Constantine II of Greece
Constantine II reigned as the King of Greece, from 1964 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1973. He acceded as king following the death of his father King Paul in March 1964; that year he married Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark with whom he had five children. Although the accession of the young monarch was regarded auspiciously, his reign soon became controversial: Constantine's involvement in the Apostasia of July 1965 created unrest among sections of the population and aggravated the ongoing political instability that culminated in the Colonels' Coup of 21 April 1967; the coup was successful, leaving Constantine, as the head of state, little room to maneuver since he had no loyal military forces on which to rely. As a result, he reluctantly agreed to inaugurate the Greek military junta of 1967–1974 on the condition that it be made up of civilian ministers. On 13 December 1967, Constantine was forced to flee the country, following an unsuccessful countercoup against the junta, he remained the head of state in exile until the junta conducted the 1 June 1973 Greek republic referendum which abolished the monarchy.
This abolition was confirmed after the fall of the junta by the 1974 Greek republic referendum on 8 December, which established the Third Hellenic Republic. Constantine, not allowed to return to Greece to campaign, accepted the results of the plebiscite. Constantine was born at the Psychiko Palace in a suburb of Athens, he was the nephew of King George II, the second child and only son of the king's brother and heir presumptive, Prince Paul. His mother was Princess Frederica of Hanover. Constantine's older sister Queen Sofía of Spain is the wife of the retired King Juan Carlos I of Spain, while his younger sister, Princess Irene, has never been married. Constantine was just one year old when Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany invaded Greece, he spent the next four years in exile in Egypt and Cape Town, South Africa with his family, he returned to Greece with his family in 1946. King George died in 1947, Constantine's father became the new king, making Constantine the crown prince, he was educated at a preparatory school and a boarding school.
A fellow student recalled him as "a young man with all the right instincts. He was at his best on the playing fields."Constantine served in all three branches of the Hellenic Armed Forces, attending the requisite military academies. He attended the NATO Air Force Special Weapons School in Germany, as well as the University of Athens, where he took courses in the school of law. Constantine was an able sportsman. In 1960, aged 20, he won an Olympic gold medal in sailing, the first Greek gold medal in sailing since the Stockholm 1912 Summer Olympics, he was a strong swimmer and had a black belt in karate, with interests in squash, track events and riding. In 1963 Constantine became a member of the International Olympic Committee, he resigned in 1974 because he was no longer a Greek resident, was made an Honorary IOC Member. In March 1964, King Paul died of cancer, the 23-year-old Constantine succeeded him as king. Prior to this, Constantine had been appointed as regent for his ailing father. King Paul's long-time prime minister Konstantinos Karamanlis regarded him responsible for his fall from leadership in 1963.
However, due to his youth, he was perceived as a promise of change. The accession of Constantine coincided with the recent election of Centrist George Papandreou as prime minister in February 1964, which ended 11 years of right-wing rule by the National Radical Union. Greece was still feeling the effects of the Civil War of 1944–49 between communists and monarchists, society was polarised between the royalist/conservative right and the liberal/socialist center-left, it was hoped that the new young king and the new prime minister would be able to overcome past dissensions. Relations between the king and Papandreou seemed good, but by 1965, they had deteriorated; the conservative establishment feared the rising influence of Papandreou's left-leaning son Andreas, the outbreak of the purported ASPIDA scandal seemed to confirm their suspicions. The name of Andreas Papandreou was implicated in the case, when the defence minister, Petros Garoufalias tried to form a committee of inquiry into the alleged scandal, the prime minister forced his resignation.
George Papandreou assigned the defence portfolio to himself, which caused alarm in the palace and the conservative security circles, which interpreted this move as an attempt by Papandreou to control the army. Constantine refused to accept the self-appointment, a new political issue resulted. Constantine proposed the appointment of any other person of the prime minister's choosing as defence minister because, as the king argued, there was a conflict of interest: the prime minister's son was involved in the scandal. Papandreou rejected the king's proposition, although he had shown some willingness to accept it, submitted his own resignation, stating that it was well within his constitutional powers as the elected prime minister commanding a Parliamentary majority to appoint his ministers at his pleasure, it was beyond the constitutional powers of the king to refuse him this right. A short time after his resignation, Constantine appointed a new government led by Georgios Athanasiadis-Novas, who failed to ensure the Parliament's confidence.
