Bornholm: the island Denmark (almost) forgot to liberate
09 May 2025
As the Danes celebrated the country's liberation from Nazi Germany after 4 May 1945, they forgot one crucial thing – Bornholm. On this island, located 150 kilometres from the rest of Denmark, south of the Swedish coast in the Baltic Sea, the German commander Gerhard von Kamptz and his approximately 12,000 soldiers refused to surrender to the Soviet forces.
They were following orders to hold out and assist the growing number of German soldiers and refugees fleeing the advancing Soviets, and only to surrender to the Western Allies. However, those allies never came as they were busy liberating France and other parts of Western Europe.
Who had not forgotten Bornholm? The Soviets. On 7 May, the islanders woke to the sound of bombs and warplanes with red stars in the sky. The Red Army had come to "liberate" them with two days of air raids that destroyed over 800 homes and killed 10 civilians.
When Germany finally left the island on 9 May, the Soviet troops landed and simply stayed. The island’s location could be used as a negotiation piece. What started as 100 Russian soldiers quickly rose to 8,000-9,000. Already worn down by Nazi rule, Bornholm now faced a new occupation – a similar scenario to other Soviet "liberated" territories at the time.
According to reports, the Soviet soldiers engaged in looting, heavy drinking, and sexual assaults while on the island – much of what we hear about the Russian activities in the war against Ukraine today. It was not until the following year that the Danish government began negotiations with the Soviets on their departure, and as of April 5, 1946, the last troops left.
 | Erica Bernsten Strange Each year on 4 May, we Danes light a candle in our windows to mark the end of wartime blackouts – a quiet symbol of regained freedom. But even now, most of us seem to forget that Bornholm wasn’t free until nearly a year later. This lights their candles on 5 April. How the Danish government could 'forget' to liberate the island is something historians still puzzle over. At the time, the Soviets were seen as one of the allies – just not a Western one. So the Danish government was just very hesitant. The fear of being left behind still lingers. For years, military presence on the island has been sparse, and non-existent on weekends. With tensions rising in the Baltic region and Russian forces active just across the sea, Bornholm’s strategic location in the middle of the Baltic Sea once again places it at risk of becoming a target of Russian aggression. That is finally changing. The government recently announced a permanent regiment of up to 900 troops for the island, mirroring Sweden’s rearming of the island of Gotland years ago. While I hope it is never needed, remembering history means not repeating its mistakes. |
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