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Denmark which had been neutral in World War I attempted to maintain the same status when the NAZIs launched World War II with its invasion of Poland. Denmark along with the other Nordic countries, officially declared their neutrality. Germany nonetheless invaded Denmark (April 9,1940). Operation Weserübung targetted both Denmark and Norway. Denmark had virtually no army. After token resistance at the border, the Danes surrendered before noon. Within hours, Denmark was in NAZI hands. King Christian X decided to remain with his countrymen. The King advised the Danish people not to resist the Germans. The NAZIs allowed the Danish Government to continue to function under close supervision. After the German invasion of the Soviet Union (June 1941), a few Danes volunteered to fight with the Germans. The Resisance movement slowly grew in strength and begin to oppose the Germans through strikes and sabatoge (Spring 1943). Finally the exasperated NAZIs seized control of the Government (August 29, 1943). The Danish Resistance managed to save almost all the country's Jews from the NAZI Holocaust. Denmark along with Norway were the last NAZI-occupied countries to be liberated. Forces commanded by General Montgomery reached Denmark just as the NAZI's surrendered (May 1945).
Denmark had been a major European power. The Danish war (1864) was the last war fought by Denmark. Danish forces were overwealmed by Prussian and Austrian forces. When Prussia later defeated France in the Franco Prussian War (1870-71) it became clear to Danish officials that Denmark could not militarily resist the Germans. Thus the only viable option was neutrality. A debate began among right-wing and left-wing Danish leads as to what form Danish neutrality should take. The conservatives wanted a strong defense, a kind of armed meutrality and fortifications were built in Copenhagen. Left-wing parties had no agreed view, but some wanted complete disarmament. Danish Goverments attempted to convince the Germans to recognize German neutrality. This was complicated by differences of opinion in Denmark and the anti-German sentiment resulting from the Danish War. Here the most antiGerman Dane was the young Princess Alexandria who married the British Prince of Wales. She would do her part in changing public opinion in Britain toward the Germans. Reports of the mistreatment of the Danish population in Schleswig further fueled anti-German sentiment. German when the World war broke out did generally recognize Danish neutrality, except that they insisted the Danes lay mines in the Great Belt (August 1914). The Danes complied being unwilling to resist a German invasion. The British did not react militarily as they understood the Danish position and were not significantly affected by the action. The kings of the three Scandinavian countries met in Malmö to make a joint declaration of absolute neutrality (December 1914). The War created export markets for the Danes although the British naval blockade and the German U-boat campaignmade it difficult for Danish companies to obtain raw materials. As a result, the Danish Government had to ration some consumer goods. The Government also had to take a range of economic steps to deal with the adverse conditions created by the War.
Egypt
NAZI Germany launched World War II with a devestating Blitzkrieg on Poland (September 1, 1939). Britain anf France honoring pledges to Poland declared war (September 3). Denmark which had been neutral in World War I attempted to maintain the same status. Denmark along with the other Nordic countries, officially declared their neutrality.
The one Allied offensive in the first year of the War was planned to secure Norway. The Germans responded with an offensive north on April 9, invading Denmark and Norway. It was a rapidly organized invasion to counter a planned British attempt to move into Norway to cut off iron shipments.
Operation Weserübung targetted both Denmark and Norway. Denmark had virtually no army. After token resistance at the border, the Danes surrendered before noon. Within hours, Denmark was in NAZI hands.
The German Krriegsmarine suffered severe losses, especilly of destroyers. The British fough on in northern Norway for 3 weeks, but the superiority of the Luftwaffe finally forced them to withdraw. The loss of Norway not only provided Germany access to raw material, but meant that the U-boats could not br bottled up as they were in World war I. It also mean later in the War that supplying Russia would be very difficult.
