Als (, german: Alsen) is a Danish

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...

Geography

Als lies to the east of the

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

peninsula, across from the Danish town of

Sønderborg (; german: Sonderburg ) is a Danish town in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Sønderborg Municipality (Kommune). The town has a population of 27,766 (1 January 2022),Southern Schleswig Southern Schleswig (german: Südschleswig or ', da, Sydslesvig; frr, Söödslaswik) is the southern half of the former Duchy of Schleswig in Germany on the Jutland Peninsula. The geographical area today covers the large area between the Eid ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Covering an area of 321 km² (124 sq. miles), the island has a total population of 51,322 as of 1 January 2010."Danmarks Statistik."
Retrieved 28 June 2010. It is administered as part of the

Sønderborg Municipality Sønderborg Municipality (german: Sonderburg), is a municipality (Danish, '' kommune'') in Region of Southern Denmark partially on the Jutland peninsula and partially on the island of Als in south Denmark, at the border with Germany. The municipal ...

as of 1 January 2007. To the north and east of the island are the waters of the

Little Belt The Little Belt (, ) is a strait between the island of Funen and the Jutland Peninsula in Denmark. It is one of the three Danish Straits that drain and connect the Baltic Sea to the Kattegat strait, which drains west to the North Sea and Atlant ...

, to the south is Flensborg Fjord, and to the west is Als Fjord and Als Strait (''Alssund''). The town of

Sønderborg (; german: Sonderburg ) is a Danish town in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Sønderborg Municipality (Kommune). The town has a population of 27,766 (1 January 2022),strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...

that separates the island from Jutland, the Danish mainland and part of Als Fjord. It has a good harbour and considerable trade. The two halves of the city are connected over the fjord by two bridges: the 682-metre-long Als Strait Bridge (''Alssundbro''), built between 1978 and 1981, carries road traffic; and the 331-metre-long King

Christian X Christian X ( da, Christian Carl Frederik Albert Alexander Vilhelm; 26 September 1870 – 20 April 1947) was List of Danish monarchs, King of Denmark from 1912 to his death in 1947, and the only List of rulers of Iceland, King of Iceland as ...

's Bridge (''Kong Christian Xs Bro''), built between 1925 and 1930, which originally carried both road and rail traffic but is now purely for road traffic.

Ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

services are run from the town of Hardeshøj on the island to Ballebro on the Jutland mainland, and from the town of Fynshav to Søby on the island of

Ærø Ærø () is one of the Danish Baltic Sea islands, and part of the Southern Denmark Region. Since 1 January 2006 the whole of Ærø has constituted a single municipality, known as Ærø Kommune. Before that date, there were two municipalities o ...

and to Bøjden on the island of

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

. Als is a fertile island with a thriving

pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...

breeding industry. The island was formerly known for its

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of larg ...

s, some of which are still in operation. The west coast of the island has many bays and coves: Stegsvig, Sandvig, Ketting Nor, Lille Hav, Augstenborg Fjord, Kær Vig, Hørup Hav, and Dyvig. On the east coast along the Little Belt lies the 7 km² Northern Forest (''Nørreskov''), and Lake Nordborg (''Nordborg Sø''). The former municipality of Nordborg is the home of

Danfoss Danfoss is a Danish multinational company, based in Denmark, with more than 40,043 employees globally. Danfoss was founded in 1933 by engineer Mads Clausen. History Beginning (1933–1966) In 1933 Mads Clausen (1905–1966) founded ''Dansk ...

, Denmark's largest industrial company, and a number of its subsidiaries.

History

There are many archeological finds that show the island has been inhabited from the late

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with t ...

. From the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

comes the

Hjortspring boat The Hjortspring boat ( da, Hjortspringbåden) is a vessel designed as a large canoe, from the Scandinavian Pre-Roman Iron Age. It was built circa 400–300 BC. The hull and remains were rediscovered and excavated in 1921–1922 from the bog of ''H ...

. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

the island came under the influence of a number of noblemen, each of which ruled over their portion of the island, and its citizens. King

Christian III Christian III (12 August 1503 – 1 January 1559) reigned as King of Denmark from 1534 and King of Norway from 1537 until his death in 1559. During his reign, Christian formed close ties between the church and the crown. He established ...

's son, Duke John, came in possession of the island as a titular

Duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a Middle Ages, medieval country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition. There once exis ...

, and he bought the other noblemen out. The island was again divided into several smaller Duchies later on, but this venture failed eventually. Duke Ernst Günther I

The town of Augustenborg grew up around Augustenborg Palace which was established in the years after 1651 by Ernest Günther, a member of the ducal House of Schleswig-Holstein (its branch of Sønderborg), great-grandson of King

, and a cadet of the royal house of Denmark. The palace, and the town consequently, received the name in honour of Ernest's wife Auguste, who was from another branch of the Dukes of

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...

. The palace became the chief seat of their line which used the name Augustenborg as its branch name. Later a Danish king made the head of that line specifically Duke of Augustenborg. They grew in relative prominence in late 18th century, and the Duke of Augustenborg became the dominating person on the island. The Duchy was taken over by the Danish Crown after the last Duke of Augustenborg to live at the palace, Christian August II, had sided with the Schleswig-Holstein pro-German nationalist movement against Denmark. He left on March 18, 1848. That same year during the

First Schleswig War The First Schleswig War (german: Schleswig-Holsteinischer Krieg) was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig-Holstein Question, contesting the issue of who should control the Duchies of Schleswig, ...

