Kingdom of Denmark
Encyclopedia
The Kingdom of Denmark or the Danish Realm , is a constitutional monarchy
and sovereign state
consisting of Denmark
proper in northern Europe
and two autonomous constituent countries, the Faroe Islands
in the North Atlantic and Greenland
in North America
. Denmark is the hegemonial
part, where the residual judicial, executive and legislative power rests. According to the Faroese home rule act, the Faroe Islands constitutes a community of people within the kingdom. The Greenlandic self-government act does not contain a similar definition, but instead describes the Greenlandic people as a people as defined in international law with the right to self-determination.
The kingdom is a unitary state
with some power being devolved
from Denmark to Greenland and the Faroe Islands; this federacy
is referred to as Rigsfællesskabet
. One of the results of this arrangement is that Denmark is a member of the European Union
while both Greenland and the Faroe Islands have opted to remain outside of the EU. Each country is a member of the Nordic Council
where they function independently.
discovered and settled the Hebrides
, Shetland, Orkney, the Faroe Islands
, Iceland
, Greenland and attempted to establish a settlement in Vínland
, believed to be at L'Anse aux Meadows
in Newfoundland. They also conquered and settled parts of England
(the Danelaw
), Ireland
, and Normandy
, and founded the Kievian Rus' in the east. The Norse ran trade routes from Greenland in the north to Constantinople
in the south via Russian rivers. Denmark-Norway was formed as a state in 1536, following a personal union
of Denmark and Norway.
The Dano-Norwegian union was dissolved by the Treaty of Kiel
in 1814, with Denmark keeping the Norwegian dependencies of Iceland
, the Faroe Islands
, and Greenland
. Denmark also ruled over Danish India
(notably Tranquebar) from 1620 to 1869, the Danish Gold Coast
(Ghana
) from 1658 to 1850, and the Danish West Indies
(the U.S. Virgin Islands
) from 1671 to 1917.
Iceland achieved home rule
in 1874, and became a fully sovereign state in 1918, united with Denmark under a common king. The Icelanders abolished the monarchy in 1944, and in 1948 the Faroese gained home rule. The kingdom joined the European Economic Community
(now the European Union
) without the Faroes in 1973, and Greenland withdrew in 1985, in both cases because of fisheries policies. Greenland gained home rule in 1979 and a proposal for introducing further autonomy in 2009 was approved in a referendum in 2008
. Greenlanders consider independence if enough natural resources are discovered to make that prospect economical.
is the Danish national legislature. The Folketing consists of 175 members elected by proportional majority from Denmark, plus two members each elected from Greenland and the Faroe Islands. General elections are held at least every four years, but it is within the powers of the Prime Minister to call one at his discretion before this period has elapsed.
Additionally, the Faroe Islands and Greenland were granted home rule in 1948 and 1979 respectively. As well as electing two members each to the Danish parliament, Greenland has a legislature, the Landsting (or Inatsisartut in Kalaallisut), which consists of 31 seats and the Faroes have a parliament known as the Løgting which consist of a fixed 33 members.
Greenland and the Faroes are represented in Denmark by their High Commissioner
s who inform the Danish Prime Minister
of relevant discussions in the home rule parliaments.
The Constitution of Denmark
of 1953 is that of a unitary state and applies to all three regions, and the home rule and self-rule agreements are not enshrined in the constitution. Both the Faroe Islands and Greenland manage most of their own internal affairs. They may also conclude international agreements on behalf of the Danish realm, if these concern only their own part of the realm.
, Denmark, as well as Greenland and the Faroe Islands, belongs to the Boreal Kingdom
and is shared between the Arctic, Atlantic European and Central European provinces of the Circumboreal Region
. According to the WWF
, the territory of Denmark can be subdivided into two ecoregion
s: the Atlantic mixed forests and Baltic mixed forests. The Faroe Islands are covered by the Faroe Islands boreal grasslands, while Greenland hosts the ecoregions of Kalaallit Nunaat high arctic tundra and Kalaallit Nunaat low arctic tundra.
The Kingdom of Denmark is the only state in the world to have a majority of its land area north of the Arctic Circle
.
Constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution, whether it be a written, uncodified or blended constitution...
and sovereign state
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
consisting of Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
proper in northern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and two autonomous constituent countries, the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
in the North Atlantic and Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. Denmark is the hegemonial
Hegemony
Hegemony is an indirect form of imperial dominance in which the hegemon rules sub-ordinate states by the implied means of power rather than direct military force. In Ancient Greece , hegemony denoted the politico–military dominance of a city-state over other city-states...
part, where the residual judicial, executive and legislative power rests. According to the Faroese home rule act, the Faroe Islands constitutes a community of people within the kingdom. The Greenlandic self-government act does not contain a similar definition, but instead describes the Greenlandic people as a people as defined in international law with the right to self-determination.
