Isted Lion

Danish war monument unveiled in 1862

The Isted Lion (or Flensburg Lion) (Istedløven or Flensborgløven; Flensburger Löwe or Idstedter Löwe) is a Danish war monument originally intended as a monument of the Danish victory over German minded Schleswig Holstein insurgents in the Battle of Isted (Idstedt) on 25 July 1850, during the First Schleswig War which was a civil war within the Danish Realm, although with troops from Prussia supporting the Schleswig Holstein insurgents. At its time it was the largest battle in Scandinavian history. Others perceived it more as a memorial for the Danish dead in the battle. Originally erected in Flensburg, Schleswig during still Danish rule, it was moved to Berlin by Prussian authorities after Prussian conquests in the Second Schleswig War of 1864 and remained there until 1945. It was returned to Denmark as a gift from the United States Army and was located at Søren Kierkegaards Plads in Copenhagen. In September 2011 it was returned to Flensburg.

Following the Danish victory over Schleswig Holstein in the First War of Schleswig (1848–51), Danish sculptor Herman Wilhelm Bissen was commissioned to create a monument to the ordinary Danish soldier. Although not an actual Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, his monument reflected a similar idea. This monument Landsoldaten (the Foot Soldier) was unveiled in Fredericia in 1858. At the following banquet, it was decided to start a public subscription of funds for a second monument, and one of the options discussed was a statue of General Frederik Rubeck Henrik Bülow, the commander of Fredericia during the German siege of the town. Through the intervention of politician Orla Lehmann, it was decided that the funds would instead be used for a monument commemorating the Battle of Isted. Like the previous monument, this commission was awarded to Bissen. The lion is derived from the arms of Denmark and Schleswig which contain three and two blue lions, respectively. In order to create a perfect image of a lion, Bissen travelled to Paris to study a lion held in the Jardin des Plantes and created a life size model before returning to Denmark. On the copy, the reliefs of the four Danish officers were replaced with a single image of the German officer Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia, in effect reversing the meaning of the original monument. Such a request was promptly delivered by Danish Foreign Minister John Christmas Møller. Møller said, "The removal of this sepulchral monument, which in this country is considered a national sanctuary, and its erection in a German military academy, caused a resentment which till this very day is still alive in wide circles of the Danish people." The wooden plinth was replaced with a bigger one made of brick, and the statue was reunited with its four reliefs for the first time in more than a century. The finished result was unveiled on the 150th anniversary of the battle, July 25, 2000, by Danish Minister for Culture Elsebeth Gerner Nielsen. In her speech, she expressed the wish that the statue would be returned to Flensburg. A committee in Fredericia, already the home of Bissen's other main work, the statue of the Foot Soldier, was lobbying for moving the monument there.

At the request of the city council of Flensburg, the Danish Government decided to return the Isted Lion to its original home in Flensburg. On 10 September 2011, it returned to the military cemetery, where it was first erected. The ceremony was attended by HRH Prince Joachim of Denmark.