Believe it or not, Denmark was once a colonial power with colonies and trade stations in Africa, Ceylon, India, Indonesia, China and the Virgin Islands. Not a big colonial power, just a small one, but this chapter of Danish history and military history covers many interesting stories.
In 1783 many Danish merchant ships arrived in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark-Norway, among these 5 ships from China, 9 from India and 127 from the West Indies (Virgin Islands). Beside these ships 1.600 ships transported goods to Europe and 5.100 smaller vessels transported goods between Denmark and the Nordic countries. A good period for Denmark and Copenhagen.
The backside of the medal was, that in just 12 years Denmark transported more than 17.000 chained and branded humans from Africa to the West Indies. Of these more than 3.000 died during the journey. Denmark had 3 major colonies:

· The Koromandel Coast in India with trade stations in the Bengal, Java, Borneo and Celebes.
· The Guinea Coast (200 kilometres of it!) in West Africa.
· The Virgin Islands (3 islands) in the Caribbean Sea in America.

Beside trading posts and colonies, Denmark had a trading post in Canton in China, just like the bigger colonial powers.

Map showing Denmark, colonies and trade stations. The triangle Denmark-Africa-West Indies created many fortunes in Copenhagen as well as did the silk route from China

It all started in 1618, when the Danish King Christian the 4th equipped a fleet that should sail to India
and establish a Danish trading post on the way to China. The commander was Ove Giedde, a 24
years old nobleman, and the fleet consisted of 2 naval ships ELEFANTEN ("The Elephant") and
DAVID and two merchant ships KIØBENHAVN ("Copenhagen") and CHRISTIAN. In March
1618 the first ship, the yacht ØRESUND ("The Sound") commanded by the Dutchman Roland Crappe, left Copenhagen, and shortly after that the main fleet set sail.

At the same time another explorer, commander Jens Munk, got the kings permission to try to find a passage north of the Americas to China, and he left 19th of May same year with two naval vessels, the frigate ENHIØRNINGEN ("The Unicorn") and the yacht LAMPRENEN ("The Lamprey"). His mission failed, and he returned with only two survivors two years later.

The Indian fleet had lots of problems. A mutiny in January 1619 in the Channel. On 19th of February the fleet took 2 pirate ships at Cap Verde and included them in the fleet. At the same time, the chief merchant, a Dutchman named Boshouwer was exposed as a fraud. By the time the fleet got to

South Africa over 200 men had been lost and during the next 9 months, when the fleet sailed along the African east coast to India, another 100 men died.
Ove Gjedde, the commander, got a part of the coastline Trinquemale on Ceylon from the King of Candy on 21st of August 1620. This was not a nice piece of land, so eventually he went to the
Coromandel Coast in the Tanjore Province, where his second in command Roland Crappe had been awarded some land of his old friend the Naik at a place called Tarangambadi. European name was Trankebar. On the 16th of October that year the first customs pay – 16 thaler – was paid to the Danish authority. Denmark kept the "colony" for 200 years.
Lets turn to Africa: In the Carl Gustav war between Denmark and Sweden 1657 to 1660 there actually was a battle in Africa. The Danish commander was Henrik Carlof with 22 sailors from Glückstadt in Germany and 22 borrowed Negro slaves. They took the Swedish fortress Carolusborg at Cabo Corso on the Guinea Golden Coast one morning in January 1658. Denmark was established in Africa. Carolusborg was lost in 1659, but Denmark had the same year bought the Fortress Frederiksborg, that unfortunately was pawned in 1684. At that time the Danish merchants had built Christiansborg near Accra and this fortress became the centre of the Guinea trade.

The first decree in the Danish colony on the Virgin Islands was issued on 27th of May 1672, when Jørgen Iversen became the first governor. The colony had been established by settlers from Copenhagen that sailed of in October 1671 on the ship FÆRØE ("The Faeroes"). These settlers were poor people, thieves, murderers and rubbers from Bremerholm prison and women from Spindehuset – 180 settlers in all. 77 settlers died on the way to the islands, 75 died during the first year on the tropical island of Saint Thomas. The next ships were almost the same story, out of 324 settlers only 64 survived.

After a period of 8 years the colony was fully established: 45 small plantations with tobacco, sugar, indigo and ginger, 156 Christian souls and 175 Negro slaves.
With colonies in Africa and the West Indies, the triangle trading started: Goods from Copenhagen to Africa – goods and slaves from Africa to the West Indies – sugar, rum, tobacco etc. from the West Indies to Copenhagen. The merchants made fortunes and Denmark could take its rightful place among the wealthy colonial powers.