Denmark was a small nation, but had an important merchant marine. Most of the Danish merchant fleet was at se when the NAZIs invasded and subsequently sailed to Allied ports. The ships proved useful to the hard-pressed Brirish losing ships to the German U-boats in the North Atlantic. The Danish ships were especially important before America entered the War and cthe Liberty Boats began entering service. About 60 per cent of these Danish nerchant ships were sunk by German German U-boats and other units. Approximately 600 Danish merchant seamen were killed transporting supplies for the Allies
Christian X was born in 1870 at Charlottenlund. He mairred Queen Alexandrine, born Hertuginde, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 1898. They had two sons. Frederick the Crown Prince was born in 1898. Knud was born in 1900. Some of the major achievements of his reign were a new democratic constitution granting the vote to women and the sale of the Virgin Islands to the United States. After the German invasion in 1940 King Christian X decided to remain with his countrymen. The King advised the Danish people not to resist the Germans. The King led his people in passive resistance to attempts to bring the Danes into the NAZI order. The King's bravery was an inspiration to the Danish people, one of the few countries to have sdome success in resisting the Germans. This was in part possible because the Germans with their racially based world view were unwilling to be as brutal in Denmark as they were in other countries like Poland
The NAZIs invaded and conquered Poland and Demark within the space of a two months. While both countries were close to rach other on the Reich's northern and eastern border. The occupation regimes, however, could not be more different. The barbarity let loose on Poland was not in evidence in Demark. The difference was essentially that the Poles were Slavs and the Germans saw the Danes as fellow Teutons. General Falkenhorst gave clear orders to his men about how they should conduct themselves. The NAZIs allowed the Danish Government to continue to function under close supervision. In the case of Denmark, the German Foreign Ministry administered the occupation. The German occipation was overseen by a Reich Plenipoteniary. The first was a Foreign Ministry diplmat, CecilRenthe-Fink. He was replaced by Werner Best (November 1942), although Best would have not have control over NAZI security forces operating in the country. Denmark continued to formally a sovereign state. This status was dramatically different than the other countries occupied by the NAZI. Racial affinities were the primary factor here as well as cultural afinities. The NAZIs did not ban political parties. Denmark remained a parlimentary democracy subject to a totalitarizn dictatorship. The Germans had the right to demand that any cabinent officer be removed. And they used this authority on several occassions. Minister of Trade John Christmas Müller was found to be too pro-British. Minister of Justice Harald Petersen was found to lack resolution in dealing with Danes incolved in a brawl with German soldiers at a fooball game (Danes/Admiral Wien). The Germans demanded the military be reduced by half and placed significant contraints on the country's foreign policy. The Danes formed a four Party coalition government headed by Thorvald Stauning. Erik Scavenius was appointed foreign minister (July 1940). After the NAZI invasion of the Soviet Union (June 1941), German authorities forced the Danish government to acquiese in the formation of a Danish unit to participate, albeit a volunteer unit. A few Danes volunteered and served with the Wehrmact on the Eastern front. German authorities also demanded that authorities ban the Communist Party. Under German pressure, the Danish Government joined the Anti-Comintern Pact (November 1941). Stauning died unexpectatly (May 1942). He was replaced by Vilhelm Buhl who, however, soon proved unacceptable to the Germans. They forced him to resign (November 1942). He was replaced by Foreign Miister Scavenius.
The NAZis did not have the racial goals in Denmark that they had in Poland and the East. The intrest in Denmark was to 1) exploit the country economically to support the war effort and 2) make the Danes and Denmark part of the New Order leading to a greater Reich after the War. For the Danish people, there was a minimal German imprint. Few German soldiers werre seen on Danish streerts. Life went on much as before the invasion. The major impact was in the economic sphere. After the military occupation was secured, the German Foreign Ministry attempted to negotiate or more precisely implement an economic union with Denmark (summer 1940). Then Goering and his Four-Year Plan attempted to oversee the Danish economy. Eventually the Reich Economics Ministry took control. The Germans abandoned the idea of economic union. The German persued more limited measures. They established a ministerial Eastern Committee to expand Danish industry in the Eastern areas seized by the Barbarossa offensive (June 1941). The overall NAZI goal was to become the economic center of a self-sufficient continental Europe. Thus German could function and continue the War depite the British naval blockade. A major goal in Denmark as in other occupied areas was to obtain food for the Reich. Denmark wa a food exporter, especially dairy products. Much of that food was marketed in Britain. After the German invasion, agricultural production was redirected to the Reich. [Lund] Here the Germans were very successful. Before the War, less than 25 of Danish exports went to the Reich (1939). This rapidly shifted and the Reich was soon receiving 75 percent of Danish exports (1941). Estimates suggest that during the War, the Danes supplied 10-15 percent of the Reich's food supplies. Also important was Danish cement and naval shipyards. The shipments to Germany without any counterflow of German products caused economuic problems in Denmark. Danes experienced price inflation. The Government was forced to impose food rationing.
