The Danish–Icelandic Act of Union, an agreement signed by

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...

and

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

on 1 December 1918, recognized Iceland as a fully independent and

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defined ter ...

– the Kingdom of Iceland – freely associated to Denmark in a

personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interli ...

with the

Danish king This is a list of Danish monarchs, that is, the kings and queens regnant of Denmark. This includes: * The Kingdom of Denmark (up to 1397) ** Personal union of Denmark and Norway (1380–1397) * The Kalmar Union (1397–1536) ** Union of Denmark, ...

. Iceland established its own

flag A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...

, declared its neutrality and asked Denmark to represent on its behalf foreign affairs and defence interests, while maintaining full control of them. Iceland opened its first embassy in 1920. The Act would be up for revision in 1940 and could be revoked three years later if agreement was not reached.

Background

While a few prominent Icelanders, such as Benedikt Sveinsson the younger, wanted to also sever the personal union with the Danish King, the Icelanders did not seriously pursue it. It was understood that the Danish King would not use the veto powers afforded to him by the Act of Union, and the Icelanders considered it unnecessary to sever all ties with Denmark, having gained their independence and full control of all state affairs. Historian Gunnar Karlsson argues that Denmark was willing to grant Iceland sovereignty in 1918 for two reasons. First, the self-determination of peoples had grown in importance with the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Second, Iceland had shown that it was capable of governing its own affairs (starting with Home Rule in 1904) and relations with other states (during World War I when Iceland was cut off from Denmark).

The founding of the Republic

On 17 June 1944, during the

occupation of Denmark At the outset of World War II in September 1939, Denmark declared itself neutral. For most of the war, the country was a protectorate and then an occupied territory of Germany. The decision to occupy Denmark was taken in Berlin on 17 Decem ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, while the armed forces of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

were still in Iceland, a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...

was held on severing ties with the monarchy and the country voted overwhelmingly to become a republic.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Danish-Icelandic Act of Union 1918 in law 1918 in Iceland 1918 in Denmark Denmark–Iceland relations 1918 in politics December 1918 events Personal unions

External links

Text of the Act