On 25th of October 1730 the first Danish ships – CRON PRINTZ CHRISTIAN, CRON PRINTZEN and DEN GYLDNE LØVE - left Copenhagen with destination China. This was a huge project and the commander was Commandeur Capitain M.C.L.F. Tønder, one of the heroes from the famous Thundershields battles at Marstrand and Dynekilen. They carried mostly silver and was under order to purchase tea, drugs, porcelain, papir, lacquer and sealing wax. The trader on board was Pieter van Hurk from Amsterdam. They arrive at Whampoo Island in the Canton River in China in the summer of 1731 and opened the Danish trading route to China and from 1732 to 1750 the Danish East Indies Company sent 27 ships to China, of which 22 returned with a 200% profit. In the end of the century Denmark had a factory in Canton next to France, USA, Sweden, UK and the Netherlands.

In 1756 Denmark established a small colony at the Greater Nicobar Island in the Bengal Sea. This colony was never a success, and both the first and second colony team died from malaria, and in 1787 the colony was abandoned. Later attempts were made and Denmark considered this a colony for a hundred years (whether the locals knew it or not!).
Then on 16th of March 1792 the Danish King signed a decree that basically said that from 1803 slavery was forbidden. This slow closure meant that 10.000 extra slaves could be transported from Africa to the West Indies. Totally Denmark transported 50.000 Negro slaves to the new world, just ½ percent of the app. 11 million Africans that were taken there.
In 1801 and again in 1807 the British occupied the Danish colonies, because Denmark had made a treaty with Napoleon Bonaparte. During the period 1807 to 1814 the British took app. 1400 Danish and Norwegian ships, and in 1813 the Denmark went bankrupt. In 1843 the East India Company closed.

On 31st of December 1849 the Danish colonies in India was sold to the British for 10.000 pounds sterling. In 1868 the British got the Nicobar Islands for free. In the summer of 1915 the American ambassador Egan on behalf of the United States of America offered to buy the Virgin Islands. The Danish foreign minister Erik Scavenius negotiated a price of 25 million dollars (Denmark wanted 30 million and USA was prepared to pay 50 million???). Since this was selling a part of Denmark there was a referendum on the 14th of December 1916. Only app. 40% of the voters actually voted at this occasion. The result was 286.694 votes for the sale and 157.596 against. The handover took place at the army barracks in Saint Thomas on 31st of March 1917.

Copy from http://www.geocities.com/armdury/artikel.htm 

September 27th 2004.
From a reader in England we received the following mail which we are permitted to use on this page.
If somebody are interested in answering him, please contact webmaster for name, address and phone number.

I have read with interest the information on your website on Tranquebar. You say in "Denmark as a Colonial Power" that "On 25th of October 1730 the first Danish ships – CRON PRINTZ CHRISTIAN, CRON PRINTZEN and DEN GYLDNE LØVE - left Copenhagen with destination China. This was a huge project and the commander was Commandeur Capitain M.C.L.F. Tønder, one of the heroes from the famous Thundershields battles at Marstrand and Dynekilen. They carried mostly silver and was under order to purchase tea, drugs, porcelain, papir, lacquer and sealing wax. The trader on board was Pieter van Hurk from Amsterdam. They arrive at Whampoo Island in the Canton River in China in the summer of 1731 and opened the Danish trading route to China and from 1732 to 1750 the Danish East Indies Company sent 27 ships to China, of which 22 returned with a 200% profit."

I guess from this that you are not aware that DEN GYLDNE LØVE never reached China. 3 days after leaving Copenhagen she ran into severe weather conditions off the south-west coast of Ireland and was driven on to the strand at Ballyheigue, County Kerry. Her silver cargo was rescued with the aid of the local landowner Thomas Crosbie, who died shortly afterwards. His widow, Lady Margaret Crosbie, pursued a claim for salvage, and in the mean time the silver was deposited in her house under Danish guards. The house was later attacked by a gang of local men (there were strong suspicions that Lady Margaret and her family were involved), a guard was killed, and the silver was stolen. The affair became a great scandal in Ireland, and also eventually led to the removal of the Danish ambassador in London after he protested that the Danish East India Company was not being given justice in Ireland.

My interest in this arises from the fact that I am a descendant of Thomas and Lady Margaret, and I have been looking into some of the English records of this affair. I would be very interested to get in touch with anyone in Denmark who might be able to throw more light on the Danish side of this story.

Regards
Edw. Y.