This appointment, which became known as the "Royal Coup", evoked much criticism as being unconstitutional. According to the critics, the appoi
Denmark
Denmark the Kingdom of Denmark, is a Nordic country and the southernmost of the Scandinavian nations. Denmark lies southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, is bordered to the south by Germany; the Kingdom of Denmark comprises two autonomous constituent countries in the North Atlantic Ocean: the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Denmark proper consists of a peninsula, an archipelago of 443 named islands, with the largest being Zealand and the North Jutlandic Island; the islands are characterised by flat, arable land and sandy coasts, low elevation and a temperate climate. Denmark has a total area of 42,924 km2, land area of 42,394 km2, the total area including Greenland and the Faroe Islands is 2,210,579 km2, a population of 5.8 million. The unified kingdom of Denmark emerged in the 10th century as a proficient seafaring nation in the struggle for control of the Baltic Sea. Denmark and Norway were ruled together under one sovereign ruler in the Kalmar Union, established in 1397 and ending with Swedish secession in 1523.
The areas of Denmark and Norway remained under the same monarch until Denmark -- Norway. Beginning in the 17th century, there were several devastating wars with the Swedish Empire, ending with large cessions of territory to Sweden. After the Napoleonic Wars, Norway was ceded to Sweden, while Denmark kept the Faroe Islands and Iceland. In the 19th century there was a surge of nationalist movements, which were defeated in the 1864 Second Schleswig War. Denmark remained neutral during World War I. In April 1940, a German invasion saw brief military skirmishes while the Danish resistance movement was active from 1943 until the German surrender in May 1945. An industrialised exporter of agricultural produce in the second half of the 19th century, Denmark introduced social and labour-market reforms in the early 20th century that created the basis for the present welfare state model with a developed mixed economy; the Constitution of Denmark was signed on 5 June 1849, ending the absolute monarchy, which had begun in 1660.
It establishes a constitutional monarchy organised as a parliamentary democracy. The government and national parliament are seated in Copenhagen, the nation's capital, largest city, main commercial centre. Denmark exercises hegemonic influence in the Danish Realm, devolving powers to handle internal affairs. Home rule was established in the Faroe Islands in 1948. Denmark negotiated certain opt-outs, it is among the founding members of NATO, the Nordic Council, the OECD, OSCE, the United Nations. Denmark is considered to be one of the most economically and developed countries in the world. Danes enjoy a high standard of living and the country ranks in some metrics of national performance, including education, health care, protection of civil liberties, democratic governance and human development; the country ranks as having the world's highest social mobility, a high level of income equality, is among the countries with the lowest perceived levels of corruption in the world, the eleventh-most developed in the world, has one of the world's highest per capita incomes, one of the world's highest personal income tax rates.
The etymology of the word Denmark, the relationship between Danes and Denmark and the unifying of Denmark as one kingdom, is a subject which attracts debate. This is centered on the prefix "Dan" and whether it refers to the Dani or a historical person Dan and the exact meaning of the -"mark" ending. Most handbooks derive the first part of the word, the name of the people, from a word meaning "flat land", related to German Tenne "threshing floor", English den "cave"; the -mark is believed to mean woodland or borderland, with probable references to the border forests in south Schleswig. The first recorded use of the word Danmark within Denmark itself is found on the two Jelling stones, which are runestones believed to have been erected by Gorm the Old and Harald Bluetooth; the larger stone of the two is popularly cited as Denmark's "baptismal certificate", though both use the word "Denmark", in the form of accusative ᛏᛅᚾᛘᛅᚢᚱᚴ tanmaurk on the large stone, genitive ᛏᛅᚾᛘᛅᚱᚴᛅᚱ "tanmarkar" on the small stone.
The inhabitants of Denmark are there called "Danes", in the accusative. The earliest archaeological findings in Denmark date back to the Eem interglacial period from 130,000–110,000 BC. Denmark has been inhabited since around 12,500 BC and agriculture has been evident since 3900 BC; the Nordic Bronze Age in Denmark was marked by burial mounds, which left an abundance of findings including lurs and the Sun Chariot. During the Pre-Roman Iron Age, native groups began migrating south, the first tribal Danes came to the country between the Pre-Roman and the Germanic Iron Age, in the Roman Iron Age; the Roman provinces maintained trade routes and relations with native tribes in Denmark, Roman coins have been found in Denmark. Evidence of strong Celtic cultural influence dates from this period in Denmark and much of North-West Europe and is among other things reflected in the finding of the Gundestrup cauldron; the tribal Danes came from the east Danish islands and Scania and spoke an early form of North Germanic.
