September 13 - Copenhagen

I heard that the museums in Denmark can be expensive so found out the free day for the nearby Copenhagen History Museum. The breakfast place we were hoping to eat at was closed so we continued the half block to the museum. And noticed there was a cafe there with amazing smells wafting from the building. So we started the morning with a Danish breakfast of cheese, yogurt, blueberry chocolate cake, and a fresh bun. I heard that gluten sensitive people can sometimes eat the bread in Europe so I’ve been trying it out in small quantities. So far, so good!

The museum was definitely worth the price of admission! Actually, it was quite well done, with very creative uses of technology overlaying the older parts of the museum. 

The real shocker for the day came in our visit to the Grand Synagogue. The security was intense, with two policemen, ID checks, and reservation confirmations. Then we wove past the large plates of bullet-proof glass (artistically etched by an Israeli artist) into the sanctuary. There has been a shooting there and one of the young teachers was killed, hence the memorial play structure built in his honor and pictured below.) 

The synagogue was white with lots of polished gold trim and looked just like a church! (Which wasn’t too surprising since it was designed by a church architect and the Danish Jews were actually anxious to convince their non-Jewish neighbors they weren’t so different from them. The plaque even labels the rabbi as a “priest.”)  Even the pews had little doors on them. I just remembered from some church tours that this may have had a function of helping to keep the pews warmer in cold weather.

The first of many surprises during that tour was learning that the Jews were not welcome in Denmark. It wasn’t until around the early 17th century that there were any, and that was because King Christian IV was in financial trouble and invited the Sephardic Jews in as money lenders. They were only minimally allowed to participate in Danish society and were restricted to just a couple of careers such as banking. They even had to apply to the king to get married. After the king stiffed the Jews and didn’t pay back the loans, almost all of the Jews left. 

A few Jews migrated to Denmark after they liberalized some of their laws in the 1840s, allowing Jews to build a synagogue, but only if the services were all in Danish! By the start of WWII, there were still only 7,000 Jews in Denmark. 

Much has been made of how the Danes helped the Jews to safety in Sweden. But this was because of Niels Bohr’s pressure on the government, which was collaborating with the Nazis. And when they did help, the Danish fisherman charged the Jews exorbitant rates to transport them — equivalent to four months salary. Yes, there was some risk involved, but they definitely took advantage of the situation!

Later, I asked our guide, who was remarkably candid, about the story of the Danish king protecting the Jews by wearing, and encouraging others to where, a yellow star of David on their clothing when this was mandated by the Nazis. It turns out this was nothing more than a fairy tale. The Nazis never required this. Our knowledge of this was apparently based on a children’s book!

All of this has me reflecting on the differences between the Danes and the Dutch. The Dutch welcomed people of all beliefs very early on because it was good for business. And Jews have thrived there for hundreds of years. While the Danes are now very progressive in many areas from the environment to a broad safety net to a healthy balance of work and leisure, much of this has only been in the last 50 years or so.