Introduction to golf on Ærø (pronounced Aeroe)

Ærø – we are on our way

Remember the map of Denmark. We went from the North of Aarhus to Langeland.

The longer island marked in the yellow circle in the South.

Now we are moving from Langeland to Ærø. The smaller island in the circle.

With the Ferry we went from Rudkøbing (green dot) to Marstal (red dot) and then by car to the top of Ærø island. Here we found a great golf course surrounded by the sea.

We arrived to Ærø with the ferry from Langeland in beautiful weather. Sunny and almost windless.

Approaching the harbour, we got a beautiful view of Marstal city, just like it is written in a tourist brochure. Idyllic and friendly. Here we are far away from wars and conflicts.

Yes, but . . . . . ! On our way into the harbour, I saw something that puzzled me, namely this flag.

It was not one of the usual flags that all yachts fly on their boat.

And the flag was not hoisted on a boat, but on a flagpole on land. So, I thought: Hello, what’s going on here?

Why was I amazed? Until spring 2023, it was forbidden in Denmark to fly flags other than the Danish Dannebrog.

The Danish flag hoisted in a garden is a very common sight.

But a recent Supreme Court ruling have changed this centuries-old rule.

It happened, a few years earlier, when a family hoisted the American Stars & Stripe up their flagpole, several days in a row, much to the annoyance of their Danish neighbours and passers-by.

It was something many Danes experienced as very un-Danish, which is why they reported it to the police.

The case went from the lower courts all the way up to the Supreme Court, which concluded that an amendment that was added to the Danish constitution around the time of World War I did not clearly enough make it illegal to fly other nation flags other than the Danish.

Here one should think of the wars Denmark has been involved in, including against Sweden and Germany. Flying the German flag, even decades after World War II, would be considered treason by many Danes – especially by the older generations. Whatever the Supreme Court justices may come up with.

Hence my astonishment. And curiosity. What kind of flag was that?

Ærøs official local flag

The flag, I found out, is Ærø’s official local flag. As far as I can tell, only Ærø, Bornholm and Vendsyssel have their own local flag. I didn’t know that.

So, when and why was the Ærø flag created

On the web under the search word Ærø flag, I found the following explanation:

The flag was created between 1622 and 1633 by Duke Hans the Younger’s eldest son, Duke Christian, who inherited Ærø upon his father’s death in 1622. Duke Christian was the only one of Ærø’s dukes whose duchy included all Ærø. So – I guess – that’s why he needed to get his own flag.

At his death, he left the flag at the manor Graasten, which was located close to Marstal.

That must have been the flag I saw when we got into Marstal harbor. After his death in 1633, the flag was carefully and accurately recorded and described.

So now nearly 400 years later – it is still perfectly legal to fly that flag.

And (for curiosity) the flag has nothing to do with the banner that LGBTQIA+ (+++) movements waves when they have their parades. Which was my first thought. But no. Just see their banner below.

The LGBTQIA+ banner

A bit of Ærøs history

The history of Aeroe can be traced back thousands of years.

Remains of 10,000-year-old settlements have been found. The island has many well-preserved ancient monuments, such as long dolmens, giant mounds, and passage rooms.

As those who have read my description of Langeland’s history will see, Ærø’s history is more or less the same.

Where does the name come from?

In 1137, according to an Icelandic bard poem, a naval battle took place south of the island of Erri, present-day Ærø.

It is in this bard poem that Ærø’s name is mentioned for the first time. In the Islandic language, but now translated into Danish.

And – just as it happened to Langeland, the island was plundered by the Swedish occupying forces during the 1658-59 war.

Here, too, big parts of the forests on the island disappeared. The Swedes used the trees for fuel, even woods from demolished buildings they used for the purpose, so it was a ravaged landscape that remained after they left the island.

From the end of the 1800 hundreds until the Second World War, Ærøs merchant fleet was the second largest in Denmark. Second only to Copenhagen.

In Marstal alone, in the year 1893, there were no fewer than 341 big ships registered. Interestingly, during that time, Marstal’s telegraph station was the next busiest in the country, surpassed only by the Capital.

During this period there were 8 ship building yards in Marstal – alone. It was a good period for the island’s residents.

Today, it is the struggle for survival as a peripheral area (or is it called outskirts area) that is one of the most important practical and political issues.

The unity of the islanders in the struggle for the island’s survival became especially evident in the year 2000, when a popular movement saved Marstal Navigation School, from closure. Still one of Denmark’s biggest navigation schools.

Today, most of the island’s 6000 residents are making a living from the coaster fleet, agriculture, and tourism.

If you walk around the coastline the island, it would be a walk of 66 kilometres.

It is in this historical and contemporary context the Ærøs golf club and course comes into the picture. About that in the next blog.

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If you have any comments or questions feel free to contact us on the blog. At the end of the blog you will see it

Hope you enjoyed reading a little bit of the history – next up is about the Golf club