Historians believe that before their arrival, most of Jutland and the nearest islands were settled by tribal J
Harald V of Norway
Harald V is the King of Norway, having ascended to the throne upon the death of his father King Olav V on 17 January 1991. Harald was the third child and only son of King Olav Princess Märtha of Sweden, he was second in the line of succession behind his father. In 1940, as a result of the German occupation during World War II, the royal family went into exile. Harald spent part of his childhood in the United States, he returned to Norway in 1945, subsequently studied for periods at the University of Oslo, the Norwegian Military Academy and Balliol College, Oxford. In 1957, following the death of his grandfather, Haakon VII, Harald became crown prince. A keen sportsman, he represented Norway in sailing at the 1964, 1968, 1972 Olympic Games, became patron of World Sailing. Harald married Sonja Haraldsen in 1968, their relationship having being controversial due to her status as a commoner; the couple had Märtha Louise and Haakon. Harald succeeded his father as king with Haakon becoming his heir apparent.
Prince Harald was born at the Skaugum estate and was baptized in the Royal Chapel of the Royal Palace in Oslo on 31 March 1937 by Bishop Johan Lunde. His godparents were: his paternal grandparents King Haakon Queen Maud of Norway, his parents had two daughters, Princess Ragnhild and Princess Astrid. In 1940 the entire royal family had to flee Oslo because of the German invasion, it was deemed safer for the family to split up. The King and Crown Prince Olav would remain in Norway and the Crown Princess was to make her way to Sweden with the three children; the latter party reached Sweden on the night of 10 April, but although Crown Princess Märtha was Swedish-born, they encountered problems at the border station. According to Princess Astrid and others who were present, they were admitted only after the driver threatened to ram the border gate. Another account does not describe the escape so dramatically. However, when the King and Crown Prince inquired of Swedish foreign minister Christian Günther whether they could sleep one night in Sweden without being interned, they were denied.
Harald spent the following days in Sälen before moving to Prince Carl Bernadotte's home in Frötuna on 16 April. On 26 April the group moved to Drottningholm in Stockholm. King Gustaf V has been accounted to have had an amicable relationship with his Norwegian guests, but the topic of the war in Norway was not to be raised. However, influential Swedish politicians, including Minister of Justice Westman, wanted the Crown Princess and Prince Harald to be sent back to Norway so he could be proclaimed King by the Germans. After the King and Crown Prince had to leave Norway on 7 June they felt Sweden might not be the best place for the rest of the family, started planning for them to go to the United States. On 17 August the Crown Princess and her children left for the United States from Petsamo, aboard the United States Army transport ship American Legion. Harald and his mother and sisters lived in Washington, D. C. during the war, while his father, Crown Prince Olav, his grandfather, King Haakon, stayed in London with the Norwegian government-in-exile.
One of the notable events he remembers from that time is standing behind Franklin D. Roosevelt when he was sworn in for his fourth term on the South Portico of the White House in 1945; such childhood experiences are reflected in a trace of an American accent. The Doris Kearns Goodwin book No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt and the Home Front in World War II contains a picture of the King playing with FDR's dog, Fala, on the North Lawn of the White House in 1944. Harald visited Norwegian servicemen training in the United States; the prince made visits outside America, travelling north to visit Norwegian personnel at the training base "Little Norway" in Ontario, Canada. He attended The White Hall Country School from 1943. Prince Harald returned to Norway with his family at the war's end in 1945. In the autumn of 1945 he was enrolled in third grade of Smestad skole as the first member of the royal family to attend public school. Amidst this, in 1954 tragedy struck as he lost his mother to cancer.
The Crown Princess's death was a tremendous loss for him and his family as well as for Norway, he named his daughter Märtha in honour her memory. Four years in 1958 he would lose his maternal grandmother Princess Ingeborg of Denmark. In 1955 he graduated from Oslo katedralskole and in the autumn of that year, Harald began studies at the University of Oslo, he attended the Cavalry Officers' Candidate School at Trandum, followed by enrollment at the Norwegian Military Academy, from which he graduated in 1959. Harald attended the Council of State for the first time on 27 September 1957 and took the oath to the Constitution of Norway on 21 February 1958. In the same year, he served as regent in the King's absence for the first time. In 1960, Harald entered Balliol College, Oxford where he studied history and politics, he was a keen rower during his student days at Oxford and was taught to row by fellow student and friend Nick Bevan a leading British school rowing coach. In 1960, he made his first official journey abroad, visiting the United States in connection with the fiftieth anniversary of the American Scandinavian Foundation.
