation that had not received the backing of
parliament. Steadily, however, the landowners lost their power base; grain
exports came to a halt when Russia and the United States took over control of
the world market in the 1880s, and Danish agriculture had to switch to
processed foods such as bacon and dairy products. Farmers got together to
form cooperatives, regional dairies and bacon factories. In effect,
agriculture became Denmark's largest industry, and the economic influence
gained by the farmers (combined with the high level of organization achieved
by the cooperative societies) helped to pave the way to political power.

     The landowners did their best to postpone the change as long as possible,
seeking to bolster their shrinking popularity by, for example, appealing
patriotically to the electorate for a modernization of Denmark's defences
through massive fortifications, but in 1901 they were forced to surrender, and
a Liberal government with a parliamentary majority was formed. It carried
through a series of reforms aimed in particular at democratizing all levels of
administration, culminating in a revised constitution in 1915 that gave women
the vote.

     On the outbreak of World War I, Denmark at once proclaimed neutrality but
nevertheless came to feel the effects of hostilities in the form of both
soaring prices for its agricultural exports and a higher cost of living for
the working classes. The radical changes brought about by the war led in 1920
to a sharp confrontation between the Crown and parliament when Christian X
(1912-47) dismissed the Radical Liberal government then in office. However,
taken aback by the disturbances and demonstrations his actions triggered off
he at once relinquished his political initiative. At about the same time the
northern part of Slesvig, following a plebiscite in accordance with the Treaty
of Versailles, was reunited with Denmark, while Iceland was recognized as an
independent, sovereign state in a personal union with Denmark, i.e. with a
common head of state and foreign policy.

     For several years Danish Jews were not persecuted as they were elsewhere in
German-occupied Europe. But the night before October 2, 1943 the Germans decided
to "solve the Jewish question" in Denmark by taking sudden action. They failed;
by means of an extraordinary effort the Danish Resistance Movement, in
cooperation with a significant part of the population, managed to help more than
7,000 Jews to escape to neutral Sweden. The Germans arrested 202 Jews, many of
whom suffered a terrible fate in concentration camps.

Labour government

     During the 1920s the Liberals, by this time considered rightwing, formed
the strongest party, but the rapidly expanding Social Democrat party, mainly
supported by industrial workers and intellectuals, pushed ahead, and in 1924
Thorvald Stauning was able to form Denmark's first Social Democrat government,
which, however, had to resign only two years later, in 1926. When the
non-socialist parties divided in 1929 over defence the Social Democrats were
again able to secure power, supported this time by the small Radical Liberal
party. It became the task of this government to guide the country through the
1930s, warding off the worst effects of the international depression by means
of special legislation - some of it designed to aid the distressed farming
community - while at the same time laying the foundations of a welfare state
dedicated to improved social security.

     The National Hospital in Copenhagen is today one of the symbols of the
centralized welfare state that was developed in the 1960s and 1970s. The huge
building complex is situated close to the centre of Copenhagen, exemplifying a
kind of technocratic, functionalistic architecture. It is an advanced central
hospital for the whole country and its research activities enjoy international
recognition.

The German Occupation

     The outbreak of World War II in 1939 brought another declaration of
neutrality from Denmark, but on April 9, 1940 the country was occupied in
connection with the German campaign to take Norway.

     Denmark's nominal defences were rapidly surrendered in return for a
German assurance that the occupation was a purely military matter that would
not be permitted to influence internal affairs in Denmark. The government did
indeed function until 1943, but German pressure stirred up resentment amongst
the Danes to the degree that - when the war was beginning to turn against the
Germans - a resistance movement arose, mostly supported by young people, who
specialized in sabotaging factories and railways.

     Faced with a German demand that sabotage must carry the death penalty,
the Danish government resigned in August 1943, and from this point onwards
Denmark was under German dictatorship, while the fight between the resistance
movement and the occupation forces-including Danes who were actually
collaborating with the enemy - became a bloody vendetta. When the war ended in
1945 Denmark was granted status as an allied nation and joined the United
Nations.

     Nyboder is a distinctive quarter of Copenhagen featuring long rows of low
yellow terrace-houses. They were originally built in the 17th century by
Christian IV as dwellings for sailors in the Danish Navy. The buildings still
fulfil this function, but during the 1970s Nyboder was expanded by the
addition of modern houses in the old style, including nursing homes and
children's institutions. In the course of urban renewal in Denmark an attempt
is thus being made to combine the old with the new, and social as well as
housing policies try to mix generations, institutions and dwelling forms.