The German occupation of Denmark was a great success economically, obtaining food and other supplies with a minimal military occupation force--about 200 Germans. Denmark was also a propaganda show case for the NAZIs. This was not enough for some Germans--namely German Führer Adolf Hitler. It was no secret in NAZI circles how to gain the Füher's ear and plumm political appointments. NAZI syncophants brought to Hitler's attention that the Danes were being codeled and allowed to thumb their nose at the German occupiers. This was brought to a head on King Christian's 72nd Birthday. Hitler sent the King a long, lauditory telegram. The King replied with just a few words acknowledging
receipt the telegram. This was not the way Hitler expected to be treated by his satrapies. He was furious and considered the King's telegram an intentional insult. Hitler decided on a major shakeup in the occupation regime. Hitler dispatched Geberal nHannecken to Copehagen. He was a soldier left out of major commands an anxious to demostrate hos miitary skills. Hitler replaced Renthe-Fink with SS-Grupenführer WErner Best whom he believed would adopt hard-line policies for the recalcitrant Danes. Danish Primeminister Bühl resigned in favor of Erik Scavenius who formed a nominally more pro-German Government. But the Givernmrnt was still based on rge Democratic parties in Parliament. The Danish Nazis were not allowed to join the Government. The changes appeared to have mollified Hitler for the time and overted a nassive German intervention.
A quite remarable event occurred in 1943. The NAZIs apparently thinking the Governmrnt changes reflected a shift toward Germany permitted the Danes to hold a free and open parlimentary elections. It was the only free election permitted in NAZI-occupied Europe during the War. It is not altogether clear why the NAZIs allowed the election. The NAZIs believed for some reason that right-wing parties might gain strength producing a parliament more sympathetic to Germany. Why they believed this is unclear. The science of polling was just developing in America and apparently non-existencet in Germany. The Danes voted strongly to support the four major pre-War democratic parties. This was a stunning rejection of the NAZIs and their local supporters. A factor here was surely the War news with stunning German defeats in the Soviet Union and North Africa. The Danish NAZIs garnered a mere 2 percent of the vote and most of that was the German ethnic vote.
Several pro-NAZI parties organized in Denmark. This was not because there was a lot of NAZI sentiment, but because there was no one individual leader who emerged to dominate the movement. The largest party was the Nationalsocialistiske Arbejderparti (DNSAP, National Socialist Workers’ Party of Denmark) was the Danish NAZI Party with no pretense of local origins. The party was organized after the dtunning NAZI success in the German Reichstag elections (1930). The DNSAP mimiked Hitler's NAZIs, using both the swastika as the Party symbol and and the German NAZI. They set up aara-military group which they called the SA. They even translated the Horst Wessel song as a Party anthemn. The DNSAP adopted the NAZIs virulent antisemitic. Cay Lembcke helped found the Party, but proved unable to gain even minimal support. Frits Clausen replaced him (1933). Clausen was a physcian from North Schleswig where he concentrated his activities. The support for the DNSAP was largely located there, in large part because of the German ethnic population located there. The party won nearly 2 oercent of the vote and three seats in the Folketing (parliament) (1939). Clausen and the DNSAP supported the German invasion (April 1940). He expected to be rewarded with control of the Danish Government. German Plenipoteniary Renthe-Fink considered the possibility, but decided that cooperation with the elected Danish government was the more prudent course, at least until Germany had won the war. The DNSAP received some financial and political support from Germany, but not political power. The DNSAP was not evem included in the wartime coalition government (1940-43). As Germany allowed the Danisg Government considerable autonomy, it did not interfere when the Government rrested 350 Danish Nazis who were demonstrating (December 1940). The DNSAP's youth movement was the National Socialistiske Ungdom (NSU). After the NAZI invasion of the Soviet Union, the Danish Government allowed a volunteer force to be recruited. The DNSAP was responsible for organizong a Waffen SS and Frikorps Danmark.
The DNSAP participated in the elections permitted by the Germans (March 1943), but Clausem and the Danish NAZIs managed to garmer only 2 percent of the vote in the parliamentary election. A crestfallen Clausen decided to join the campaign against the Soviet and joined a Waffen-SS medical unit. Service in the East was aay that NAZI loyalists in the occupied countries established their credentials. Clausen in a druken stupor forced himself upon nurses in a field hispital in Minsk. Himmler transferred him to an asylum in Würzburg. After the Germans seized control of the Danish Government (August 1943), the position improved slightly, but the most important collabirationist group became the Schalburg Corps, modeled on the SS with black uniforms. They numbered about 1,000 men. [Thomsen] The Danish Goveenment dissolved the DNSAP after lineratiin by the British (May 1945).
