What you need to know for the test
- Denmark received its first democratic constitution on 5 June 1849, signed by King Frederik VII.
- Grundloven is Denmark's constitution and the country's supreme law – a fairly short text with a total of 89 sections.
- The constitution has been amended in 1866, 1915, 1920 and 1953. The current constitution dates from 1953.
- The constitution can only be amended if both the Folketing (the Danish parliament) and the population, through a referendum, support the amendment.
- The constitution prohibits censorship: the state may not require books and newspapers to be approved before they are published.
- Freedom of speech is exercised under responsibility to the courts – for example, defamation can be punished.
- The constitution also protects personal liberty, the inviolability of the home, the right to property and the privacy of one's private life.
- Every year, 5 June is celebrated as Grundlovsdag (Constitution Day) with political meetings all over the country.
Grundloven of 1849 – Denmark's constitution
Danmarks Riges Grundlov (the Constitutional Act of the Kingdom of Denmark) is Denmark's constitution. It lays down the fundamental rules for the state's form of government, and it guarantees the population a number of fundamental rights and freedoms. The constitution is the supreme law in Denmark: the Folketing and the government must respect it and may not do anything that conflicts with it.
Before 1849, Denmark had for almost 200 years (since 1660-61) been ruled by absolute monarchs on the basis of Kongeloven (the King's Law) of 1665. In March 1848, the citizens of Copenhagen demanded a free constitution, and King Frederik VII chose to comply with the demand. On 5 June 1849 he signed Denmark's first free constitution. The king's power was now shared with elected representatives, and Denmark got a parliament with two legislative chambers, Folketinget and Landstinget, which together were called Rigsdagen. You can read more about the period leading up to 1849 in Danish history before 1849.
The constitution also introduced the separation of powers into a legislative, an executive and a judicial power, which are meant to check and limit each other. At first, however, only men over 30 could vote. Women and servants did not gain the right to vote until the constitution of 1915. Read more about the form of government in Democracy and government by the people.
The political civil liberties
The constitution protects three rights known as the political civil liberties, because they are essential preconditions for a democracy:
- Freedom of speech: the right to freely express one's opinions and communicate one's thoughts to others.
- Freedom of assembly: the right to gather freely and collectively express one's opinions.
- Freedom of association: the right to form associations and to be a member of them.
Citizens can thus speak out, hold meetings and form associations without the state having to approve it in advance. The constitution prohibits censorship. This means the government cannot require that, for example, books and newspapers be approved before they are published.
Every freedom, however, is exercised under responsibility. Freedom of speech applies under responsibility to the courts: anyone who violates another person's honour (defamation) can be punished and ordered to pay compensation. Following repeated public Quran burnings, it has also become prohibited to publicly treat certain religious scriptures 'improperly' (inappropriately). An association that seeks to achieve its aims through violence or other unlawful means can be declared illegal and ordered dissolved. But the limits are wide in Denmark, and only the courts can decide whether the limits of the constitutionally guaranteed rights have been exceeded. The civil liberties thereby protect the individual citizen and the minority against the majority abusing its power.
Freedom of religion and the folkekirke
Freedom of religion was written into the constitution in 1849 as one of the fundamental civil liberties. It means that everyone is free to practise the religion they wish, free to change religion or to choose not to be a believer at all. All citizens have the same civil and political rights regardless of religious faith. Only the monarch is not covered by freedom of religion: the constitution stipulates that the king must belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church – read more under The royal house.
At the same time, the constitution establishes that the Evangelical Lutheran Church is the Danish folkekirke (the national church), which is supported by the state. Only members of the folkekirke pay church tax. Read more about the church and holidays in Culture and traditions.
Privacy and equality before the law
The constitution limits the state's ability to interfere in the individual citizen's private life. It protects personal liberty, the inviolability of the home, the right to property and the privacy of one's private life. The constitution also contains rules prohibiting discrimination: no distinction may be made, on grounds of faith or descent, in citizens' rights or in their duty to fulfil ordinary civic obligations.
The constitution also gives citizens the right to certain public services. Children have the right to free education in the folkeskole (the public primary and lower secondary school), and citizens have the right to a certain amount of public assistance if they meet the conditions of the law – see The welfare society. It is ultimately the independent courts that assess whether the Folketing and the government respect these rights; read more in The legal system. Since 1992, the European Convention on Human Rights has also been part of Danish law and supplements the constitution's freedoms and human rights.
Constitutional amendments and Constitution Day
Amending the constitution has been made very difficult, because it is meant to ensure political stability and protect citizens' fundamental rights. A constitutional amendment requires the approval of both the Folketing and the population through a referendum. Among other things, this ensures that a chance political majority cannot strip a minority of its rights or introduce a completely different form of government.
The constitution has been amended in 1866, 1915, 1920 and 1953. With the 1915 amendment, women gained the right to vote. In the 1953 referendum, Landstinget was abolished, so that the Folketing became the only legislative chamber; the constitution also came to apply to Greenland, the parliamentary principle was written into the constitutional text, and the throne could now be inherited by a woman. Read more about elections and referendums in Elections and parties.
5 June is called Grundlovsdag (Constitution Day) and is celebrated every year as a national day of festivity with political meetings all over the country. If you want to continue your preparation, you can use the guide to the indfødsretsprøven 2026 or look up key terms in the glossary.