Denmark: Warship sunk by Nelson's British fleet discovered

The wreck of an iconic Danish warship has been discovered on the seabed of Copenhagen Harbor where it has lain for over two centuries since being sunk in a battle with the British Royal Navy under the command of its most famous admiral, Horatio Nelson.

The discovery of the Dannebroge was announced by Denmark's Viking Ship Museum (Vikingeskibsmuseet) on Thursday to coincide with the 225th anniversary of the Battle of Copenhagen on April 2, 1801, during which the double-decker ship served as the Danish flagship.

Marine archaeologists came across the 19th-century wreck while surveying the area before construction work began on a major new housing district that is expected to be completed by 2070.

The proposed site was suspected to match the final position of the stricken Dannebroge, which, after suffering heavy damage from British cannon fire, drifted away from the battle and exploded — and so it proved.

Denmark's Dannebrog: a 'nightmare' to be on board

Morten Johansen, the museum's head of maritime archaeology, told the Associated Press (AP) that the Battle of Copenhagen (known in Danish as the Slaget på Reden or Battle of the Harbor) and the Dannebroge are "a big part of the Danish national feeling."

While Johansen said a great deal has been written about the battle, he said "We don't know what it was actually like to be on board a ship being shot to pieces and some of that story we can probably learn from seeing the wreck."

Indeed, divers have reportedly discovered two cannons, navy insignia, sailors' uniforms and shoes, glass bottles and even part of a human jaw — likely the remains of one of the 19 unaccounted-for Danish crew members who probably lost their lives that day.

"[It would have been] a nightmare to be on board one of these ships," Johansen explained. "When a cannonball hit a ship, it wasn't the cannonball itself that did the most damage to the crew; it was the wooden splinters flying everywhere, very much like grenade debris."

Experts say parts of the wooden Dannebroge, which weren't shot to smithereens, match old drawings of the ship, while dendrochronological dating, the method of using tree rings to establish the age of wood, matched the year of its construction, 1772.

What was the Battle of Copenhagen about?

At that time, and in particular following the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1792, Britain was concerned that a naval alliance between Denmark, Sweden, Prussia and Russia was helping to facilitate maritime trade with France by protecting neutral ports.

The Royal Navy attacked the Danish Navy with the aim of breaking its protective blockade of Copenhagen Harbor and forcing Denmark out of the alliance.

Despite tough Danish resistance and the sinking of 12 British ships, the British fleet ultimately won the battle thanks to its superior firepower — and an act of apparent subordination by then Vice-Admiral Nelson, who ignored an order to retreat.

As legend has it, Nelson, who had lost his right eye in a previous battle, held up his telescope to his blind eye in order to legitimately claim he had not seen a flag signal, reportedly telling his captain: "You know, I only have one eye — I have the right to be blind sometimes. I really do not see the signal!"

The incident is believed to have inspired the phrase "to turn a blind eye," while Nelson's later exploits and death at the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) saw him honored with the construction of Nelson's Column in London's Trafalgar Square.

As for Denmark, the 1801 battle is deeply embedded in the country's national identity. Archaeologists hope the discovery of the Dannebroge may help reexamine the event that shaped and uncover the personal stories of those who went into battle on that day 225 years ago.

"There are bottles, there are ceramics and even pieces of basketry," said diver and maritime archaeologist Marie Jonsson. "You get closer to the people on board."

Edited by: Karl Sexton