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The Constitutional Act of the Kingdom of Denmark (Danish: Danmarks Riges Grundlov) was introduced on June 5, 1849 and effectively put an end to the absolute monarchy which had been introduced in Denmark in 1660.
The Constitution of 1849 established a bicameral parliament, the Rigsdag, consisting of the Landsting and the Folketing. The constitution severely limited the monarch's power and secured basic human rights.
The Danish constitution has been changed four times since the first in 1849. Following the defeat to the German Confederation in 1864 in the Second Schleswig War, and the loss of Schleswig-Holstein for Denmark, the conservative party (estate owners), at that time known as “Højre” (Right) pressed for a new constitution. This change gave the upper chamber of parliament more power, and made it more exclusive and elite. This switched the governmental power to the conservatives from the original long standing dominance of the National liberals, who lost all influence and was later disbanded. This long period of dominance of the Højre party under the leadership of Jacob Brønnum Scavenius Estrup with the backing of the king Christian IX of Denmark was named the provisorietid (provisional period) because the government was based on provisional laws instead of parliamentary decisions.
This also gave rise to a conflict with the Liberals (farm owners) at that time and now known as “Venstre” (Left). This constitutional battle concluded in 1901 with the liberals as the victor.
However after 1901 “Det forenede Venstre” the united left, was split into two, with the Det Radikale Venstre (Radical left) standing in opposition to the new liberal conservative alliance; and in the generel election of 1909 with the support of the Social Democratic party, the radical left sized power.
The next constitutional change was made in 1915, which gave women the right to vote.
A new change was made in 1920. Following the defeat of Germany in World war 1, a referendum was made in the former Danish territories of Schleswig-Holstein, regarding how the new border should be placed. This resulted in upper Schleswig becoming Danish, today known as South Jutland, and the rest remained German.
The most recent revision in 1953 abolished the Landsting, giving Denmark a unicameral parlement and enabled women to inherit the throne.
Apart from the Constitution itself, the Act of Succession to the Danish Throne (Danish: "Tronfølgeloven") of 27 March 1953 also has status as a constitutional law, as it is directly referred to in Article 2 of the Constitional Act. Therefore, amendments to the Act of Succession require adherence to the constitutional amendment procedure as provided for in Article 88 of the Danish Constition Act. A bill to amend the Act of Succession is currently underway in order to abolish male preference to the throne (bill no. 1, Folketing session of 2005-06).
Finally, certain particular customs which are not explicitly referred to in the Constitutional Act itself, but that have been recognised as carrying constitutional legal weight (such as the right of the Finance Committee to authorise public expenditure outside of the national budget), also form part of Danish Constitional law.
The first constitution of Denmark was Lex Regia (Royal Law) of 1665. It established absolute power for King Frederick III of Denmark, replacing the old feudal system based on tradition. This is Europe's only formal absolutist constitution.
Absolute power was passed along with a succession of Danish monarchs until Frederick VII who agreed to sign the new constitution into law on 5 June 1849, which has since been a Danish national holiday.
Frederick VII's father and immediate predecessor, Christian VIII, ruled Denmark from 1839 to 1848, had earlier been king of Norway until political turmoil of 1814 forced him to abdicate after a constitutional convention. Those who supported similar constitutional reforms in Denmark were disappointed with his refusal to acknowledge any limitations to his inherited absolute power, and had to wait for his successor to put through the reforms.[1]
 The Constitution of 1849 |
 The National Constitutional Assembly (painting by Constantin Hansen) (Frederiksborg Castle, Hillerød) |
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