The Copenhagen Convention, which came into force on 14 March 1857, is a
maritime treaty governing
transit passage through the
Danish straits.
Provisions
It has abolished the
Sound Dues
The Sound Dues (or Sound Tolls; da, Øresundstolden) were a toll on the use of the Øresund, or "Sound" strait separating the modern day borders of Denmark and Sweden. The tolls constituted up to two thirds of Denmark's state income in the 16th a ...
and all
Danish straits have been made
international waterways free to all commercial shipping. Its provisions were later reaffirmed by Article 282 of the
Treaty of Versailles, becoming binding for its parties. Although the Convention does not cover warships, military vessels have also been free to traverse the straits, regulated by the general international rule of innocent passage through international straits and the Royal Ordinance of 1976.
History
It had been increasingly evident that the Sound Dues had a negative impact on the port and merchants of
Copenhagen, although the dues delivered by then one eighth of the Danish state income; and the world's seafaring nations were becoming less and less tolerant of these tolls and restrictions. In compensation for the abolition, the Danish state received a one-time fee of 33.5 million
Danish rigsdalers,
paid to Denmark by the other European shipping nations who signed the Convention. Of the total fee,
Great Britain paid approximately one third, and
Russia another third.
A similar convention between Denmark and the
United States, signed in
Washington the same year, gave American ships free passage in perpetuity for a one-time fee of
$393,000.
References
{{reflist
Law of the sea
Baltic Sea