May 26, 1932
In Denmark, a royal yacht was officially commissioned as an auxiliary ship of the Royal Danish Navy. His Danish Majesty’s Yacht (HDMY) Dannebrog (A540), which was named after the national flag of Denmark, had been built at the Naval Shipyard in Copenhagen. She was launched by Queen Alexandrine (1879-1952), who reigned as queen of Denmark from 1912 until the death of her husband King Christian X in 1947. The vessel replaced a longtime paddle steamer, likewise named Dannebrog, as the yacht for the Danish royal family.
Along with serving as a royal yacht, HDMY Dannebrog (A540) has been put to use when needed as a hospital ship. This vessel’s captains over the years have included Jørgen Hviid (1916-2001). As an officer in the Royal Danish Navy, Hviid played a prominent role in the Danish resistance movement that fought the German occupation of Denmark during World War II.
In the time since her commissioning, the Dannebrog has traveled more than 400,000 nautical miles (700,000 kilometers) and visited many of Denmark’s ports. She has also made trips to Greenland and the Faroe Islands, both of which — along with Denmark — form the sovereign state collectively known as the Kingdom of Denmark. In addition, the Dannebrog has visited numerous ports in other European countries and cruised the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas.
The 257-foot (78.4-meter)-long Dannebrog currently serves as both the royal yacht and a private residence for Queen Margrethe II (1940- ), who is a granddaughter of King Christian X and Queen Alexandrine and has reigned as Denmark’s monarch since 1972.
Photo Credit: Colin (licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
For more information on HDMY Dannebrog (A540), please check out https://www.kongehuset.dk/en/palaces/the-royal-yacht
Transportation History 
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