DENMARK. 



665 



Statistics. Sixth, with his usual zeal for letters, constituted it ; in 

 ^■""V""' 1746, a Royal Society. It has proved itself not un- 

 worthy the royal protection, having given to the world 

 several publications which tend to throw considerable 

 light on the annals of Denmark. The Academy of the 

 Fine Arts was founded in 1 754 by Frederic the Fifth. 

 This academy consists of a president, a director, eight 

 professors of painting, sculpture, and architecture, and 

 four teachers of design, and a secretary. The pu- 

 pils will sometimes amount to 800, and are all taught 

 gratis. A Commission of Antiquities has also been es- 

 tablished, which has published two volumes of its Trans- 

 actions, under the title of Antiquarian Annals, publish- 

 ed by the Royal Society in Copenhagen for the Preserva- 

 tion of Antiquities ; one of which appeared in 1812, and 

 the other in 1813. 

 literature, The literature of Denmark cannot aspire to much 

 &c antiquity, having followed, as usual in other European 



countries, the introduction of Christianity. In the 12th 

 century flourished the historian Saxo Grammaticus, 

 whose History of Denmark abounds, indeed, with fa- 

 ble, but whose style is remarkably classical for that 

 age. His cotemporary, or predecessor, Sveno, is more 

 authentic and concise, and is esteemed the father of 

 Danish history. In astronomy, Denmark has to boast 

 of Tycho Brahe, one of the most celebrated names in 

 that department of science. The Danish literati have 

 particularly turned their researches to the history and 

 antiquities of the north. Among those who have great- 

 ly distinguished themselves in this branch of learning, 

 must be mentioned the names of Maersius, Holberg, 

 Olaus Wormius, Pontopidan ; and more lately, those of 

 Langebek, Schoening, and Suhm. The Danes have 

 been by no means deficient in the study of natural his- 

 tory. The Flora Danica, begun by Oeder under the 

 royal auspices, in 1 762, and afterwards conducted by 

 Muller, is one of the most magnificent and valuable 

 works of the kind. And the collection of rare shells, 

 in two volumes folio, engraved and coloured by Regen- 

 fuss, at the king's expence, is the most splendid work 

 of that description ever produced by any nation. In 

 1761, Frederic the Fifth, with a view of extending 

 the bounds of knowledge, sent four persons, eminently 

 versed in different branches of science, to Arabia ; of 

 which curious and interesting journey, Niebuhr, the 

 only survivor, has published a much esteemed account. 



CHAP. XII. 



Language, Manners, Customs, fyc. 



Language. The language of Denmark is a dialect of the Teuto- 

 nic, but French and High Dutch are spoken at court; 



and the English is also very generally learned amongst Statistics, 

 the higher classes. In their persons, the Danes are, "*——/-—• ( 

 in general, tall and robust ; their features and com- 

 plexion are good ; and their hair of a flaxen, yellow, or 

 red colour. The women are said to be rather clumsy in 

 their shape, and awkward in their dress. The food of 

 the lower classes consists chiefly of oat cakes, rye bread, 

 fish, cheese, &c. But the tables of persons of condition 

 are plentifully covered with every luxury. Drunken- 

 ness and excess are the vices to which the Danes are 

 most addicted. The character and manners of the in- Manner?, 

 habitants of every country depend much on the nature &c. 

 of the government ; and those of the Danes have un- 

 dergone successive changes, corresponding with the 

 changes in their political situation. Before the go- 

 vernment was made hereditary and absolute, the no- 

 bility and gentry lived in great splendour and affluence. 

 Their country-seats were magnificent, and their hospi- 

 tality unbounded ; and when the states were annually 

 assembled, they met their sovereign with retinues as 

 numerous and brilliant as his own. Now they are fal- 

 len from that height of insolence and power ; their 

 condition is low, and they diminish daily in number 

 and credit. Molesworth affirms, that in his time their 

 estates scarcely paid the taxes imposed on them, which 

 obliged them to grind the faces of their poor tenants, 

 to get an overplus for their own subsistence. The 

 common people, he says, are a poor mean-spirited das- 

 tardly race, totally degenerated from the warlike dis- 

 position of their ancestors ; equally addicted to fraud 

 themselves, and suspicious of it in others. Lord Moles- 

 worth, it is probable, has taken the most unfavourable 

 view of the Danish character ; but there is no doubt 

 it has been altered much for the worse by the revolu- 

 tion, which converted their free government into a 

 despotic monarchy. The ameliorations, however, which 

 their patriotic sovereigns have for a long time past 

 been gradually introducing, have produced a sensible, 

 improvement on the Danish character. Extravagance 

 of every kind is still a very general disposition of the 

 Danes. The peasantry are poor and dirty; but the 

 superior ranks differ little from those of the same class . 

 in the other countries of Europe. See Mod. Univ. 

 Hist. vol. xxxii. Busching's Historical and Geographi- 

 cal Magazine. Molesworth's Account of Denmark. Ro- 

 ger's Lettres sur le Danmarc 1764 — 1768. Wraxall's 

 Tour. Andrews' History of the Revolution of Den- 

 mark, with an Account of the Present State of the King- 

 dom and People. William's Rise, Progress, and Pre- 

 sent State of the Northern Governments. Coxe's Tra- 

 vels Tableau des Etats Danois, par Catteau. Tableau 

 de la Mer Baltic, par Catteau, &c. Milburn's Oriental . 

 Commerce, vol. i. (0) 



Beiwity 



DEN 

 DENSITY. See Astronomy, Atmosphere, Hy- 

 drodynamics, and Mechanics. 

 Dentition. DENTARIA, a genus of plants of the class Tetrady- 

 V """"Y~*"' namia, and order Siliquosae. See Botany, p. 263. 



DENTELLA, a genus of plants of the class Pentan- 

 dria, and order Monogynia. See Botany, p. 146. 



DENTIDIA, a genus of plants of tfie class Didyna- 

 mia, and order Gymnospermia. See Botany, p. 356. 

 DENTITION. See Surgery, and Teeth. 



VOL. VII. PART U. 



DEN' 

 DENYS, St, Sanctus Dionysius, an ancient town 

 of France, in the department of the Seine, is situated 

 on the banks of the Crould, on an agreeable and fertile 

 plain tear the Seine. This town rose into notice, in 

 consequence of the celebrated abbey of Benedictines of 

 the congregation of St Maur, which was founded over 

 the tomb, and in honour of St Denys and his compa- 

 nions, by King Clothar, A. D. 600. This abbey was 

 successively improved by the kings Dagobert, Pepin, 

 4 p 



Deny* 



