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Historical Background:
Denmark, Germany & the DKRL
web version © copyright Norma Storrs Keating and FEEFHS, all rights reserved
First Posted: May 1997
(from pages 88-89 of her book, Beginning Danish Research by Norma Storrs
Keating)
"The Denmark Research List (DKRL) is for those researchers with ancestors who lived in the
southern part of Denmark that was formerly part of Germany. A word or two of explaination is
needed to understand the unique history for this area of Denmark currently known as
Sønderjylland the includes the counties of Haderslev, Tønder and
Aabenraa-Sønderborg.
Denmark began a war in 1848 with Prussia over the status of two duchies called Schlesvig and
Holstein. (Danish spelling= Schlesvig; German spelling= Schleswig.) The Danish kings ruled over
these two areas on a personal basis. They were not an integral part of the kingdom itself. Prussia
kept an eye on the area, since the majority of the inhabitants were German speaking. Denmark won
the war and, thereafter, included the area in her territory.
Then followed 16 years of confusion as Denmark changed her mind several times about the status of
the two areas. In 1852 the status of the two areas reverted to the same as it had been in 1848. Then
in 1855 they were again incorporated as part of Denmark. This ruling was cancelled in 1858 only to
be reinstated again in 1863. By 1864 Austria and Prussia had enough. They declared war on
Denmark and won. Schlesvig went to Prussia and Holstein to Austria. But just three years later,
another fight over the two duchies occurred between Prussia and Austria. This time Austria was the
loser. Both dutchies were then included in Prussia.
Following World War I, a plebiscite in 1920 brought the northern part of Schlesvig back under
Danish control. The current Danish-German border is roughly a line across the Jutland Peninsula just
north of the city of Flensburg in Germany. There are still several thousand German speaking people
living in southern Denmark."
Because of all the controversy and border changes, there is an unfortunate lack of records for the
above named three counties in southern Denmark. Finding the census records, parish records, etc.
for the areas of Schlesvig-Holstein will depend to a great extent on the time frame you are looking
at.
Parish registers and census records before 1848 can be found in Danish archives and on microfilm at
the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Records generated after 1848 could be in
either Germany or Denmark. For the most part, the records for the area of Schlesvig that remained in
German hands after the plebiscite are at the Landesarchiv Schleswig-Holstein, Schloss Gottorf, 2380
Schleswig, Germany.
You will need to check your area of interest on an individual basis to see which parish register
records, land records and other genelogical records can be found in Denmark. After first checking the
catalog of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA to discover their holdings, you
might want to write to either of the following archives for more information:
Landsarkivet for de Sønderjyske Landsdele
Haderslev 45
6200 Aabenraa
Denmark
Telefon 74 62 58 58
Det Sønderjydske Landsbibliotek
Haderslevvej 3
Postboks 1037
6200 Aabenraa
Denmark
Telefon 74 62 25 62
Telefax 74 62 14 80
Local libraries, historical and genealogical groups also have scattered records for their individual
areas. The above archiv (archive) and bibliotek (library) can provide you with the name and address
of the library or group in the area you are searching.
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