(1848–1851), the Danes directed their main attack against Field Marshal

Friedrich Graf von Wrangel Friedrich Heinrich Ernst Graf von Wrangel (13 April 1784 – 2 November 1877) was a ''Generalfeldmarschall'' of the Prussian Army. A Baltic German, he was nicknamed "Papa Wrangel" and was a member of the Baltic noble family of Wrangel. Ea ...

Austro Austro may refer to: * Austro-, a prefix denoting Austria * Austro (automobile), an Austrian cyclecar manufactured 1913–1914 * Austro Engine, an aircraft engine manufacturer * Ēostre () is a West Germanic spring goddess. The name is ref ...

Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

army from the lighthouse on the peninsula of Kegnæs at the southwest end of Als. In 1864 the Battle of Als took place there. After these two wars over which nation would rule the island (and the whole of Schleswig), the following period saw the island under Prussian and German rule, although the island's population was largely

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

. In 1870 Als was fortified by Prussia. Following the

Schleswig plebiscites The Schleswig plebiscites were two plebiscites, organized according to section XII, articles 100 to 115 of the Treaty of Versailles of 28 June 1919, in order to determine the future border between Denmark and Germany through the former Duchy of S ...

of 1920, Als as part of the northern voting zone returned to Danish rule. After 1920 Als has been marked by growing industry, especially after 1945 when

grew into an international corporation. The Augustenburg line died out in the 20th century.

Attractions

The town of

Sønderborg (; german: Sonderburg ) is a Danish town in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Sønderborg Municipality (Kommune). The town has a population of 27,766 (1 January 2022),Sønderborg Castle (; german: Sonderburg ) is a Denmark, Danish town in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Sønderborg Municipality (Kommune). The town has a population of 27,766 (1 January 2022),

(''Sønderborg Slot'') and

Sandbjerg Estate Sandbjerg is a former estate and manor house north of Sønderborg in the southeast of Jutland, Denmark. The estate dates from 1571, but today's house was built in 1788. Since 1959, the estate has been used by Aarhus University for teaching and re ...

(''Sandbjerg Gods''). Sønderborg castle is located in the centre of the town, and houses a museum focusing on the history and culture of the area. The museum is open year-round. Sandbjerg Estate, which had belonged for many years to the Dukes of Sønderborg, and then to the

Reventlow Reventlow is the name of a Holstein and Mecklenburg Dano-German noble family, which belongs to the Equites Originarii Schleswig-Holstein. Alternate spellings include Revetlo, Reventlo, Reventlau, Reventlou, Reventlow, Refendtlof and Reffentloff ...

family, was donated to

Aarhus University Aarhus University ( da, Aarhus Universitet, abbreviated AU) is a public research university with its main campus located in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the second largest and second oldest university in Denmark. The university is part of the Coimbra Gr ...

in 1954. The island's

Augustenborg Palace Augustenborg Palace (or Augustenborg Castle; da, Augustenborg Slot, german: Schloss Augustenburg) is a Rococo-style palace in the southwestern part of Augustenborg, Als Island, Denmark, overlooking Augustenborg Fjord. The palace owes its name ...

has been converted into a hospital. There is an exhibit about the castle, the town and its ducal history in the building's entryway. The castle church is open to the public in the summertime, and tours are given.

In literature

The writer

Herman Bang Herman Joachim Bang (20 April 1857 – 29 January 1912) was a Danish journalist and author, one of the men of the Modern Breakthrough. Biography Bang was born in Asserballe, on the small Danish island of Als, the son of a South Jutlandic vicar ...

was born in 1857 Asserballe on Als and was a child during the

Second Schleswig War The Second Schleswig War ( da, Krigen i 1864; german: Deutsch-Dänischer Krieg) also sometimes known as the Dano-Prussian War or Prusso-Danish War was the second military conflict over the Schleswig-Holstein Question of the nineteenth century. T ...

when the island came under Prussian (later German) rule. That traumatic war forms the background of Bang's novel ''Tine'' (1889), which tells the tragic love story of a young girl on the island of Als. It was translated to various other languages, making people in other countries familiar with Als.

Image gallery

File:Schloss Augustenburg.jpg, Augustenborg Castle File:Havnbjerg strand.JPG, Havnbjerg beach File:Lusig Strand mod Sandvig.JPG, Lusig beach File:Kegnæs Sønderby 2.jpg, Sønderby File:Nordborg Kirke.JPG, Nordborg Church File:Katholm.01.jpg, Katholm island File:Nordborg 2008-07-13 Nørreskovvej.jpg, Nørreskoven in the north of Als File:Danfoss Hauptgebäude in Nordborg.jpg, Danfoss headquarters at Nordborg File:Fynshav færge.JPG, Ferry harbour at Fynshav File:Kong Christian den X's Bro.jpg, King Christian X's Bridge at Sønderborg File:Nordborg Slot 2008.JPG,

Nordborg Castle Nordborg Castle ( da, Nordborg Slot) is a small castle which lies on the southern side of Nordborg Lake (''Nordborg Sø'') in Nordborg on the island of Als in Sønderborg Municipality, Denmark. The castle premises are currently used by Nordbor ...

File:Svenstrup Kirke.JPG, Svenstrup Church

Notable people

Vibeke Vasbo Vibeke Vasbo (born 1944) is a Danish writer and women's rights and LGBT rights activist. In the early 1970s, she participated in the Redstocking movement and in the Danish Lesbian Movement. She embarked on a literary career in 1976 with ''Al den ...

(born 1944 on Als) a Danish writer and women's rights and lgbt rights activist

References

External links

{{Authority control Geography of Sønderborg Municipality Danish islands in the Baltic