The King of the Cliffs at Møns Klint
Inside the white chalk cliffs of a Danish island lives a king who protects it. When enemies came, he rode out with his army, and drove them into the sea.
What was reported
Møns Klint is a line of tall white chalk cliffs on the Danish island of Møn, rising over 100 metres above the Baltic Sea. In Danish legend, a spirit called Klintekongen, the 'King of the Cliffs', lives inside them, in a great hall in the chalk.
He was said to protect the island: in one tale, when an enemy fleet approached, he made the forests look like an army, frightening them away. He also rides out with hounds at night, like the Wild Hunt, and some stories say he appears to warn of danger.
Explanations offered
The legends grew around a dramatic, beautiful landscape, and reflect local pride and old ideas of guardian spirits of a place. The cliffs are made of the remains of tiny sea creatures from about 70 million years ago, and they're slowly crumbling into the sea.
- When
- Told for centuries
- Where
- Møns Klint, Møn, Denmark
- Witnesses
- Danish folklore
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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