Danish War Museum, Copenhagen MM032

[@steffenb.jrgensen2014]

They used to have thousands of firearms on exhibit, from medieval times to present day, probably the biggest cellection in the world with public access. But some museum type found them boring and unsuitable for a war museum and most were scrapped 😵‍💫

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

That's a terrible shame. It's a large museum, they definitely have the space to display more.

[@bentalexranebundgaard4867]

They where not scrapped they are still in place, it was simple lack of place + some idiots attempt to steal some of the mpre mdern ones. that coursed most of them had to be removed for now. One of the worlds only original Punt guns in fact the museum has at least three of them should still be there.

[@zuki70]

True. I had the privilege to see that collection. It is sad, if it has been tucked away due to space consideration. There were thousands of exhibits, it was "almost too much" with the endless display cabinets one after another. Many firearms of the old flint-lock type - true pieces of artwork heavily ornamented with decorative inlay of precious metals, wood and mother-of-pearl. There were a LOT of them, one more elaborate than the other. Can only speculate the amount of time and craftmanship that had been put into creating them. Sad, if they are not on display anymore :/

[@Rex1987]

To be fair, just placing weapons apon weapons with no real curration is kind of repetitive. And this comes from someone who practically grew up on this museum and have been there 1001 times since the age of 5 (i am 37 years old at the time of writing this) Having built the museum more around a collection that is more carefully selected than just showing the quantity i feel is better.

[@gustav331]

@@Rex1987 The modern-day museum is extremely sub-par, though. It's one of the worst and most shallow major army museums in Europe. It doesn't help that the fantastic Orlogsmuseet was closed down in 2016, and that the Ministry of Culture instead decided to try and cram the navy's history into a museum that has otherwise always been about the army. Now there is less space both for the army and the navy.

[@mikkoveijalainen7430]

Their Afganistan exhibition is really good.

[@grinlike1282]

Might be unwarented but, here is a ww2 "the more you know" thingy: Denmark’s resistance during WWII is a remarkable story of unity. Despite the Nazi annexation, which allowed the Danish government to remain in place and initially imposed milder restrictions, brave resistance groups quickly formed. They gathered intelligence for the Allies and undertook daring sabotage missions. One of their most extraordinary acts was the rescue of over 7,000 Jews in September 1943. After German diplomat Georg Duckwitz learned of Hitler’s deportation orders, he secretly organized their escape to Sweden and alerted Danish authorities. In just days, a network of resistance fighters, Jewish leaders, and ordinary citizens worked together to save lives. While some Jews were sent to concentration camps, over 99% ultimately survived, aided by the Danish-Swedish "white bus" missions. Duckwitz was honored as one of the 'Righteous Among the Nations,' but the resistance preferred collective recognition, highlighting the power of community and courage in dark times.

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

thanks for the extra information.

[@juletid99]

Fun fact. Where the Leopard currently sits. There used to be a great big gun barrel on the ground, set up on blocks. It was a replecement barrel for one of the german battleships. Except it never got further than Copenhagen. Either because the ship sank, or the country was liberated. I can never quite remember which... Also: On the subject of the Yugo wars. I know a guy who served in NORBAT-2. The stories he tell...

[@snotfjs]

I think it was an 38 cm barrel which is now displayed at the Tirpitz-museum in Jutland..

[@juletid99]

@@snotfjs Cool. I thought they just had it scrapped. Because it was in the newspapers once, and then nothing.

[@MrMaltheChannel]

​@@snotfjsYep! Thats true. Massive barrel!

[@andriandrason1318]

​@@snotfjsThat's not correct, it's at the Bunkermuseum in Hanstholm Nordjylland and has been since 2005. There used to be 4 38 cm SK C/34 naval guns in Hanstholm, and 4 in Kristiansand Norway as its the closest point between the two countries.

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Thanks for the extra information.

[@achernarsc2470]

An interesting note about the ship models on display is that many are not models made for the exhibition - they are in fact original scale construction models made as part of the planning process for new navy ships, all of which were kept after the fact and later left in the care of the Danish Naval Museum, which has now been rolled into the War Museum. So really, they're not models of navy ships, rather they're the 'blueprints' the navy ships were based on. A model on display could easily be an original from the 1700s :)

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

For several years the Naval Model Collection, at first, through many years built for the Kings Approval from the Naval Shipyard, by "the Leader of Shipbuilding (Most likely a minor employee), was housed in the former Naval Hospital, which sadly became sold to be offices, before the colection ended in the War Museum. When it became a Naval, Official Museum, also a Danish Dentist and Model builder became asked to make essential Models from several times and those are still a part of the Exhibition, I suppose? I haven't seen it it since it left its Home for many years.

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Thanks for the extra information

[@militarymad2840]

That looks great some amazing uniforms in there

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Yes, I was quite surprised by the variety of their collection too.

[@michaelclemensen8475]

In my younger years me and some friends restored , almost to perfection and driveable , a Hanomag Sdkfz 251 / D . We spent thousands of hours after school on sanding it down and repairing stuff aso ,as we were almost fanatic about it . Then , when it was painted and 99 % i order , some IDIOT !!! swapped it for some totaly garbage from Germany . We were NEVER TOLD that that was the whole idea of the vehicle , so we were very sad and angry when we found out . And nobody would take the responsibility for it . I have not been in the museum since , it hurts to much . 😒

[@ingloriousdane]

The profit of free labour as always 😒

[@egnbigdave]

Bonus points for the Welrod spotted in the wild in the WW2 section!