Social welfare

     The post-war period brought with it a repetition of the political pattern
of the 1930s, that is to say most of the time a Social Democrat government
relying frequently on Radical Liberal support and with working-class men
like Hans Hedtoft and H.C. Hansen as prime ministers. Economic reconstruction
absorbed all resources until about 1950, after which the government's prime
objective was to increase all forms of social welfare. But Denmark's Social
Democrats, although representing the working classes, have never at any time
advocated out-and-out socialism. On the contrary, when in power the party
recognized the need to encourage the competitive ability of the business
community on the international market. Industry expanded steadily; this was
particularly true of companies willing to establish themselves in specialist,
previously unexploited markets in areas such as applied art, toy manufacture
and automatic controls. By the mid-1960s the value of industrial exports
exceeded that of agricultural exports.

     Iceland, even before the end of the war, had broken its remaining
political ties with Denmark and declared itself a republic. The Faroe Isles,
which had been occupied by the British, reverted to Denmark but with a more
independent status than previously. Greenland, with its small Eskimo
population, was given a share in the welfare policy and then modernized at
enormous expense; sheep-farming, fishing and fish-processing became the main
industries. A degree of self-government was introduced, but Greenland and the
Faroes accepted seats in the Folketing, Denmark's parliament.

Scandinavia, NATO and the EEC

     In the matter of foreign policy there was an about-turn. The feelings
left by the war and the German occupation once again generated interest in a
viable Danish defence plan, which the Social Democrats now supported
completely. Soviet policy during the immediate post-war years caused grave
anxiety, and Denmark tentatively proposed a defence alliance with Norway and
Sweden.

     When negotiations failed, Denmark joined NATO in 1949. However, this did
not signal the end of efforts to foster closer relations with the other
Scandinavian countries, to which Denmark has always felt naturally drawn.
In 1952, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden formed the Nordic
Council, an assembly of parliamentarians which works on various fronts to
promote relations between the Nordic countries. In the economic sector the
Danish, Norwegian and Swedish national airlines were successful in forming
SAS, but in other respects it became evident that the interests of the
respective Nordic countries differed so fundamentally that further integration
was impossible, especially in view of the impending formation of the Common
Market. From the outset Denmark was keen to join the European Economic
Community, being devoid of raw materials and thus utterly dependent for its
economic existence on foreign trade links. When Britain, a major trading
partner, became a member in 1973, Denmark followed suit. Norway and Sweden
remained outside the Community.

     The dream of a traffic connection above or below the waters of the Great
Belt separating the major provinces of Denmark (just like that of a tunnel under
the English Channel) from the 19th century. Plans to establish a connection have
been agreed upon several times but later abandoned for financial reasons. In
1986 the Danish Folketing decided the time had come to take serious action. A
combined bridge and tunnel link is to be completed in 1996. The picture, which
was taken in the spring of 1990, shows the idyllic little island of Sprogo in
the middle of the Great Belt. The island is now a centre for the Danish art of
bridge-building and entrepreneurial ingenuity.

Our own period

     Around 1970 Denmark appeared to have achieved what it had been aiming for
in terms of welfare policy, namely a high standard of living - one of the
highest in the world - incorporating, first, a well-developed system of social
security that guarantees that no one in the event of unemployment or illness
need suffer a serious lowering of living conditions and, secondly, a system
of education that gives every youngster the promise of free practical or
theoretical training at every level. But the cost of implementing such a
comprehensive programme was considerable.

     Denmark tasted its own version of the French and German student revolt,
realizing that what it now had on its hands was a generation of young people
who had spent their childhood in a period of economic growth but which now
repudiated their parents' struggles to acquire house, garden and material
goods. A loosely grouped political left wing broke away from the main body of
youth, demanding an alternative society. Its most visible offshoot was the
slum-squatting movement that took over a group of disused army barracks in
Copenhagen and claimed to establish what it call the "free city" of
Christiania.

