The 1700s were a period of Danish colonies, international trade, adventurous ‘grand tours’ and scientific expeditions. Hear about a century in which Denmark really gets to greet the world. The evening begins with a lecture in Ny Munkegade, and concludes with a story about Danish travel literature under the darkness of the night sky at the Steno Museum. The event will be presented in both Danish and English.
Internationalisation and globalisation are currently referred to as something new. If you look back on history, however, you realise that eighteenth-century Denmark conceals stories about an insatiable appetite for discovery, inventions and enlightenment, and that this thirst for wealth and power, as well as knowledge and adventure, brought Denmark out into the world and forced the world across Denmark’s borders.
Danish merchants and the people of power established colonies in Tranquebar (India), the Gold Coast (Ghana) and the West Indies (Virgin Islands). This meant that ships moored at quays laden with sugar, tobacco, ivory, mahogany and gold – exclusive goods financed by sales of weapons to Africa and slave ships across the Atlantic. Denmark had other boundaries and was international within its borders. The Danish Realm included Norway and the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. French was spoken at the court, while the establishment had German origins. Copenhagen was a jumble of nationalities, languages and new ideas.
Everyone wanted to know the world, describe it and map it. They journeyed into the unknown, sailing in wooden vessels with only a sextant to navigate in the open, and with the starry sky as the only point of reference. Or they crossed foreign soils like Anders Christensen, who described an exotic one-legged race, or Carsten Niebuhr, who subsequently embarked on one of the first scientific expeditions to what he called ‘Happy Arabia’.
Delve into history and put the world of today – including Denmark – into perspective.
17.00-17.50: Denmark in the world – colonies and trade
Associate Professor Niels Brimnes, Aarhus University
18.00-18.50: The world within Denmark’s borders – power and language
Cand.mag. Asser Amdisen
19.00-19.45: Dinner in the Mathematics Canteen and then to the Planetarium at the Steno Museum
20.10-21.00: Mapping the world – maps and navigation
Head of Planetarium Ole J. Knudsen, Steno Museum
21.10-22.00: Stories about the world – Danish travel literature
Ph.d. Allan Sortkær Pedersen
Sign up for the events at Folkeuniversitetet’s website: www.fuau.dk by clicking on the button ‘Register’.
