Ivar Huitfeldt Column – Copenhagen, Denmark
Posted by: Groundspeak Regular Member Chasing Blue Sky
N 55° 41.436 E 012° 35.953
33U E 349090 N 6174257
This monument was erected to commemorate the heroic death of Admiral Ivar Huitfeldt and his men, who died aboard the Dannebrog, in a naval battle with Sweden during the Great Northern War in 1710.
Waymark Code: WMJ3WV
Location: Denmark
Date Posted: 09/19/2013
Published By:Groundspeak Regular Member Math Teacher
Views: 31

"The Ivar Huitfeldt Column is a monument at Langelinie in Copenhagen, Denmark, built to commemorate the death of Admiral Ivar Huitfeldt and his men in a naval battle off Stevns during the Great Northern War. The monument was constructed in 1886 to a design by Vilhelm Dahlerup. Ferdinand Edvard Ring was responsible for the statue of Victoria and for the reliefs, while Carl Brummer undertook the monument’s architectonic design.

On 4 October 1710, the ship-of-the-line Dannebrog, which Huitfeldt commanded, was set on fire during an encounter with the Swedes. He gave orders to continue the battle, which only came to an end when the ship blew up. Huitfeldt and 497 crew members were killed.

Between 1872 and 1875 various artifacts were brought up from the wreck, including cannons and the ship's anchor.

The initial plans for a Huitfeldt memorial called for a much smaller monument, a sort of cairn, but after the intervention of Carlsberg brewer Carl Jacobsen who had already sponsored several monuments in Copenhagen, including a statue of Admiral Niels Juel next the National Bank, it was decided to launch a competition. It was won by Vilhelm Dahlerup.

The original plan was to erect the monument at the small churchyard attached to the naval Church of Holmen, close to the main entrance in Havnegade, but it was ultimately deemed too big.

The monument consists of a marble column topped by a statue of Victoria. Four bronze reliefs at its foot feature Huitfeldt 's portrait, his coat of arms, a ship and a text.

The design incorporates the cannon balls barrels and the ship’s anchor is attached to the plinth." SOURCE

"Ivar Huitfeldt (December 5, 1665 – October 4, 1710) was a Dano-Norwegian naval officer who was killed in action, when he commanded the ship Dannebroge during Great Northern War 1700–1721.

Ivar Huitfeldt was killed in action during the Great Northern War at a battle in Køge Bugt on October 4, 1710. The Dano-Norwegian fleet was engaged by the Swedish fleet, and Huitfeldt's ship Dannebroge exploded after a fire on deck reached the gunpowder depot. After the ship caught fire, Huitfeldt ordered his crew to remain onboard and continue firing at the Swedish fleet. Due to Dannebrog's strategic position, this decision allowed the rest of the Dano-Norwegian fleet to escape, but lead to the deaths of almost the entire crew. The corpse of Ivar Huitfeldt was later found on the beach in Køge Bugt.

According to the commander in chief of the Dano-Norwegian navy, Ulrik Christian Gyldenløve, the fire on Dannebroge was probably ignited by the cannons of the ship. Gyldenløve mentions this in his letter to the king, where Gyldenløve also regrets that a "brave and talented" officer should die in such a miserable way. Gyldenløve followed the battle from his ship Elephanten and wrote the letter at about 9 o'clock in the morning of October 5." SOURCE

Website pertaining to the memorial: [Web Link]

List if there are any visiting hours:
This memorial is located in a parkway, so visiting hours would likely be dawn to dusk.


Entrance fees (if it applies): 0.00

Type of memorial: Monument

Visit Instructions:

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*(2.)* If you have additional information about the memorial which is not listed in the waymark description, please notify the waymark owner to have it added, and please post the information in your visit log.
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