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The raging of the elements
There is something defiant about Agger. For centuries, both the sea and sand drift have made it troublesome to live in this place. With each storm, the sea gradually claimed a piece of land. Residents had to yield to the pressure, and in the best case, they managed to take their houses and all their belongings with them when they had to move eastward.
Even the church had to be moved away from the coast. It was only with extensive coastal protection that these recurring intrusions into the land were stopped. Additionally, sand drift made it increasingly difficult to cultivate the land. The population had to turn to fishing, which became the livelihood of the people of Agger for centuries.
Today, Agger is a popular tourist destination with many summer guests. From here, you have a great opportunity to experience what the nature in the Thy National Park offers: To the south lies Agger Tange with its important bird protection area, where you can see thousands of ducks and waders year-round.
If you head north, past Flade Sø, the heathland opens up and stretches all the way up to Hanstholm.
Behind the dikes and breakwaters
The west coast is subject to the whims of the weather and the fury of the sea. This is particularly true of Agger. Large areas around the town have been flooded during storms, and on old maps you can find the names of villages like Nabe and Bollum, which are now engulfed by the sea.
Early attempts to secure the coast had little effect. This changed when the Danish Coastal Authority, the predecessor to the Danish Coastal Directorate, began to build dikes and breakwaters.
In total, 29 breakwaters were constructed around Agger between 1899 and 1908. The southernmost breakwater, number 72, is unusually long at nearly 800 meters and is often referred to as Lange Mole. Today, it is popular among surfers and anglers. The northernmost breakwater, number 96, is located off the northwestern corner of Flade Sø, a few kilometers to the north.
The breakwaters are perpendicular to the coast and are made of heavy concrete elements. They were cast in the Black Houses, located about 200 meters north of this sign. At that time, the houses were red and also housed workshops and sheds for the locomotives that transported the elements to the breakwaters.
The railway had a siding to a loading site at the bottom of Krik Vig. Here, cement and stone were unloaded from cargo ships and transported to Agger. The railway tracks have long been removed, but one can easily imagine their course when standing between the Black Houses.
Together with the breakwaters, dikes were built along the coast, like the one that rises behind this sign. The dikes were planted with sand couch grass that could hold onto the sand. The breakwaters and dikes have prevented the worst disasters, but the sea continues to gnaw at the coast, which must be maintained through regular sand replenishments."
Agger Church
Even the church had to yield to the sea. Agger's first church is located several kilometers out to sea. Its successor was built more than 600 meters from the sea, but by 1832, the coast had eroded so much that the church was on the verge of collapsing into the sea. Authorities recognized that the church had to be abandoned. It had become too dangerous to use.
In 1834, the church was sold for demolition. The current church, Agger's third, was designed by C. F. Hansen, a master of classicism, and consecrated in 1838. The church houses several pieces of furnishings from the earlier churches – the Romanesque baptismal font from around the year 1200, as well as an altarpiece, baptismal basin, and crucifix from the 1500s, and the pulpit from around 1600.
The following year, in 1839, the last remnants of the abandoned medieval church disappeared in a storm surge, along with the churchyard.
"I have seen the Destruction," wrote the Danish poet Steen Steensen Blicher (1782-1848) about Agger Parish after witnessing the fury of the storm. On the churchyard, "through the white sand, there protruded coffins and fragments of older, half-rotted resting places; a bleached skull gazed up toward the light of day; two fleshless legs dangled over the cliff, as if prepared for a new journey after a long rest."
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