     At the same time Denmark began to realize that although its industrial
exports were now at a high level it was still unable to maintain a favourable
balance of payments. The country's foreign borrowing (representing the gap
between production and consumption) increased, and became catastrophic during
the oil crises of 1973-74. A growing protest against the steeply rising burden
of taxation was reflected in the birth of a new political party whose election
manifesto had only two main points: tax protest and cutting the cost of
government. It stole many voters from the traditional non-socialist parties
and the right wing of the Social Democratic party.

The information society and the inner market

     The presence of two unyielding blocs at each end of the political
spectrum - a group of socialist parties on the left wing with a corresponding
group of non-socialists on the right - made it increasingly difficult to
implement the economic reforms necessary to alleviate the increasing burden of
foreign debt and heavy taxation.

     In 1982 the Social Democrats, having held power for many years, handed
over the reins to a government composed of four non-socialist parties and
headed by a Conservative prime minister. Despite the problems of securing a
majority in the Folketing this government succeeded in curbing growth in the
public sector.

     It is many years since Denmark imposed its will upon its bigger neighbours
by waging war, and patriotism today has found new and less violent forms. The
countless Danish "roligans" are supporters of the Danish football team and
follow it eagerly but with exemplary peacefulness all over the world.

     At the same time, however, private expenditure rose steadily until the
end of the 1980s, and although in 1986 the government managed to establish a
surplus balance for government finances, foreign debt at the commencement of
the 1990s still remains one of the country's most serious problems.

     Individual material affluence was greater than ever before, but even so
the Danes began to feel themselves poorer. To maintain family living
standards - and as a result of the liberation of women during the
1970s - women swarmed on to the labour market, so that during the 1980s the
housewife without a job away from home was a rarity in Denmark.

     Cultural life was liberalized. In 1980 the Danes could watch, for
instance, one TV channel. Almost a decade later there are over ten national
and regional TV stations, and even more radio stations have started up. The
dominance on cultural life held by the Left during the 1970s disappeared in
favour of a more searching and uncertain attitude towards the rapidly
developing information society.

     Danish interest in the environment increased as a result of steadily
wider coverage in the media. In 1987 the Folketing passed what was perhaps the
world's strictest environmental legislation. The environment was also one of
the most important issues when in 1986 the Danes plunged into a violent debate
prior to a referendum held about the so-called Single European Act. After
being convinced with regard to, amongst other things, Denmark's continued
right to introduce stricter environmental rules than the rest of the European
Economic Community, Danish voters approved the reforms contained in the
package, including plans to establish the free internal market in the EEC
before 1992.

     One of the major questions is how the many relatively small Danish
businesses, which admittedly excel in fields such as design, research and
inventiveness, will manage to survive when capital is allowed to flow freely
and conditions for competition will be the same from Scotland to Gibraltar.

     Erik Kjersgaard holds an MA degree in history. He is the author of
numerous books and a producer of TV-programmes on historical subjects. He is
also director of Den Gamle By (The Old Town), an open-air museum of old Danish
houses in Arhus, Jutland.

Bibliography

     Hal Koch and John Danstrup (eds.): Danmarks historie (The History of
Denmark). In Danish only. Politikens Forlag, Copenhagen 1976-78. 15 vols.

     Axel Steensberg (ed.): Dagligliv i Danmark i det 17.-20. arhundrede
(Everyday Life in Denmark in the 17th-20th Centuries). In Danish only. Nyt
Nordisk Forlag. Copenhagen 1963-71. 4 vols. Paul Hammerich: En
Danmarkskronike 1945-72 (A Danish Chronicle, 1945-72). In Danish only.
Gyldendal. Copenhagen 1980. 3 vols.

     Stewart Oakley: The Story of Denmark. Faber & Faber. London 1972.

     Roar Skovmand, Vagn Dybdal and Erik Rasmussen: Geschichte Danemarks
1830-1939. Wachholtz. Neumunster 1973.

     Erik Kjersgaard: A History of Denmark. The Royal Danish Ministry of
Foreign Affairs. Copenhagen 1974.

     Bent Rying: Danish in the South and the North. The Royal Danish Ministry
of Foreign Affairs. Copenhagen 1981 (vol.I.), 1988 (vol. II).

     Palle Lauring: A History of the Kingdom of Denmark. Host & Son,
Copenhagen 1960.

     Helge Seidelin Jacobsen: An Outline History of Denmark. Host & Son.
Copenhagen 1986.

     W. Glyn Jones: Denmark, A Modern History. Croom Helm. London 1986.