The kingdom is a unitary state
Unitary state
A unitary state is a state governed as one single unit in which the central government is supreme and any administrative divisions exercise only powers that their central government chooses to delegate...
with some power being devolved
Devolution
Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level. Devolution can be mainly financial, e.g. giving areas a budget which was formerly administered by central government...
from Denmark to Greenland and the Faroe Islands; this federacy
Federacy
A federacy is a form of government where one or several substate units enjoy considerably more independence than the majority of the substate units. To some extent, such an arrangement can be considered as similar to asymmetric federalism.-Description:...
is referred to as Rigsfællesskabet
Rigsfællesskabet
Rigsfællesskabet is a semi-official Danish term for the relations between continental Denmark and its two self-governing insular regions, the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which collectively make up the Kingdom of Denmark.-Legal status:Both the Faroe Islands and Greenland enjoy far-reaching home...
. One of the results of this arrangement is that Denmark is a member of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
while both Greenland and the Faroe Islands have opted to remain outside of the EU. Each country is a member of the Nordic Council
Nordic Council
The Nordic Council is a geo-political, inter-parliamentary forum for co-operation between the Nordic countries. It was established following World War II and its first concrete result was the introduction in 1952 of a common labour market and free movement across borders without passports for the...
where they function independently.
| Country | Population | Area (km²) | Density (Pop per km²) |
 Denmark |
5,564,219 | 43,094 | 129 |
 Faroe Islands |
49,267 | 1,399 | 35 |
 Greenland |
57,564 | 2,175,600 | 0.026 |
| Kingdom of Denmark | 5,671,050 | 2,220,093 | 2.6 |
History
During the 8th–11th centuries, the NorseNorsemen
Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...
discovered and settled the Hebrides
Hebrides
The Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides. These islands have a long history of occupation dating back to the Mesolithic and the culture of the residents has been affected by the successive...
, Shetland, Orkney, the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, Greenland and attempted to establish a settlement in Vínland
Vinland
Vinland was the name given to an area of North America by the Norsemen, about the year 1000 CE.There is a consensus among scholars that the Vikings reached North America approximately five centuries prior to the voyages of Christopher Columbus...
, believed to be at L'Anse aux Meadows
L'Anse aux Meadows
L'Anse aux Meadows is an archaeological site on the northernmost tip of the island of Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Discovered in 1960, it is the only known site of a Norse or Viking village in Canada, and in North America outside of Greenland...
in Newfoundland. They also conquered and settled parts of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
(the Danelaw
Danelaw
The Danelaw, as recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , is a historical name given to the part of England in which the laws of the "Danes" held sway and dominated those of the Anglo-Saxons. It is contrasted with "West Saxon law" and "Mercian law". The term has been extended by modern historians to...
), Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, and founded the Kievian Rus' in the east. The Norse ran trade routes from Greenland in the north to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
in the south via Russian rivers. Denmark-Norway was formed as a state in 1536, following a personal union
Personal union
A personal union is the combination by which two or more different states have the same monarch while their boundaries, their laws and their interests remain distinct. It should not be confused with a federation which is internationally considered a single state...
of Denmark and Norway.
The Dano-Norwegian union was dissolved by the Treaty of Kiel
Treaty of Kiel
The Treaty of Kiel or Peace of Kiel was concluded between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Kingdom of Sweden on one side and the Kingdoms of Denmark and Norway on the other side on 14 January 1814 in Kiel...
in 1814, with Denmark keeping the Norwegian dependencies of Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
, and Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. Denmark also ruled over Danish India
Danish India
Danish India is a term for the former colonies of Denmark, and until 1814 Denmark–Norway, in India. The colonies included the town of Tranquebar in present-day Tamil Nadu state, Serampore in present-day West Bengal, and the Nicobar Islands, currently part of India's union territory of the Andaman...
(notably Tranquebar) from 1620 to 1869, the Danish Gold Coast
Danish Gold Coast
The Danish Gold Coast was a part of the Gold Coast , which is on the West African Gulf of Guinea...
(Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
) from 1658 to 1850, and the Danish West Indies
Danish West Indies
The Danish West Indies or "Danish Antilles", were a colony of Denmark-Norway and later Denmark in the Caribbean. They were sold to the United States in 1916 in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies and became the United States Virgin Islands in 1917...
(the U.S. Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
) from 1671 to 1917.
