Public opinion reflects new stance
On April 9, 1940, at 4 am, Nazi Germany launched a well-coordinated invasion of neutral Denmark.
Germany's military attack on Denmark and Norway went by the code name Operation Weserübung.
The initial confrontation between the Danish Army and the invading forces took place at Lundtoftbjerg, Jutland. A Danish anti-tank platoon encountered a German column and was eventually forced to retreat to Åbenrå.
German forces encountered resistance at Bjergskov when Danish troops established a roadblock to impede their progress. Despite outnumbering the Danes, the German troops swiftly subdued the opposition, resulting in the capture of Danish prisoners of war.
The Danish Army Air Service was mostly destroyed by the German Luftwaffe in a single attack. Pictured is the airfield at Værløse after the assault.
Danish and German forces clashed again at Bredevad, resulting in the Danes successfully disabling four enemy armored cars. However, casualties forced them to eventually surrender. Pictured is a group of Danish soldiers on the day of the German invasion.
In April 1940, Danish soldiers, lacking numbers and experience, bravely operate an anti-aircraft gun.
The town of Haderslev was a significant objective for the Germans, housing a garrison of 225 soldiers from the Jutland Division. Approximately 400 Danish fighters valiantly defended the town until they received orders to surrender.
German paratroopers, known as the Fallschirmjäger, successfully captured Storstrøm Bridge and the fortress on Masnedø island. In addition, they also landed troops in Korsør and Nyborg.
German radio operators sending updates to Berlin by wire upon arrival at Korsør.
At around 05h00, the minelayer Hansestadt Danzig brought a battalion of the 198th German Infantry to Copenhagen.
During the discussions between King Christian X and his ministers regarding the future plan of action, Copenhagen is targeted by German bombers, who dropped OPROP! leaflets.
OPROP! was a leaflet used for German propaganda to justify the invasion and discourage resistance from the population.
In response to the potential bombing of Copenhagen's civilians by the Luftwaffe, the Danish government, led by Prime Minister Thorvald Stauning (1873–1942), surrendered at 08:34 on April 9, 1940.
On April 9, a group of German infantry soldiers was overtaken by a bus while heading towards the Danish capital. This offensive against Denmark violated the non-aggression agreement the country had entered into with Germany less than a year earlier.
The Danish invasion, the shortest military campaign of Nazi Germany during the war, was finished in under six hours. German forces promptly conveyed their occupation conditions to the civilians, employing loudspeakers fixed on trucks (shown in the picture).
Denmark had limited options but to collaborate with the Germans. The government remained relatively intact, and parliament continued to operate similar to its previous state. Shown in the image is Foreign Minister Erik Scavenius (left), who later became the prime minister, alongside Werner Best, the Plenipotentiary of the German Reich in Denmark.
Werner Best, a devoted Nazi and SS general, served as the civilian administrator of occupied Denmark from 1942 to 1945. In 1948, he was convicted of war crimes in Denmark but managed to avoid the death sentence and instead received a 12-year prison term. As part of a Danish amnesty initiative for Nazi war criminals, Best was released in 1951. He passed away in 1989.
The Danish National Socialist Workers' Party (DNSAP) backed Hitler's invasion of Denmark and its subsequent occupation. Pictured is Frits Clausen, DNSAP leader from 1933-1945.
The Free Corps Denmark, a Danish volunteer force formed in collaboration with Nazi Germany, was established by the DNSAP to combat the Soviet Union. The Danish government endorsed its creation, permitting Danish Army officers to enlist.
The Schalburg Corps, a Danish Germanic SS unit, established their Copenhagen headquarters on February 2, 1943.
A soccer game took place in Hillerød, featuring a German military team and a team of Danish civilians.
A choir from Hamburg performed for German occupation forces, singing loudly in front of Esbjerg's city hall.
Danish women openly associate with German troops.
In September 1942, Hitler sent a telegram to King Christian X to extend his birthday greetings. The king responded formally, expressing his gratitude with the words, "Giving my best thanks, King Christian." Filled with anger at this intentional insult, the Fuhrer promptly withdrew his ambassador and appointed the hardliner Werner Best as plenipotentiary. This event became the starting point for a growing hostility towards Nazi rule.
On August 29, 1943, the Danish government was officially dissolved by the Germans and martial law was imposed. As a result, Denmark was now fully subjected to occupation rule. In October, the Germans made the decision to evacuate all Jews from Denmark. Pictured is a Polish passport that was utilized in Denmark until March 1940. The Jewish owner managed to escape to Sweden in 1943.
The Gestapo intended to conduct searches in Jewish households on October 1 and transport all Danish Jews to concentration camps. However, the actual number of individuals gathered when soldiers forcibly entered homes nationwide was fewer than 300. Pictured are Danish Jews on their way to Sweden.
A few days before, German diplomat Georg Duckwitz had informed the Danes of their plans, who then alerted the Jewish community and advised them to depart. Over the course of two months, a total of 7,220 out of Denmark's 7,800 Jews were evacuated, boarding ships at Danish beaches and ports with the help of many Danish citizens.
In 1944, Danish opposition to German control had grown stronger. Regular acts of sabotage targeting infrastructure became more common, leading to the establishment of an underground government.
Men and women who collaborated with Nazis were arrested and paraded through urban areas.
British forces commanded by Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery liberated most of Denmark from German rule in May 1945.
The Danish resistance monitors the streets as the German Army's motorized units exit Denmark following Germany's surrender in May 1945. A crowd of thrilled citizens observe their departure.
Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery drives through Copenhagen in May 1945, with thousands of Danes lining the streets.
The Ryvangen Memorial Park in Copenhagen is dedicated to honoring the Danish resistance fighters who fought against the German occupation of Denmark. The invasion on April 9, 1940, led to the loss of around 39 Danish soldiers. Moreover, approximately 3,000 Danish civilians lost their lives due to the direct consequences of the occupation, and an additional 360 civilians died in concentration camps.
By the next year's May, as Germany faced imminent defeat, resistance fighters took to the streets to demand justice.
On April 9, 1940, Adolf Hitler ordered the invasion of neutral Denmark by the Nazis, leading to a swift defeat of Denmark's army, navy, and air corps by the German Army.
This occupation continued for five years, during which time Danish civilian life and most institutions continued to function relatively normally, despite the uneasy coexistence between a democratic system and a totalitarian regime. However, as the war neared its end, an effective resistance movement emerged, resulting in the dramatic rescue of most Danish Jews in 1943. Finally, in May 1945, the country was liberated, marking the end of the occupation.
Click through the following gallery for a remarkable look back at that fateful day, April 9, and the series of events that followed.
Remembering the invasion of Denmark by the Germans on April 9, 1940
Relive these dramatic events of more than 80 years ago
LIFESTYLE Wwii
On April 9, 1940, Adolf Hitler ordered the invasion of neutral Denmark by the Nazis, leading to a swift defeat of Denmark's army, navy, and air corps by the German Army.
This occupation continued for five years, during which time Danish civilian life and most institutions continued to function relatively normally, despite the uneasy coexistence between a democratic system and a totalitarian regime. However, as the war neared its end, an effective resistance movement emerged, resulting in the dramatic rescue of most Danish Jews in 1943. Finally, in May 1945, the country was liberated, marking the end of the occupation.
Click through the following gallery for a remarkable look back at that fateful day, April 9, and the series of events that followed.