In the 1800's people across Europe where on the move, and especially after the 1840's many people departed the "Old World" to seek a better life abroad. Along with millions of other emigrants from all over the European continent, many Danes emigrated via the ports in northern Europe. The most important ports of emigration for the Danish emigrants were Copenhagen, Liverpool (as to indirect emigration), Hamburg and Bremen/Bremerhaven. In the Scandinavian countries this emigration began a little later and did not reach sizable proportions until the end of the American Civil War. The Scandinavian contribution to the total European emigration were, however, relatively small—the share didn't amount to more than 4.5% in the period up to the First World War.