Balthasar Petersen (next to Tønder Cultural School, Østergade 63)
Balthasar was born on 7 May 1703 as the son of lace merchant Peter Petersen in Tønder. He received his education first at the local Latin school in Smedegade and then at the University of Jena (Germany). After being a tutor in various places, he came again to Jena. Here he studied theology, philosophy, law and medicine. In 1729 he became a priest in Læk (Germany), later in Sønderborg and in 1746 came to Tønder, where he was a priest until his death.
In the year 1752, Balthasar Petersen gathered some young men in his home to train them to become priests. He himself educated the young people.
The seminary began in October 1788, the year after Balthasar Petersen's death. The first six teachers graduated in 1791. Until 1829, a total of 1152 teachers had graduated from the seminary. In 1829, the city took over the seminary and the state in 1847.
Provost Balthasar Petersen died in Tønder on 1 January 1787.
Hans Adolph Brorson (Tønder Christ Church)
Hans Adolph Brorson was born on 20 June 1694 in Randerup, where his father was a priest. Brorson became a student from Ribe in 1712, he studied theology at Copenhagen University, and studied more natural sciences, history and foreign literature at Borchs Kollegium in KBH 1715.
In 1721 he took the theological official exam and the following year became a priest in Randerup. In 1729 he was employed as 3 and Danish priest in Tønder, where he worked until 1737, when he became diocesan provost in Ribe and in 1741 bishop.
He Adolph Brorson died in Ribe on 3 June 1764.
The artist Gunnar Hammerich created the bronze bust of Brorson at Tønder Christ Church. Hammerich was born in 1893 and educated at the art academy.
Between 1918 and 1934 he created a series of statuettes, which are distinguished by their lively and rhythmic movement patterns. His large figures from the years around 1940 are restrained and secure in form, calm and harmonious in attitude, but they do not have the present life of the busts and statuettes.
His home on Ærø today functions as a museum, where there are also a number of effects, collected in the Tønder area such as Tønder's old town pump from Torvet.
He died in Ærøskøbing on 23 May 1977, where he is also buried.
The bronze bust of the hymn poet HA Brorson is a gift from the New Carlsberg Foundation.
Iron sculpture by Robert Jacobsen (is located at the main entrance to Tønder Hallerne.)
Robert Julius Tommy Jacobsen, born 4 June 1912 in Copenhagen.
He was a Danish artist who was self-taught as a sculptor and graphic artist. He is represented with sculptures in museums and public squares all over the world.
He belonged to the group of abstract artists around the Parisian gallery owner Denise Rene Jacobsen.
He was a professor at the Akademie der Bildenden Künste, Munich (1962-82) and at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.
He dies in 1993 at his country home.
His first sculptures are in wood and stone, but after 1949 Robert worked with iron sculptures. Robert worked closely with his son-in-law Bernard Léauté, who was also involved in the creation of the sculptures in Tørskind Grusgrav.
Today, Robert's distinctive art has long since achieved classic status. It is therefore a great pleasure that we can also mention Tønder as the home of one of his significant works.
Martin Hammerich (in front of Tønderhus on the corner of Kongevej and Jomfrustien)
Martin Hammerich (1883-1940) was a Danish civil servant. His ambitions and life's subjects were linked to Danish identity, especially in connection with the Southern Jutland issue, where Northern Schleswig became part of Germany after 1864. He worked for the preservation of Danishness in Southern Jutland and the reunification of Northern Schleswig with Denmark. After reunification, he had an influence on Danish legislation in Southern Jutland and the border relocation between Denmark and Germany. His memorial with the bronze medal on granite was made by his brother the sculptor Gunnar Hammerich. The stone bears the inscription 'Strong in purpose, and gentle in mind, he put all his work in, for Denmark's sake, to benefit.'
The Golden Horn Girl(Ribe Landevej, Tønder)
Kjerstine Svendsdatter was the girl who found the first golden horn in a field near Gallehus.
On Saturday evening, July 20, 1639, a young maid from Østerby went to Tønder, at Gallehus she tripped over something sticking out of the ground. Thinking it was a root, she lifted it up and saw that it was a horn. It was brought to the sheriff at Møgeltønderhus, who had it appraised by a goldsmith in Tønder. He was able to state that the horn was pure gold, and it was therefore handed over to the king, Christian IV. As a reward, Kjerstine Svendsdatter received a red skirt.
Artist:
Frederik Grube was born on 17 June 1922 in Hockerup south of Aabenraa.
Frederik was trained as a tailor, but has been carving wood since childhood, and in 1954 he threw away needle and thread and became a wood carver. It turned into a myriad of figures and reliefs. After experiments with the use of chainsaws in 1991, things took off.
The cake man (The square in Tønder)
Right up until the 19th century, the city's cake or shame support occupied a central place in the cityscape in a large number of northern European cities.
Kagen/Kagmanden was a walled elevation where offenders were "kagstrøget" - which means Chained to a pillar of shame and flogged by the executioner, after which he lost his civil rights and had to leave the city community.
In the old days, it was often quite banal violations of the law that led to "kagstrygning". In 1813, a cobbler's apprentice was caught stealing apples in Tønder. As punishment, he must be flogged in public and stand on the gallows for an hour. However, in this case, mercy prevailed over justice. The sentence was changed to 3 days imprisonment on bread and water.
In some cases, a 'Kagmand' - a carved wooden figure - was placed on the pubic support itself, which was supposed to remind citizens to obey the law.
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