Augustenborg (German: Augustenburg) is a town on Als in Sønderborg municipality, Region Syddanmark in Denmark. The town lies at the head of Als Fjord. To the east is the Little Belt. Ferry service connects Augustenborg to the island of Funen from the nearby town of Fynshav.
Augustenborg is also a suburb of Malmö, Sweden.
History
The town grew up around Augustenborg Palace which was established by Ernest Gunther, a member of the ducal house of Schleswig-Holstein (its branch of Sønderborg) and a cadet of the royal house of Denmark, in the years after 1651. The palace, and the town consequently, received the name in honor of Ernest's wife Auguste, herself also from a branch of dukes of Schleswig-Holstein.
The palace became the chief seat of their line which used the name Augustenborg as its branch name. Later, a Danish king made the head of that line specifically Duke of Augustenborg. They grew in relative prominence in late 18th century, and in the 19th century Schleswig-Holstein Question, being the symbols of pro-German nationalistic movement in Schleswig-Holstein. The area was annexed by Prussia in 1864 from Denmark, but was returned in 1920 following a plebiscite.
The Augustenborg male line died out in 1931, upon the death of Albert, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, a grandson of queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. Their female-line descendant today holds the throne of Sweden.
Attractions
Augustenborg Palace
A large part of Augustenborg Palace is currently used as a mental institution. There is an exhibit about the palace, the town and its ducal history in the building's entryway. The palace church is open to the public in the summertime. There are periodic tours given.
Augustenborg municipality
Until January 1, 2007Augustenborg was also a municipality (Danish, kommune) in South Jutland County on the island of Als off the east coast of the Jutland peninsula in south Denmark. The municipality covered an area of 53 km², and had a total population of 6,577 (2005). Its latest mayor was Åse Nygaard. The site of its municipal council was the town of Augustenborg.
Augustenborg municipality ceased to exist due to Kommunalreformen ("The Municipality Reform" of 2007). It was combined with former Broager, Gråsten, Nordborg, Sundeved, Sydals, and Sønderborg municipalities to form the new Sønderborg municipality. This created a municipality with an area of 499 km² and a total population of 49,886 (2005).
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