@saab,
saab ,
as you no doubt know , the Kingdom of Denmark stopped just outside the city limits of Hamburg until 1864 .
Altona ( which is now part of Hamburg ) was the southern-most city of Denmark .
Quote: Altona (German pronunciation: [ˈaltona]) is the westernmost urban borough (Bezirk) of the German city state of Hamburg, on the right bank of the Elbe river. From 1640 to 1864 Altona was under the administration of the Danish monarchy. Altona was an independent city until 1937. In 2006 the population was 243,972.
History
Founded in 1535 as a village of fishermen in then Holstein-Pinneberg, in 1664 Altona, since 1640 a part of Holstein-Glückstadt, received city rights from Danish King Frederik III, then ruling in personal union as duke of Holstein. Until 1864, Altona was one of the Danish monarchy's most important harbour towns. The railroad from Altona to Kiel, the Hamburg-Altona–Kiel railway (Danish: Christian VIII Østersø Jernbane), was opened in 1844.
Because of the severe restrictions on the number of Jews allowed to live in Hamburg (with the exception of the period of 1811–15,) until 1864,[1] a major Jewish community developed in Altona starting in 1611, when Count Ernest of Schaumburg and Holstein-Pinneberg granted first permanent staying permits to Ashkenazic Jews.[2] Members did business both in Hamburg and in Altona itself. All that remains after the Nazi Holocaust during World War II are the Jewish cemeteries, but in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, the community was a major center of Jewish life and scholarship. The Holstein-Pinneberg and later Danish Holstein had lower taxes and placed fewer civil impositions on their Jewish community than did the government of Hamburg.
The wars between Denmark and the German Confederation, such as the First Schleswig War (1848–1851) and the Second War of Schleswig (February 1864 – October 1864) followed by the Gastein Convention (1864), led to Denmark's cession of the Duchies of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg to Prussian and Austrian administration, respectively. With all of Schleswig-Holstein Altona became part of the Kingdom of Prussia in 1867.
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Sunday Morning Fishmarket in Altona
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a little story to explain the difficulties that existed between Altona and Hamburg in the " olden " days .
In about 1850 an old man sits on a stone just outside the city gates of Hamburg and cries bitterly .
God is visiting the planet on that day and sees the old man crying .
He steps up to him and says : " my dear man , stop crying ! I am God and I am sure I can help you . "
The old man says : " dear God , I am from Altona and want to visit my daughter in Hamburg , but the guards won't let me enter the city . "
God shakes his head and says : " I may be God , but even I cannot help you ! "
