Skåne question

Skåne question, in medieval and modern Baltic and Scandinavian history, international problem involving control of the southern Scandinavian Peninsula province of Skåne, which affected the political and economic power relationships of the northern European maritime powers. Although contiguous with the Swedish polity, Skåne belonged to Denmark when the Middle Ages began (c. 500). The Danes thus controlled the Baltic–North Sea passageway, and this accounted in large part for Denmark’s great power status. Skåne was coveted...