An avid sailor, Harald represented Norway in the yachting events of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo in 1964, Mexico City in 1968, Munich in 1972. The Crown Prince carried the Norwegian flag at the op
Margrethe II of Denmark
Margrethe II is the Queen of Denmark, as well as the supreme authority of the Church of Denmark and Commander-in-Chief of the Danish Defence. Born into the House of Glücksburg, a royal house with origins in Northern Germany, she was the eldest child of Frederick IX of Denmark and Ingrid of Sweden, she succeeded her father upon his death on 14 January 1972, having become heir presumptive to her father in 1953, when a constitutional amendment allowed women to inherit the throne. On her accession, Margrethe became the first female monarch of Denmark since Margrethe I, ruler of the Scandinavian kingdoms in 1375–1412 during the Kalmar Union. In 1967, she married Henri de Laborde de Monpezat, with whom she has two sons: Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Joachim, she has been on the Danish throne for 47 years, becoming the second-longest-reigning Danish monarch after her ancestor Christian IV. Princess Margrethe was born 16 April 1940 at Amalienborg in Copenhagen as the first child of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.
Her father was the eldest son of the then-reigning King Christian X, while her mother was the only daughter of the Crown Prince of Sweden. Her birth took place just one week after Nazi Germany's invasion of Denmark on 9 April 1940, she was baptised on 14 May in the Church of Holmen in Copenhagen. The Princess's godparents were: King Christian X, she was named Margrethe after her late maternal grandmother, Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden, Alexandrine after her paternal grandmother, Queen Alexandrine, Ingrid after her mother. Since her paternal grandfather was the King of Iceland, she was given the Icelandic name Þórhildur; when Margrethe was four years old, in 1944, her younger sister Princess Benedikte was born. Princess Benedikte married Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and lives some of the time in Germany, her second sister, Princess Anne-Marie, was born in 1946. Anne-Marie married Constantine II of the Hellenes and lives in Greece. Margrethe and her sisters grew up in apartments at Frederick VIII's Palace at Amalienborg in Copenhagen and in Fredensborg Palace in North Zealand.
She spent summer holidays with the royal family in her parent's summer residence at Gråsten Palace in Southern Jutland. On 20 April 1947, King Christian X died and Margrethe's father ascended the throne as King Frederick IX. At the time of her birth, only males could ascend the throne of Denmark, owing to the changes in succession laws enacted in the 1850s when the Glücksburg branch was chosen to succeed; as she had no brothers, it was assumed. The process of changing the constitution started in 1947, not long after her father ascended the throne and it became clear that Queen Ingrid would have no more children; the popularity of Frederick and his daughters and the more prominent role of women in Danish life started the complicated process of altering the constitution. The law required that the proposal be passed by two successive Parliaments and by a referendum, which occurred 27 March 1953; the new Act of Succession permitted female succession to the throne of Denmark, according to male-preference cognatic primogeniture, where a female can ascend to the throne only if she does not have a brother.
Princess Margrethe therefore became heir presumptive. On her eighteenth birthday, 16 April 1958, Margrethe was given a seat in the Council of State, she subsequently chaired the meetings of the Council in the absence of the King. In 1960, together with the princesses of Sweden and Norway, she travelled to the United States, which included a visit to Los Angeles, to the Paramount Studios, where they met several celebrities, including Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis and Elvis Presley. Margrethe was educated at the private school N. Zahle's School in Copenhagen from which she graduated in 1959, she spent a year at North Foreland Lodge, a boarding school for girls in Hampshire and studied prehistoric archaeology at Girton College, during 1960–1961, political science at Aarhus University between 1961 and 1962, attended the Sorbonne in 1963, was at the London School of Economics in 1965. She is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London. Queen Margrethe is fluent in Danish, English and German, has a limited knowledge of Faroese.
