On 1st October, 1989, eleven same-sex couples became the first in the world to have their relationships legally recognised.

Earlier that year the government of Denmark has passed legislation that recognised ‘registered partnerships’ that brought same-sex couples closer to (but not equal with) heterosexual marriage. For example, adoption was still out of the question – even when it was one partner seeking to adopt the children of their partner.

The first couple to be married by the deputy mayor at Copenhagen’s City Hall were Axel and Eigel Axgil, long-time gay activists. Originally Axil Lundahl-Madsen and Eigil Eskilden they had combined their first names to form the surname Axgil when they got engaged – in 1950. After a 39 year wait they finally received legal recognition of their union.

Ten other couples undertook the civil ceremony on that day. The ceremony was identical to that used for heterosexuals apart from ‘registered partnership’ replacing the word ‘marriage. It would be a further ten years before same sex couples were allowed to adopt the children of their partners and a further eleven years before they could adopt other children.