What is Royal Danish Navy?
The '''Royal Danish Navy''' is the sea-based branch of the Danish [[Military|Defence]] force. It is mainly responsible for maritime defence and maintaining Danish [[territorial waters]] including the [[Faroe Islands]] and [[Greenland]]. The maritime traditions go back to the 9th century when the [[Vikings]] had small but well-organised fleets. From 1509 to 1814, when [[Denmark]] was in a union with [[Norway]], the Danish Navy was part of the Dano-Norwegian Navy. It was an important force then. It played an important part in the [[Colonization|colonisation]] of [[Africa]] and the [[Caribbean]]. During the [[Napoleonic Wars]] the British were afraid that the Danish navy would be used against them. They attacked it in 1801 and captured it in 1807. It took a long time to rebuild the navy. In World War II 32 ships were deliberately sunk in 1943 to prevent the [[Germany|German]]<nowiki/>s from using them.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The 2nd World War|url=http://www.navalhistory.dk/English/History/1939_1945/August29.htm|access-date=2023-04-10|website=www.navalhistory.dk}}</ref> During the [[Cold War]], the Danish navy was rebuilt and [[Modernization|modernised]]. The main job was to repel a possible [[invasion]] from the [[Warsaw Pact]]. Now there are fewer but larger vessels able to operate for long periods at sea. == References == {{reflist}} [[Category:Organizations based in Denmark]] [[Category:Navies]]