Agger Tange ("tange" is Danish for "

isthmus An isthmus (; : isthmuses or isthmi) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea count ...

" or "

panhandle A salient, panhandle, or bootheel is an elongated protrusion of a geopolitical entity, such as a subnational entity or a sovereign state. While similar to a peninsula in shape, a salient is most often not surrounded by water on three sides. Ins ...

") is a

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

located between the

Limfjord The Limfjord ( common Danish: ''Limfjorden'' , in northwest Jutlandish dialect: ''Æ Limfjord'') is a shallow part of the sea, located in Denmark where it has been regarded as an inlet ever since Viking times. However, it now has entries both ...

and the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

. Agger Tange protrudes from the

North Jutlandic Island The North Jutlandic Island (), Vendsyssel-Thy, or Jutland north of the Limfjord (''Jylland nord for Limfjorden'') is the northernmost part of continental Denmark and of Jutland. It is more common to refer to the three traditional districts of V ...

, immediately south of the village Agger in Thy. As the name implies, Agger Tange was originally an

, but North Sea storms breached the

tombolo A tombolo is a sandy or shingle isthmus. It is a deposition landform by which an island becomes attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a spit or bar. Once attached, the island is then known as a tied island. The word ''t ...

in the 1800s, creating two peninsulas, north and south. The north peninsula retained the name Agger Tange, although it was no longer an isthmus. The south peninsula became known as Harboøre Tange. The two peninsulas are separated by the Thyborøn Channel, facilitating ship traffic through the Limfjord canal.

History

The sand

of Agger Tange was created around 1100 AD, as a result of natural

siltation Siltation is water pollution caused by particulate terrestrial clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the increased accumulation (temporary o ...

. The

coast is often windy and fierce, and Agger Tange has experienced many smaller floods during storms. In 1825, a severe storm breached and created what became known as the Agger Channel (in Danish: ''Agger Kanal'' or ''Aggerkanalen''), effectually merging the North Sea with the brackish Limfjord permanently. The channel gradually widened, but closed up again during the 1850s, again due to natural siltation. A similar breach occurred during a storm in 1862 at the nearby town of

Thyborøn Thyborøn is a fishing village in Jutland, Denmark, with a population of 1,816 (1 January 2024),Harboøre Harboøre is a railway town, with a population of 1,385 (1 January 2024),North Jutlandic Island The North Jutlandic Island (), Vendsyssel-Thy, or Jutland north of the Limfjord (''Jylland nord for Limfjorden'') is the northernmost part of continental Denmark and of Jutland. It is more common to refer to the three traditional districts of V ...

. The breach made it possible to sail from the North Sea to the

Kattegat The Kattegat (; ; ) is a sea area bounded by the peninsula of Jutland in the west, the Danish straits islands of Denmark and the Baltic Sea to the south and the Swedish provinces of Bohuslän, Västergötland, Halland and Scania in Swede ...

, shortcutting the

Skagerrak The Skagerrak (; , , ) is a strait running between the North Jutlandic Island of Denmark, the east coast of Norway and the west coast of Sweden, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea. The Skagerrak contains some of the busiest shipping ...

Sea, and the Agger Channel and Thyborøn Channel soon became important for international traffic. In 1875, the Thyborøn Channel was secured and improved to serve seafaring traffic better. In World War II, during the

German occupation of Denmark At the outset of World War II in September 1939, Denmark declared itself neutral, but that neutrality did not prevent Nazi Germany from occupying the country soon after the outbreak of war; the occupation lasted until Germany's defeat. The ...

, Agger Tange became part of the

Atlantic Wall The Atlantic Wall () was an extensive system of coastal defence and fortification, coastal defences and fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the coast of continental Europe and Scandinavia as a defense (military), d ...

with several bunker fortifications. File:Agger in Denmark - Agger Tange - Bunker (16).jpg, Bunker remnants from World War II File:Agger in Denmark - Agger Tange - Lange Mole (13).jpg, Modern coastal protection File:Agger in Denmark - Agger Tange (15).jpg, Groynes File:Agger Tange Forfyr Unterfeuer.jpg, Lighthouse installation File:Vestkystruten Agger Tange.jpg, The road on Agger Tange File:Thyborøn-Agger Tange Færge.jpg, Car ferry servicing the Thyborøn Channel File:Agger in Denmark - Agger Tange (17).jpg,

Nature

The Danish State owns 2,400 ha on Agger Tange and Harboøre Tange that was made a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

in 1984. Agger Tange is part of

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectiv ...

-Area 28 with

Nissum Bredning Nissum Bredning is the westernmost '' bredning'' in the Limfjord situated between Thyborøn Channel, through which the fjord is connected to the North Sea, and Oddesund with Oddesund Bridge. Its size is around 200 km2 and the depth is up ...

, Skibsted Fjord, and

Agerø Agerø is a small Danish island in Limfjorden located in the waters between the larger island of Mors, to which it is connected by a dam and a bridge, and the Thyholm Peninsula. With an area of 3.8 km2, it has a population of 38 as of 1 Ja ...

. It is a

Ramsar wetland The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It i ...

Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

, and

Special Protection Area A special protection area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and cer ...

. The

beach meadow Beach meadows are coastal meadows influenced by the presence of the nearby sea. Under this definition, the salinity of the air and wind is always high and the meadows are often flooded during and after stormy weather. These conditions implies th ...

s on Agger Tange are home to many species of birds, both domestic and migrating birds. As most of them are nesting on the ground, the meadows are not accessible in the spring and early summer, from 1 April to 15 July. The wetlands, however, are not to be disturbed at any time of year. Agger Tange constitutes the southernmost part of

Thy National Park Thy National Park () is a national park area in Thy, Denmark, opened to the public on 22 August 2008. It is located in Northwest Jutland, along the coast from Hanstholm to Agger Tange and it spans north to south and east to west. The total are ...

, and is sometimes referred to as "the main gate" of the national park. Close to the harbor at the southern tip of the peninsula, is an unmanned information house called Svanholmhus with various facilities in connection to the national park.

References

External links

National Park Thy

Agger Tange
{{Thisted Municipality Special Areas of Conservation in Denmark North Jutland Region Ramsar sites in Denmark

History

Nature

See also

References

External links