Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Royal Danish Navy - 500th Anniversary

Date of Issue: June 01, 2010
Design: Michael Jensen
Engraver: Martin Mörck and Bertil Skov Jørgensen
Paper: Self-adhesive
Method of printing: Intaglio/Offset
Format: 29 x 39 mm

Post Danmark issued set of five stamps featuring naval vessels to commemorate 500 years of the Royal Danish Navy (1510 - 2010). I thank Ms. Mette Johnson, Denmark for preparing this stunning cover with excellent postmarks.

Warships are a bit like fast cars and aeroplanes. They bring out the boy in most men. They are all about speed, excitement, adventure and technology – lots of technology. This has been the case throughout the 500 years that the Royal Danish Navy’s ships have sailed the seas, all the way from the carvel Maria, built around 1510, to the frigate Iver Huitfeldt, to be launched in late 2010.

5,50 DKK - the Frigate Iver Huitfeldt - the first in a series of three frigates commissioned for the Royal Danish Navy designed to facilitate the Navy’s participation in international operations. Construction is underway at Odense Steel Shipyard, and the vessel is expected to be launched this year.

6,50 DKK - Niels Iuel - From 1899 to 1908, three small ironclad vessels were built to patrol coastal waters. The keel was laid for a fourth in the series in 1914, but the outbreak of the First World War delayed completion, as the armour had been ordered from Germany. After the War, the political will was lacking to complete the construction of a proper warship and the Niels Iuel became a type of entertainment and reception ship instead, albeit still technically classed as an artillery vessel. On 29 August 1943, while at anchor in Isefjord, Niels Iuel was attacked by German planes during the internment of Danish defence forces. The ship returned fire, but was later run aground by its own crew. The Germans went on to use the vessel as a cadet ship under the name Nordland until the crew scuppered it in Eckernförde Fjord in 1945.

8,50 DKK - the ironclad warship Tordenskjold - launched in 1880, the first steel-built Danish warship and the first to be fitted with electric lighting. The main armament consisted of a single cannon, the largest ever mounted on a Nordic warship. The 35.5 cm gun was capable of firing every 10 minutes, and was so powerful that it shook the whole ship.

9,50 DKK - the screw frigate Jylland - In the 19th century, steam was introduced as a means of propulsion for warships, which at that time were still made of wood. It became technically possible to install steam engines on ships around 1840, when the screw propeller superseded the old-fashioned side-mounted paddle wheel. Transitional hybrids emerged at the time, combining sail and steam. The last ship of this type was the screw frigate Jylland, which was launched in 1860 – the same year that the first iron warships saw the light of day.

16,00 DKK - the kravellen Maria - Maria was built during the reign of King Hans, who held an unusually deep interest in warships.The carvel was a large, three-masted vessel specially designed for naval warfare. Its unique feature was the gun ports that allowed several rows of cannon to be fitted on the broadside. Gun ports were a new invention that probably spread from France to the rest of Europe.

Source: Post Danish website.

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