NAZI battlefield losses in 1942 changed minds about the outcome of the War. The ressistance movement began to grow in strength. The 1943 election demonstrated that the Danish peopled rejected the NAZIs. NAZI plundering of the economy gave rise to shortages and inflation, leading to growing public disatisfaction. The Resisance movement slowly grew in strength and begin to oppose the Germans through strikes and sabatoge (Summer 1943). Here the British aware of the Danish support for the German war effort decided to to use the Special Operations Execurive (SOE) to insert teams to help the Ramish resistance. Soon sabatoge attacks were occurring at the impressive rate of 20 a week. There were also spotaneous strikes in Odense and North Jutland. This was the end of the passive Danish acceptance og German rule. The strikes centered on Danish factories supporting the German war effort.Wehrmacht commanders at first feared an Allied invasion. General Hannecken reported on the disturbances to Hitler who took a personal interest in the Danish developmemts. Hitler summoned Best to his Wolf's Lair Headquaters in Rastenburg. Best was not called for consulations, but to be informed of Hitler's decesion as to deal with the Danes. The Germans delivered an ultimatum to the Fanish Government requiring it to supress the civil disturbances. The German authorities demanded that the Danish Government approve the death penalty for sabotage, cooperate in actions against Jews, and supress strikes with force.
The Government refused to do so, rejecting the German ultimatum (August 29). The exasperated NAZIs declared a state of emergency and seized control of the Government. General Hannecken activated Operation Safari. He disarmed and interned the Danish Army. While the Army did not resist, the Navy did. And after a fierce fight scuttled most of their ships to make sure the Germans would be unable to use them before withdrawing to neutral Sweden. The Germans imposed a nighttine curfew. Meetings including strikes of more than five people were banned. The German Reichskommissioner assumed control ov the country.
With the Germans firmly in control of the country and prepared to brutally apply force, the only real options open to the Danes was passive resistance. This would not work in many countries because the NAZIs were prepraring genocide, not only against the Jews, but also the Slavs. The Danes were different. They were a Nordic people, infact more Nordic than the Germans. Thus race hatred and genocide was not an element of NAZI occupation policy, except for the Danish Jews. The Danish resistance movement began to form in 1941. It was realtively quiet until Danish attitudes toward the NAZIs began to change (1943). The Danish Government that ruled until 1943 essentially played a game of saying one thing to the German occupation forces and then delayed actions for as long as they could. THe NAZI authorities became increasingly frustrated. There are maby accounts of ordinary folk worked as slowly as possible and if they could recalibrate a machine to make duff parts they did. It is difficult to tell just how much of this really occurred. Of course after liberation, everyone made such claims. Actually doing such things during the NAZI occupation was very dangerous. The Resiatance targeted the German military and businesses working for the NAZIs with acts of sabotage actions. There was also growing labor unrest. Massive strikes were staged in many Danish cities (1943). The Danish Government resigned and the NAZIs took over the government. Among other actions they imposed a curfew. Workers left work early on the pretext that they had to tend their gardens because the curfew provented them in the evening. In reality some went out to demonstrate, but this was dangerous. Teenagers and older students did not like passive resistance so they were the ones who carried out many of the acts of sabotague. The NAZIS as in other occupied countries targeted the Danish Jews for deportation, maning of course death. Saving the Danish Jews was the finest achievemebt of the resistance, Danes formed the Danish Freedom Council (DFC) (September 1943). By that time it was increaingly clear that the NAZIs were losing the War. They were, however, firmly in control of Denmark. The DFC was the coordinating prganization for the Resistance. Some of the major actions were clandestine newspapers, intelligence gathering for the Allies, and sabotage designed to disrupt war production. The DFC worked with Danish political figures.
After seizing control of te Government (August 1943), the NAZIs finally were in a position to round up Danish Jews, something they had been pushing the Danish Government to do. The Danes managed, however, to sprit most of their Jews away to saftey in Sweden. The NAZI occupation authoritiers planned a nation-wide round up all of Danish Jews and to then send them to the Polish death camps. The Danish people came to the aid of their Jews. Advanced warning of the roundup was leaked to the underground. Thousands of Danes stepped in to help the Jews escape to nearby Sweden. Before World War II there were 8,000 Jews in Denmark. Miraculously 7,500 of them successfully managed to get to Sweden with the assistance of their non-Jewish countrymen (October 1943). The NAZIs only manage to capture a few.
Denmark along with Norway were the last NAZI-occupied countries to be liberated. Forces commanded by General Montgomery reached Denmark just as the NAZI's surrendered (May 1945).
When the Germanforces in Denmark surrendered (May 5, 1945), a new government was formed with both representatives of the DFC and major political parties. The Danes voted (Fall 1945), electing a left-of-center government led by Knud Kristensen .
Lund, Joachim, Denmark and the ‘European New Order’, 1940–1942 (Cambridge University Press, 2004).
Thomsen, E. Deutsche Besatzungspolitik in Dänemark, 1940-1945 (Düsseldorf, 1971).
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