Denmark Death Record Search Strategy 1814 - 1891

Parish Register, Burial: Church records
Church records in the cities of Denmark generally begin in the early 1600s and in the rural areas in the late 1600s or 1700s. These include records of birth or christening, marriage, and death or burial. After 1814 this information was recorded on standard forms, and duplicate books were made of all church records.

What you are looking for Church burial records are the best source for determining when a person died. They should include everyone in the community and identify the complete name of the deceased person.

Why go to the next record Church records often did not start until the early 1700s, and the early records of a town been lost may be lost or destroyed.

Probate Records: Probate records
Probate records were usually recorded shortly after a person died. They can help narrow down when a person died. They also list if a person's spouse preceded him or her in death. These records list all of the living heirs, so if some of the children's names are not included, they probably died before this probate record was made.

What you are looking for Probate records are a good source for determining when a person died. Probate records may not give a death date, but the date of the probate is usually the year of death.

Why go to the next record Not everyone had a probate record, and early probate records can be difficult to locate.

Muster Rolls: Military records
Military rolls in Denmark include muster rolls, which list the entire population of men for the country. These rolls list the male population from the time of their birth until they were about 35 to 40 years old. When a person died or had to be released from military duties for other reasons, notations were made. This includes death dates and places for those men who died young. These rolls were first recorded from about 1790 onward.

What you are looking for The muster roll will include a notation when a man died.

Why go to the next record Muster rolls were not kept until 1788 and only listed the male population under about 36 years of age.