Christianso

Christianso and its neighbour Frederiksoe were fortified as a naval base in 1684, and the fortress town built then survives almost unaltered: two round towers, curtain walls, barracks, a church, a commandant's house and small gardens on granite, joined by a footbridge, with a population of around ninety and no cars, no dogs and no private land, since the islands are administered directly by the defence ministry rather than as a municipality. This is the easternmost point of Denmark. The third island, Graesholm, is a closed bird reserve holding a large colony of guillemots and razorbills along with eider and gulls, visible from the fortress walls. Boats run daily in summer and the crossing takes about an hour.

History

Fishermen from Bornholm used the islands for shelter from the Middle Ages, and the name means "pea islands". The first permanent settlement came in 1684, when Denmark, needing a naval base in the central Baltic, built a fortress on Christiansø and Frederiksø, which served as a Danish navy outpost until 1855; Christiansø Church originally served the garrison, and the population peaked at 829, nearly all soldiers, at the census of 1810. Since the fortress closed there has been no working military installation, but the islands remain under the formal administration of the Ministry of Defence. Their appearance has changed very little in more than 300 years: thick granite walls with old cannon pointed seaward, the Store Tårn tower that has held the lighthouse for 200 years, and the Lille Tårn on Frederiksø, now a museum (Wikipedia, Ertholmene).

What's there

• An unaltered fortress town - towers, walls and barracks from 1684.
• Denmark's easternmost point - the far edge of the country.
• Graesholm seabird colony - guillemots and razorbills on the closed island.
• No cars and no private land - the islands run directly by the state.

When to go

May to September, when the boats run daily; winter service is minimal. A day trip works, but an overnight in the small inn gives the islands after the boat leaves, which is the better experience. Seabirds are best in early summer.

Good to know

Crossings are cancelled in rough weather and the return is fixed, so a day trip is on the boat's timetable. Accommodation is a single small inn and books out. There are no shops to speak of. Landing on the bird island is not permitted.

Nearby

Gudhjem and Svaneke on Bornholm are the departure ports.

Key facts