Sønderborg: the castle on the strait disputed with Germany

On the island of Als, Sønderbørg houses a Danish royal castle in a region long contested between Denmark and Germany.

The center, with its castle overlooking the strait long contested with Germany, is comfortably explored on foot.

The Castle of Sønderborg, a royal Danish fortress from the twelfth century, today houses a museum recounting the contested history of southern Schleswig.

A few steps away, the bridge connecting the island of Als to the mainland marks the point where in 1864 the decisive Battle of Dybbøl was fought between Denmark and Prussia.

Heading toward the hills of Dybbøl one visits the restored trenches of the battle, now a Danish national memorial park with bilingual explanatory panels.

As evening falls, the port of Sønderborg animates restaurants with views over the strait separating the island from the Jutland peninsula.

The Battle of Dybbøl in 1864, lost by Denmark against Prussia, led to the loss of southern Schleswig, a national trauma that profoundly influenced Danish identity and foreign policy for decades.

Sønderborg returned to Denmark only in 1920 after a popular referendum organized following World War I, restoring the current border between the two countries after decades of German rule over the region.