Princess Margrethe married a French diplomat, Count Henri de Laborde de Monpezat, 10 June 1967, at the Church of Holmen in Copenhagen. Laborde de Monpezat received the style and title of "His Royal Highness Prince Henrik of Denmark" because of his new position as the spouse of the heir presumptive to the Danish throne, they were married for over fifty years, until his death on 13 February 2018. Margrethe gave birth to her first child 26 May 1968. By tradition, Danish kings were alternately named either Christian, she chose to maintain this by assuming the position of a Christian, thus named her eldest son Frederik. A second child, named Joachim, was born 7 June 1969. Shortly after King Frederick IX delivered his New Year's Address to the Nation at the 1971/72 turn of the year, he fell ill. At his death 14 days 14 January 1972, Margrethe succeeded to the throne at the age of 31, becoming the first female
Rosette (decoration)
A rosette is a small, circular device, presented with a medal. The rosettes are either worn on the medal to denote a higher rank, or for situations where wearing the medal is deemed inappropriate, such as on a suit. Rosettes are issued in nations such as Belgium, France and Japan. Rosettes are sometimes called bowknots, due to their shape. Moreover, a large rosette is sometimes pinned onto the ribbon which suspends a medal the Officer's badge of certain orders of chivalry; some small lapel rosettes are worn in the same manner as lapel pins. For instance, knights of the Order of the British Empire now wear a lapel rosette bearing the order's cross in the center, whereas this was a purely metallic lapel pin. While a metal lapel pin mounted on a silk rosette is considered a decoration of distinction, this is not always true of a metal emblem lacking the ribbon backing. In the United States, the Medal of Honor is issued with a 1/2 inch light blue rosette with white stars, authorized for civilian wear as a lapel button.
The Purple Heart was presented with a purple and white rosette, but now has been replaced by a metallic lapel pin. The lapel pin is designed to be a smaller version of the rectangular service ribbon for use on civilian wear. Most American military medals have the ribbon bar design scaled down to the size of a lapel pin. Members of the Sons of the American Revolution wear blue-and-buff rosettes as lapel buttons; the colors match those of the uniform of the Continental Army. A rosette adorns the ribbon of all national Orders of Merit at the rank of Officer; such rosette may be worn in diminutive form on appropriate civilian dress. Ranks above that of Officer may wear a rosette adorned with gold and/or silver bars on each side of the rosette on appropriate civilian dress; such rosette adorns ribbon bars worn on the semi-formal dress uniform. Several of the top decorations of France, including the Légion d'honneur and the Ordre national du Mérite, are presented with a rosette along with the medal; the Legion of Honor authorized a rosette for those.
If the grade is higher, the rosette is adorned with gold and/or silver bars which are place beside each side of the rosette. The same manner is accorded to the Order of National Merit. In occasions when ribbon bars are worn alone, the above-mentioned half-knots and/or rosettes are pinned onto the ribbon bars as appropriate to denote the wearer's grade. In the United Kingdom, small silver rosettes can be added to the ribbons that are worn in place of medals; these indicate multiple award bars, the number of times a decoration for merit or distinguished service has been awarded. Holders of the 1914 Star, the 1939-45 Star, the Atlantic Star, the Pacific Star, the Burma Star, the South Atlantic Medal, the Gulf War Medal 1991 and the Sierra Leone medal could receive these rosettes if they met certain criteria for combat service. Several American-based lineage societies provide a rosette as an insignia of membership for informal wear. Ribbon, for a different variety of rosette Service lapel button
Dannebrogordenens Hæderstegn
Dannebrogordenens Hæderstegn is a meritous award connected to the Danish Order of the Dannebrog. The cross was instituted by King Frederick VI of Denmark and Norway on 28 June 1808, was named Dannebrogsmændenes Hæderstegn until 1952; the cross may be awarded to Danes who have provided a service to "the fatherland" through a noble deed. It is worn by the individual members of the royal family; the cross is of lesser rank than the Order of the Dannebrog, but is considered an additional recognition if awarded to someone, a holder of the Order. The cross is identical to the knight's cross of the Order of the Dannebrog. Database over Danish Medals, Including Dannebrogordenens Hæderstegn Salmonsens Konversationsleksikon, 2nd edition, vol. V, p. 748, Entry: Dannebrogsmænd Erik F. Rønnebech limited encyclopedia
Flag of Denmark
The flag of Denmark is red with a white Scandinavian cross that extends to the edges of the flag. A banner with a white-on-red cross is attested as having been used by the kings of Denmark since the 14th century. An origin legend with considerable impact on Danish national historiography connects the introduction of the flag to the Battle of Lindanise of 1219; the elongated Nordic cross reflects the use as maritime flag in the 18th century. The flag became popular as national flag in the early 19th century, its private use was outlawed in 1834, again permitted in a regulation of 1854. The flag holds the world record of being the oldest continuously used national flag. A red field charged with a white cross extending to the edges. In 1748, a regulation defined the correct lengths of the two last fields in the flag as 6⁄4. In May 1893 a new regulation to all chiefs of police, stated that the police should not intervene, if the two last fields in the flag were longer than 6⁄4 as long as these did not exceed 7⁄4, provided that this was the only rule violated.
