I visited this point as part of the IBRG DEDK21 expedition. Border enthusiasts have “must do” lists and it would be a surprise if the Rudbøl/Rosenkranz Border Crossing was not in the top 10 of most lists. Complex borders that cut through streets are a favorite.
The border runs for 130m right in the middle of the road. The residents to the east of the road live in Germany, and their neighbours on the west reside in Denmark. Rudbøl Sø is also divided. I’m sure that the locals get used to visitors walking in the middle of the road following one marker to another.
Various explanations exist to explain the reasons for such a strange border configuration. One notes it was the residents on the western side of the road who were determined to belong to Denmark when the border was drawn following the 1920 plebiscite. Another explanation was to allow fisherman and reed cutters from both communities access to the lake. Every 10 years the buoy in the Lake is checked and replaced if necessary. At the end of the second day we stay in the Rudbøl Grænsekro hotel in Rudbøl only a few hundred meters north of the border. For the non Danish members of the group we had our first introduction to a Danish folk evening, which by all all accounts was very local to Southern Jutland therefore the urban Copenhagen dwellers were also clueless. A good evening was had by all.
Extract from the 1920 treaty
Photos from our visit
Border Markers
All the border markers in these photos and elsewhere on the Danish/German border are denoted as follows: D = Denmark and DR (and sometimes with an additional P) = Prussia. which was the correct notation at the time of the creation of this border in 1920.
Elsewhere on German borders (say between Germany and Austria or the Czech Republic D = Deutschland), but not here. In 2014 there was a discussion at the 10 yearly border commission to update the lettering so that Denmark became DK and Germany would become D. This was however rejected on the grounds of cost and new replacement border markers remain as indicated in the 1920 treaty document on the left.
Evening Celebrations
Great fun was had at the local south Jutland folk evening (lørdagsbal).
COVID Closures
Along with other border crossings this border was closed in early 2021
Date of Visit: 25 September 2021
Barry's Borderpoints 
Excellent work, again again 👍🇩🇰 very good description of one of THE highlights of the DE-DK border.. congrats!👍🍸
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