Schleswig, Schleswig-Holstein in the context of "Hedeby"

The Schlei (German: [ʃlaɪ] ; Danish: Slien or Slesvig Fjord) is a narrow inlet of the Baltic Sea in Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany. It stretches for approximately 20 miles (32 kilometers) from the Baltic near Kappeln and Arnis to the town of Schleswig. Along the Schlei are many small bays and swamps. It separates the Angeln peninsula to the north from the Schwansen peninsula to the south.

The important Viking settlement of Hedeby was located at the head of the firth (fjord), but was later abandoned in favor of the town of Schleswig. A museum has been built on the site, telling the story of the abandoned town.

The Danevirke or Danework (modern Danish spelling: Dannevirke; in Old Norse: Danavirki, in German: Danewerk, literally meaning earthwork of the Danes) is a system of Danish fortifications in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. This historically important linear defensive earthwork across the neck of the Cimbrian peninsula was initiated by the Danes in the Nordic Iron Age about AD 650. It was later expanded multiple times during Denmark's Viking Age and High Middle Ages. The Danevirke was last used for military purposes in 1864 during the Second War of Schleswig.

The Danevirke consists of several walls, trenches and the Schlei Barrier. The walls stretch for 30 km, from the former Viking trade centre of Hedeby near Schleswig on the Baltic Sea coast in the east to the extensive marshlands in the west of the peninsula. One of the walls (named Østervolden), between the Schlei and Eckernförde inlets, defended the Schwansen peninsula.

Osterby Man or the Osterby Head is a bog body of which only the skull and hair survived. It was discovered in 1948 by peat cutters to the southeast of Osterby, Germany. The hair is tied in a Suebian knot. The head is at the State Archaeological Museum at Gottorf Castle in Schleswig, Schleswig-Holstein.

Angeln (pronounced [ˈaŋl̩n] ; Danish: Angel) is a peninsula on the Baltic coast of Jutland, in the Bay of Kiel. It forms part of Southern Schleswig, the northernmost region of Germany. The peninsula is bounded on the north by the Flensburg Firth, which separates it from Sundeved and the island of Als in Denmark, and on the south by the Schlei, which separates it from Schwansen. The landscape is hilly, dotted with numerous lakes. The largest towns are Flensburg, Schleswig and Kappeln.

Angeln is notable for being the putative home of the Angles, a Germanic tribe that migrated to Great Britain during the Age of Migrations and founded the kingdoms of Mercia, Northumbria and East Anglia. The Angles would ultimately give their name to England.

Holstein-Gottorp (pronounced [ˈhɔlʃtaɪn ˈɡɔtɔʁp]) is the historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, also known as Ducal Holstein, that were ruled by the dukes of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp, a side branch of the German House of Oldenburg. Other parts of the duchies were ruled by the kings of Denmark.

The territories of Gottorp are located in present-day Denmark and Germany. The main seat of the dukes was Gottorf Castle in the city of Schleswig in the duchy of Schleswig. It is also the name of the ducal house, which ascended to several thrones. For this reason, genealogists and historians sometimes use the name of Holstein-Gottorp for related dynasties of other countries.

Southern Jutland (Danish: Sønderjylland; German: Südjütland) is the region south of the Kongeå in Jutland, Denmark and north of the Eider (river) in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. The region north of the Kongeå is called Nørrejylland, 'Northern Jutland'. Both territories had their own ting assemblies in the Middle Ages (in Viborg and Urnehoved). Southern Jutland is mentioned for the first time in the Knýtlinga saga.

In the 13th century South Jutland became a duchy. The first duke was Canute Lavard (Knud Lavard). In the late 14th century, House Schauenburg orchestrated a political coup led by the German prince Gerhard III. One of his most symbolic actions was renaming the duchy. 'South Jutland' was a distinctly Danish term, linking the region to North Jutland and reinforcing its connection to Danish identity and the Kingdom of Denmark. Gerhard aimed to sever these ties and anchor the duchy more firmly within the German cultural sphere. As a result, the region was renamed the Duchy of Schleswig. The new name derived from the city of Schleswig (Slesvig). Naming duchies after their principal cities was a common German ducal practice, as seen in examples such as the Duchies of Brunswick (Braunschweig), Mecklenburg, Magdeburg, Anhalt, and others. The dukes of Schleswig also became kings of Denmark.

Gottorf Castle (German: Schloss Gottorf, Danish: Gottorp Slot, Low German: Slott Gottorp) is a castle and estate in the city of Schleswig, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is one of the most important secular buildings in Schleswig-Holstein, and has been rebuilt and expanded several times in its over eight hundred years of history, changing from a medieval castle to a Renaissance fortress to a Baroque palace.

It is the ancestral home of the Holstein-Gottorp branch of the House of Oldenburg, from which emerged in the 18th century, among other things, four Swedish kings and several Russian Emperors. It is situated on an island in the Schlei, about 40 km from the Baltic Sea.