Isted Lion
sculpture by Herman Wilhelm Bissen in Flensburg, Germany
The Isted Lion (or Flensburg Lion) (Danish: Istedløven or Flensborgløven; German: Flensburger Löwe or Idstedter Löwe) is a Danish war monument originally intended as a monument of the Danish victory over German-minded Schleswig-Holstein insurgents in the Battle of Isted (Idstedt) on 25 July 1850, during the First Schleswig War which was a civil war within the Danish Realm, although with troops from Prussia supporting the Schleswig-Holstein insurgents. At its time it was the largest battle in Scandinavian history.
Others perceived it more as a memorial for the Danish dead in the battle.
Originally erected in Flensburg, Schleswig during Danish rule, it was moved to Berlin by Prussian authorities after Prussian conquests in the Second Schleswig War of 1864 and remained there until 1945. It was returned to Denmark as a gift from the United States Army and was located at Søren Kierkegaards Plads in Copenhagen. In September 2011, it was returned to Flensburg.
History
Flensburg
Following the Danish victory over Schleswig-Holstein in the First War of Schleswig (1848–51), Danish sculptor Herman Wilhelm Bissen was commissioned to create a monument to the ordinary Danish soldier. Although not an actual Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, his monument reflected a similar idea. This monument Landsoldaten (the Foot Soldier) was unveiled in Fredericia in 1858.
At the following banquet, it was decided to start a public subscription of funds for a second monument, and one of the options discussed was a statue of General Frederik Rubeck Henrik Bülow, the commander of Fredericia during the German siege of the town.
The public source identifies “Isted Lion” as sculpture by Herman Wilhelm Bissen in Flensburg, Germany. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Isted, Lion and sculpture.
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Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jan 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q538360. Authority coordinates are 54.785, 9.429. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1850, 1864, 1945 and 2011.
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This entry incorporates text from “Isted Lion” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.