[@IanS2006]

ttime stamp?

[@egnbigdave]

@@IanS2006 11:50 between the Sten and the M1 Carbine

[@IanS2006]

@@egnbigdave damn didn't even notice that, such a unique gun.

[@zweboi1094]

There is 2 welrods at the garnisions museum in Aalborg i believe

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

They receive "Free Samples" of new weapons from several Major International Factories and the Collection here is sometimes more complete than the Factory's own, so if in doubt, they become asked!!! They have a collection of weapons bought for Tests for the Danish Army and - Navy many years back. And also, equipment for Danish weapon Production! Also, The Rasmussen Revolving Guns may have changed the Border War in 1864 if used by then?

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Thanks for that extra information.

[@l.f.p.8305]

A major part of Denmark was under Prussia during WWI. So thousands of Danish men had to fight in that war. The Danish National Archives estimate the losses of Danes in the German forces at 6,000. Over 700 Danish merchant sailors and fisherman died, mostly due to vessels torpedoed by German submarines.

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Yes, an often forgotten part of history.

[@MrColt1982]

What i know of and was told, then they have 1 of the only remaning Freikorps Dänemark uniforms left in the world, i may be wrong, maybe there is some in private collections.

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Possibly, if so that's the one I filmed

[@Gert-DK]

I fought in the Cold War (78-79). We were bloody good. We beat the Soviets all the time. 😅

[@oleriis-vestergaard6844]

In past time a 38cm gun barsel was on display out in the yard , it came from the german warship Tirpitz that was bombed by RAF in 1944 - Four of the guns was salvaged and sent to denmark to be placed in a new build bunker complex at a place called Blåvandshug , the Four 38cm skc34 barrels Got stück at a railstation at the end of the war - 3 barrels Got cut up in pieces at the scrap man and saves before being Melsted and the one 109 tons that survived was sent by rail ti copenhagen were it sat outside for many years before it ended up at the huge bunker festung at Hanstholm at display among the 4 canonemplacements - sadly enough 2 of the bunkers was filled up with sand sometime in the 1980 so only 2 Can be seen - i place to see endeed

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

They do have a similar and - Functioning 38cm gun in "Battery Vara" in Norwegian Christianssand, as a Major Museums Area with Bunkers, defensive 88mm guns and Ammo Trains. Also mechanical Computers to accept humidity and pressure for the calculating of a shot from a Gun, so it was able to hit within 200m from a 10km distance! The Similar, sadly ruined and scrapped Gun in Hanstholm couldn't hit anything, as its site became built on sand and during Test shots it shaked everything out of adjustment!!

[@oleriis-vestergaard6844]

@@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188 That gun in norway called the Adolfcanone is a 400 mm gun and not a 38 cm - the germans lost one 400 mm gun during the invasion of norway becauce the ship was attacked and sunk with its cargo in 1940-- go g’et it please🦑

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

@@oleriis-vestergaard6844 OK I won't and haven't got the knowledge to argue against that. But I thought that both came from the damaged ship back in Germany? Finn

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

By that, I visited the Battery in Christianssand shortly after they had opened the area as a museum, so not that much was ready.

[@andriandrason1318]

​@@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188You are absolutely correct its a 38 cm. S.K.C/34.

[@XXIIEURO]

Funny fact - One of the Deadliest Wars for the Danish soldiers was the Eastern Front ww2 And ww1 30.000 Danish soldiers were forced to join the German army Around 6000 died

[@thomasbaagaard]

13:00 it is technically not "civil war uniforms" It was an exchange done in 1858. so more then two years before the war broke out. One set of infantry and one set of cavalry kits was exchanged between the danish army and US army. Some of the items are unique (like the Maclellan saddle that to my knowledge do not exist in the original model in the US)

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Good point, thanks for that.

[@rolfagten857]

Schalburg corps & Sven Hassel.

[@MrGeneralPB]

well one of the fun things that danes usually never mention is that they lost more men fighting on the russian front than they ever did resisting the germans

[@kristianklindt9203]

Used to be really top end museum with a fantastic collection on display - now it's dumbed down and mediocre 😢

[@MrMaltheChannel]

Njaaargh its really great. I spent 4 hours there reading everything

[@bjarkejensen1441]

It is still great…

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

That's one reason why I'm filming these videos. It seems a lot of museums get dumbed down more and more. At least in the future we'll be able to look back on how they were in the 2020s.

[@gustav331]

@@bjarkejensen1441 No, it's not. It's one of the worst and most shallow major military museums in Europe, alongside Imperial War Museum in London. Go to Heeresgeschichtliches Museum in Vienna or Les Invalides in Paris if you want to see a great military museum.

[@madzen112]

Arms museum not war museum last time I checked

[@chrisdale-militaryhistory]

Maybe I'm wrong but the museum is called the Krigsmuseet. I don't speak Danish but as I understand it Krig means War and Museet means Museum, no? I'm always happy to be corrected though.

[@JohnJones-k9d]

The WW2 SECTION WOULD BE. The Germans invaded we were ordered into barracks to not fight, so other countries fought the Germans for us. Danish military history in WW2 is an embarrassment for any Dane.

[@andriandrason1318]

Not as much as you are to your parents.

[@madselmvig1457]

Then he is not much of a "historian". There were no embarrassment in 1940. Please enlighten us all what we Danes should have done. The Danish army were in total (including reserves) 14.500 men, the German army were 13.600.000 men. It were a no win scenario. When military victory is not possible, the government prime role is to save as many citizens as possible.