This regulation is still in effect today and thus the legal proportions of the National flag is today 3:1:3 in width and anywhere between 3:1:4.5 and 3:1:5.25 in length. No official nuance definition of "Dannebrog rød" exists; the private company Dansk Standard, regulation number 359, defines the red colour of the flag as Pantone 186c. The white-on-red cross emblem originates in the age of the Crusades. In the 12th century, it was used as war flag by the Holy Roman Empire. In the Gelre Armorial, dated c. 1340–1370, such a banner is shown alongside the coat of arms of the king of Denmark. This is the earliest known undisputed colour rendering of the Dannebrog. At about the same time, Valdemar IV of Denmark displays a cross in his coat of arms on his Danælog seal; the image from the Armorial Gelre is nearly identical to an image found in a 15th-century coats of arms book now located in the National Archives of Sweden. The seal of Eric of Pomerania as king of the Kalmar union displays the arms of Denmark chief dexter, three lions.
In this version, the lions are holding a Dannebrog banner. The reason why the kings of Denmark in the 14th century begin displaying the cross banner in their coats of arms is unknown. Caspar Paludan-Müller suggested that it may reflect a banner sent by the pope to the Danish king in support of the Baltic countries. Adolf Ditlev Jørgensen identifies the banner as that of the Knights Hospitaller, which order had a presence in Denmark from the 12th century. Several coins and images exist, both foreign and domestic, from the 13th to 15th centuries and earlier, showing heraldic designs similar to Dannebrog, alongside the royal coat of arms There is a record suggesting that the Danish army had a "chief banner" in the early 16th century; such a banner is mentioned in 1570 by Niels Hemmingsøn in the context of a 1520 battle between Danes and Swedes near Uppsala as nearly captured by the Swedes but saved by the heroic actions of the banner-carrier Mogens Gyldenstierne and Peder Skram. The legend attributing the miraculous origin of the flag to the campaigns of Valdemar II of Denmark were recorded by Christiern Pedersen and Petrus Olai in the 1520s.
Hans Svaning's History of King Hans from 1558–1559 and Johan Rantzau's History about the Last Dithmarschen War, from 1569, record the further fate of the Danish hoffuitbanner: According to this tradition, the original flag from the Battle of Lindanise was used in the small campaign of 1500 when King Hans tried to conquer Dithmarschen. The flag was lost in a devastating defeat at the Battle of Hemmingstedt on 17 February 1500. In 1559, King Frederik II recaptured it during his own Dithmarschen campaign. In 1576, the son of Johan Rantzau, Henrik Rantzau writes about the war and the fate of the flag, he notes. Contemporary records describing the battle of Hemmingstedt make no reference to the loss of the original Dannebrog, although the capitulation state that all Danish banners lost in 1500 were to be returned. In a letter dated 22 February 1500 to Oluf Stigsøn, King John describes the battle, but does not mention the loss of an important flag. In fact, the entire letter gives the impression. In 1598, Neocorus wrote that the banner captured in 1500 was brought to the church in Wöhrden and hung there for the next 59 years, until it was returned to the Danes as part of the peace settlement in 1559.
Henrik Rantzau in 1576 records that the flag after its return to Denmark was placed in the cathedral in Slesvig. Slesvig historian Ulrik Petersen confirms the presence of such a banner in the cathedral in the early 17th century, records that it had crumbled away by about 1660; the size and shape of the civil ensign for merchant ships is given in the regulation of 11 June 1748, which says: A red flag with a white cross with no split end. The white cross must be 1⁄7 of the flag's height; the two first fields must be square in form and the two outer fields must be 6⁄4 lengths of those. The proportions are thus: 3:1:3 vertically and 3:1:4.5 horizontally. This definition are the absolute proportions for the Danish national flag to this day, for both the civil version of the flag, as well as the merchant flag. Both flags are identical. A regulation passed in 1758 required Danish ships sailing in the Mediterranean to carry the royal cypher
Kingdom of Denmark
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