Denmark Flag

Denmark Flag

Denmark Flag

The original home of the Danes was, in fact, Sweden, from which the first settlers emigrated during the 5th and 6th centuries. Ruled by local chieftains, during the 8th and 9th centuries their descendants terrorized Northern Europe with their Viking raids before being unified and Christianized by Harald Bluetooth, king of Denmark. King Knut (Canute) later ruled an empire that encompassed Denmark, Norway and England, but this declined following his death in 1035. Beset by territorial wars and dynastic disputes, King Valdemar IV finally restored order during the 1350s, Denmark, Norway and Sweden being united under Queen Margrethe I in 1397. Sweden broke away in 1449, however, while Norway was ceded to Sweden in 1815.

The oldest monarchy in Europe (but a constitutional monarchy only since 1953), Denmark also boasts its oldest Denmark flag, the Dannebrog ('Danish Cloth'). Although legend says that a red flag bearing a white cross appeared in 1219 to Valdemar II as a sign from heaven during his conquest of Estonia, it is more likely that the flag was received as gift from the pope during the Crusades. The flag was originally square, the design subsequently being elongated to extend the arm of the cross in the fly. Because several other Scandinavian countries were at one time ruled by Denmark, many of their flags were based on the Denmark flag model.