Iceland achieved home rule
Home rule
Home rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
in 1874, and became a fully sovereign state in 1918, united with Denmark under a common king. The Icelanders abolished the monarchy in 1944, and in 1948 the Faroese gained home rule. The kingdom joined the European Economic Community
European Economic Community
The European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
(now the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
) without the Faroes in 1973, and Greenland withdrew in 1985, in both cases because of fisheries policies. Greenland gained home rule in 1979 and a proposal for introducing further autonomy in 2009 was approved in a referendum in 2008
Greenlandic self-government referendum, 2008
A non-binding referendum on Greenland's autonomy was held on 25 November 2008. It was passed with 75% approval and a 72% turnout. The referendum was announced by Prime Minister Hans Enoksen on 2 January 2008. Enoksen also announced the launch of an information and discussion campaign on the issue...
. Greenlanders consider independence if enough natural resources are discovered to make that prospect economical.
Government and politics
The FolketingFolketing
The Folketing , is the national parliament of Denmark. The name literally means "People's thing"—that is, the people's governing assembly. It is located in Christiansborg Palace, on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen....
is the Danish national legislature. The Folketing consists of 175 members elected by proportional majority from Denmark, plus two members each elected from Greenland and the Faroe Islands. General elections are held at least every four years, but it is within the powers of the Prime Minister to call one at his discretion before this period has elapsed.
Additionally, the Faroe Islands and Greenland were granted home rule in 1948 and 1979 respectively. As well as electing two members each to the Danish parliament, Greenland has a legislature, the Landsting (or Inatsisartut in Kalaallisut), which consists of 31 seats and the Faroes have a parliament known as the Løgting which consist of a fixed 33 members.
Greenland and the Faroes are represented in Denmark by their High Commissioner
High Commissioner
High Commissioner is the title of various high-ranking, special executive positions held by a commission of appointment.The English term is also used to render various equivalent titles in other languages.-Bilateral diplomacy:...
s who inform the Danish Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Denmark
The Prime Minister of Denmark is the head of government in Danish politics. The Prime Minister is traditionally the leader of a political coalition in the Folketing and presides over the cabinet....
of relevant discussions in the home rule parliaments.
The Constitution of Denmark
Constitution of Denmark
The Constitutional Act of Denmark is the Kingdom of Denmark's constitution, or fundamental law. Originally verified in 1849, the last revision was signed on 5 June 1953 as "the existing law, for all to unswerving comply with, the Constitutional Act of Denmark".-Idea and structure:The main...
of 1953 is that of a unitary state and applies to all three regions, and the home rule and self-rule agreements are not enshrined in the constitution. Both the Faroe Islands and Greenland manage most of their own internal affairs. They may also conclude international agreements on behalf of the Danish realm, if these concern only their own part of the realm.
Geography
PhytogeographicallyPhytogeography
Phytogeography , also called geobotany, is the branch of biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution of plant species...
, Denmark, as well as Greenland and the Faroe Islands, belongs to the Boreal Kingdom
Boreal Kingdom
The Boreal Kingdom or Holarctic Kingdom is a floristic kingdom identified by botanist Ronald Good , which includes the temperate to Arctic portions of North America and Eurasia. Its flora is inherited from the ancient supercontinent of Laurasia...
and is shared between the Arctic, Atlantic European and Central European provinces of the Circumboreal Region
Circumboreal Region
The Circumboreal Region is a floristic region within the Holarctic Kingdom in Eurasia and North America, as delineated by such geobotanists as Josias Braun-Blanquet and Armen Takhtajan....
. According to the WWF
World Wide Fund for Nature
The World Wide Fund for Nature is an international non-governmental organization working on issues regarding the conservation, research and restoration of the environment, formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in Canada and the United States...
, the territory of Denmark can be subdivided into two ecoregion
Ecoregion
An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...
s: the Atlantic mixed forests and Baltic mixed forests. The Faroe Islands are covered by the Faroe Islands boreal grasslands, while Greenland hosts the ecoregions of Kalaallit Nunaat high arctic tundra and Kalaallit Nunaat low arctic tundra.
The Kingdom of Denmark is the only state in the world to have a majority of its land area north of the Arctic Circle
Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For Epoch 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs north of the Equator....
.
See also
- RigsfællesskabetRigsfællesskabetRigsfællesskabet is a semi-official Danish term for the relations between continental Denmark and its two self-governing insular regions, the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which collectively make up the Kingdom of Denmark.-Legal status:Both the Faroe Islands and Greenland enjoy far-reaching home...
(Commonwealth of the Realm), a more detailed description of the relationship between Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands.