Copenhagen

COPENHAGEN

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101 KØBENHAVNS KOMMUNES BIBLIOTEKER

OPENHAGEN

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K0BENHAVNS RADHUSBIBUOTEK h o t C f

CENTRALTRYKKERIET - COPENHAGEN C.

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COPENHAGEN THE CAPITAL OF DENMARK PUBL ISHED BY THE DANISH

COPENHAGEN 1898

COVER, ENDPAPER H E A D IN G S , TAILPIECES, AND IN ITIA LS DRAW N BY Mr.GERHARD H EILM ANN

ILLU STR A TIO N S FROM PHO TOG RAPH S BY DANISH PHO TO G RAPH ICAL A R TIS TS .£T H E PIC TU

RES HAVE BEEN REPRODUCED BY Messrs G ALLE & AAGAARD, Mr. F.HENDRIKSEN, Mr. BERNH. M IDDELBOE AND Mr. G. PA U LI, A LL OF CO PENHAGEN £ TE X T TRANSLATED IN TO ENG LISH BY Miss DAGNY FALKM AN AND Mr. OSKAR HANSEN, BOTH OF CO PENHAGEN £ PAPER FROM TH E FREDERIKSBERG PAPER MA NU FAC TO R Y ^ LITO G R A PH IN G OF M AP,PR IN TIN G ,A ND STITC H IN G BY TH E C ENTRAL PR IN TIN G PRESS AT COPENHAGEN E D IT E D FOR T H E DANISH TO U R IST S O C IE T Y B Y Mr. FRANZ v.JESSEN

This book about Copenhagen, the ca­ p ita l o f Denmark, is published by the Danish Tourist Society; the Govern­ ment, the Town Council o f Copenhagen, a number o f public institutions, besides several tradespeople and private gentle­ men, whose names are to befo u n d under the heading o f » Subscribers « have by their liberality made it possible to pub­ lish the book in a style adequately illu­ strating Danish enterprise and culture. With the single exception o f the im­ portant chapter on the sights in the capital o f Denmark, which has been com­ posed by a circle o f professional men, the contents have emanated from mem­ bers o f th e D a n i s h p r e s s , who with grea t willingness have placed their pens and knowledge a t the disposal o f the Tourist Society, which has selected Mr. F r a n z v.Jess en as the editor o f the book. The aim o f this little volume, which is now being sent into the world, is to] increase the knowledge o f Denmark and its capital in the old as well as in the new world, to arouse a more universal interest in our country, our people, and our culture, to show how easy it is to g e t to Denmark, and how well a visit to our beautiful country will repay the tourist. » The Danish Tourist Society. «

»The face of the land [Sjælland, Zealand] is pleasant in many places, abounding with little hills, woods and lakes in a very agreeable diversity .« Rob. Molesworth, 1694.

TO A N OLD DAN ISH SONG -BOOK

Yet dost thou recall Days departed, half-forgotten, When in dreamy youth I wandered By the Baltic, - When I paused to hear The old ballad of King Christian* Shouted from suburban taverns In the twilight.

„Welcome, my old friend, Welcome to a foreign fireside, W hile the sullen gales of autumn

Shake the windows. The ungrateful world

Has, it seems, dealt harshly with thee, Since, beneath the skies of Denmark, First I met thee.

The Danish National Anthem.

H. W. Longfellow.

WELCOME TO ALEXANDRA

Saxon and Norman and Dane are we, But all of us Danes in our welcome of thee

Alfred Tennyson, 1863.

ELSINORE

My heart was one with the pleasure That laughed out around me then, — The joy of the sea sun-smitten, And the life of the strong brown men. The curve of the pearl-white shingle Ran northward to Marienlyst, And I thought of the pale Ophelia’s Sad mouth strained to be kissed. And I knew that from where I was standing, In old days long gone by, Hamlet had heard at midnight The ominous spectre cry.

„1 sat on the walls of Kronborg; And below me, along the beach, The soldiers were strolling and lounging, And spreading their linen to bleach. Their pipe-lights streamed in the sea-wind, And now and again I heard, Laughed out under yellow moustaches, The ring of a Danish word. - The sea was a tremulous opal, The sky more purple than blue, And across the Sound to Sweden The white gulls flashed and flew,

And the art of Shakspere was added To the great glad splendour there,

Fulfilling the physical beauty And glory of light and air.

Edmund W. Gosse, 1873.

THE JOURNEY AND THE ROUTES TO COPENHAGEN.

e t it be supposed that you who read these lines are in London, perhaps after a successful voyage across the Atlantic, perhaps after a journey th rough England itself. You have tu rned over the leaves of this little book, and feel inclined to pay a visit to D enm ark and its in­ teresting capital. However, before you can make up you r m ind to do so, the follow ing questions m ust be answ ered: Which route ought to be chosen? — How long will the journey take? and : About how much will it cost? Look at the little general map which is placed at the end of the book, and you will immediately find the answ er to you r first question. The quickest and m ost expedient routes to D en­ mark are indicated by thick red lines. The narrow ones indi­ cate other very goo d routes which are less direct, if you have .chosen D enm ark as the sole aim of you r journey, as they g e ­ nerally have fewer express communications. At the back of the map you find the answ er to the two o ther questions. You will easily find out that the time for starting and the fares between a g reat many tow ns and C o ­ penhagen , are, in the case of the se a -ro u te , quo ted on the steering -w heel, and in the case of those, which are chiefly land-routes, on the wheels of the trains. If then, as supposed,

THE JOURNEY AND THE ROUTES TO COPENHAGEN.

you are in London, you will have you r choice of three direct routes, viz. The sea-route via Harwich— Esbjerg and the con­ tinental routes via Hook Osnabrück— Hamburg and via F lushing — Osnabrück — Hamburg, whilst the continental routes via Ostend— Brussels Cologne— Osnabrück— Hamburg and via Calais— Brussels— Cologne— Osnabrück—Hamburg can only be nam ed as secondary. The tim e and fare of the sea-rou te between London and C op enh ag en are to be found on the steering-wheel (vid. the back of the map); the time and fare of the F lushing route are indicated on the forem ost of the large train-wheels. In London through tickets are sold fo r Copenhagen by each of the above-m en tioned 5 routes. W hen you have m ade you r choice you r next question will p rob ab ly be this: H ow am I to act, and what will be offered me, when I arrive w ithin the Danish frontier? To this question the an sw er is the follow ing brief description of Danish m odes of conveyance. As D enm ark is year by year visited by a considerably in ­ creasing n um b e r of foreigners of all nations, its railways and steam ships are, as a m atter of course, already prov ided with the latest im provem ents, and in m ost things are on a level w ith those of m ore frequented European countries. Most of the railways in Denm ark belong to the g o v ern ­ ment, and as Denm ark may be said to be partly a kingdom of islands, it is natural that the governm en t should also own th e ferries which connect the lines of the main routes. In this latter departm en t D enm ark actually ranks foremost in the list of European States, the s t e a m - f e r r ie s of the Danish g o v e rn ­ m en t railways being so excellently constructed that they are invariably considered to be the best models. Besides being fast, they w eather a g reat swell splendidly, and are capable of tran spo rting a considerable cargo of railway w aggons, standing on one o r two pair of rails on the deck of the ferry. Fo reig ­ ners often liken them to "floating stations". In these excellent

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THE JOURNEY AND THE ROUTES TO COPENHAGEN.

DANISH STEAM - FERRY

steamers everything is to be found which an exacting traveller can dem and. There are d in ing and read ing rooms, saloons for ladies and gentlem en, lavatories in compliance w ith the requirem ents of the present day. On the main deck is a sm o ­ king saloon, etc., and above the paddleboxes is a splendid prom enade deck. O w ing to the fact that the gaug e of the Danish governm en t .railways is 1.435 metres, and also ow ing to the existence of the steam-ferries, the passenger carriages of m ost countries, indeed whole trains, can be run th rough to C openhagen from abroad. The capital has often been visited by the English and Russian royal trains and by several carriages b elong ing to the International S leeping-C ar Com pany of Brussels. On the steamers between Warnemünde and Ojedser and between Kiel and Korsør as well as on the steam -ferries b e­ tween Nyborg and Korsør and between Copenhagen and Malmø convenient oppo rtun ity will be found for meals, repose, and exercise. The Danish governm en t railways have of late years p u r­ chased a num b er of new passenger-carriages, constructed on the best and latest principles and intended for the principal trains with foreign communication. The num b er of these carriages is increased every year. They are long carriages on two four-w heeled trucks, and are constructed on the Am e­ rican “Pullm an" system with an inside passage th rough the m iddle, o r on the Austrian "M ann" system w ith an inside passage along one side, or on the English com partm ent system.

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THE JOURNEY AND THE ROUTES TO COPENHAGEN.

The carriages are all high, light, and spa­ cious, and are fu r­ nished with lavato­ ries and w ater clo­ sets; they run noise­ lessly and smoothly. The express trains of the Danish g o ­

ROAD THROUGH TH ESAN D- HILLS

v e rnm en t railways run very nearly at the same rate as the co rrespond ing trains on the European continent, and as they are com posed of the above-m entioned new, lon g com p art­ ments, the journey th rough D enm ark is very comfortable. T he chief trains have all electric light and , in the winter, central steam -heat; they are furnished w ith an autom atic va­ cu um -b ra k e , constructed on the latest and m ost approved, principle. — And now a few particulars as to each separate route. If the jou rney to Copenhagen is undertaken via Harwich and Esbjerg, the passage across the N orth Sea is m ade in Danish steamers belong ing to the United Steam ship C om pany of C openhagen. This sea-route being the shortest betw een E ng ­ land and Denmark, the accomm odation is kept as far as possible on a level w ith the requirem ents of the age, and the private steam ship com pany receives from the governm en t a conside­ rable annual g ran t, so that the best steamers may be run on this route. The governm en t has spared no expense in m aking the h arbou r of Esbjerg as serviceable as possible. It is acces­ sible all the year rou n d and has a dock; obstacles caused by ice are unknown. From the h a rbou r the Danish governm en t railways take the traveller by direct express trains to the capital of Denmark. Tourists who come to D enm ark by this route will have an especially favourable oppo rtun ity of learning to know an in ­ teresting part of Denmark, particularly the excellent w atering-

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THE JOURNEY AND THE ROUTES TO COPENHAGEN.

place, Fanø Nordsøbad, and the old historical towns of Jutland. A description of these really characteristic parts, is to be found in the follow ing pages. For the traveller who prefers to go direct to Copenhagen from E sbjæ rg, the route lies first th rough Jutland and then across the two belts connecting Jutland w ith Funen and Funen w ith Seeland, which belts are crossed by steam-ferries. From the train the tou rist has ample opportunity to see the charac­ teristic Danish scenery, with its changes from quiet, barren, heathery moors, to forest-bordered fjords and belts. Every­ where in Eastern Jutland the eye is met by well-tilled arable land, with picturesque m anor-houses and large, wealthy villa­ ges. In the tow n of Fredericia, the junction of the Jutland rail­ ways, as well as on the large steamers between Funen and Seeland, there is excellent oppo rtun ity for getting refreshments. Suppo sing the continental route to have been chosen, there are various ways of reach ing C openhagen from H am bu rg :

O ne rou te leads th rough H o l­ stein and Slesvig viå Vamdrup (the frontier station) to F red e­ ricia, where it joins the Esbjerg route; another, which is shorter, is by railway to K iel , then by steam er to Korsør, and thence by express train to Copenhagen. This latter route is a fast one by day and a convenient one by night, and the passage being chiefly am ong islands it is g e ­ nerally very calm. Am ong o ther routes may be nam ed that viå Lübeck. From there one may travel either by steam er d irect to Copenhagen, o r by railway to Warnemünde, _ 9 _

THE JOURNEY AND THE ROUTES TO COPENHAGEN.

whence steamers run to Gjedser, in comm unication with ex­ press trains to Copenhagen. Wamemiinde is on the main route betw een Berlin Copenhagen. W hen , at no distant day, the steam -ferry connection between W arnem urrde and G jedser is opened, this route will gain in importance. In travelling from Berlin to C openhagen one can also avail one's self of the route via Stettin, whence good steamers run direct to C o ­ penhagen. Excellent routes to C openhagen can be m ade out from all the g reat cities and centres of commerce. To m ention all of them w ou ld take too long. I am therefore obliged to refer in tend ing travellers to our map. Everyone who feels inclined to see D enm ark and its capital may learn from it how easy it is to get to Copenhagen. C. Fabricius. Chief for the state railways circular ticket office.

EN ROUTE FOR COPENHAGEN FAN 0 .

N 30 hours large com fortable steamers take the traveller from Parkstone to Esbjerg on the w es­ tern coast of Jutland. Another sailof 20 m inutes in a small steamboat — and he is on shore at N o rdby on Fano! This is a quaint fishing-town,

with narrow streets w ind ing am ong the low red houses and small, fenced gardens. Its women w ear a peculiar costume: a full, dark-coloured skirt with a broad green border, a tight- fitting bodice, and a m any-coloured kerchief round the head. Most of the men being at sea, on long voyages, the women are often to be seen w orking in the fields, and then they g e ­ nerally wear black masks to protect their faces from the keen sea wind. How fresh the air is here! And it is still fresher when we cross the island and get to the open North Sea. The road leads over one of those tracts of downs which are so charac­ teristic of this coast — great stretches of sand-hills covered w ith w rack -g rass. It is delightful to w ander here on a hot summ er day, with the sky arch ing above the white downs, the scorching sun softened by the sea-breeze. And the lover of nature in her quiet g rand eu r will find pleasure, and rest for his nerves, lying on the sand listening to the distant roar of the surf. 11

EN ROUTE FOR COPENHAGEN.

Here am ong the downs no houses are to be seen, no th ing b u t sand and w rack-grass. But see — what is that? Beyond those hillocks rises the ridge of a roof; we catch a glim pse of a tow er; a little farther, and a large bu ild ing which looks

like a castle appears — then another, and yet another. Real palaces, and row s of villas! This is F a n ø n o r d s ø b a d (the North Sea w a te rin g -p la ce of Fanø). It is a large, fashionable bathing-place, foun ­ ded some few years ago by en te rp ri­ sing Danes on a spot off the western coast of Jutland unrivalled for easy comm unication with the rest of the world, excellent bath ing facilities, and peculiar beauty of su rrounding. A few years ago desolate and quiet, it is now stirring with gay life. Large and luxurious hotels have been erec­ ted, w ith the stately Kurhaus as their centre; and row s of villas of all sizes stretch along the coast, sm art and co­ quettish. Many of these latter belong to noble or wealthy Danish and fo r­ eign families, w ho come to spend p a rt of every year in this beautiful health resort.

A NARROW LANE IN RIBE

O ne cannot im agine a better beach for bath ing than that of Fanø. It slopes gradually and sm oothly dow n to the sea, is clean, firm, and w ithout holes, therefore quite safe. Bathing- m achines are used. O n a day in the height of the Fanø season, one m ight easily believe one's self to be in one of the large w atering-places of continental Europe o r America. There are the g reat hotels, w ith their flags flying, the ladies in light and elegant costumes on the terraces and beach, the children - 12 -

EN ROUTE FOR COPENHAGEN.

play ing and bu ild ing their castles in the sand, basket-chairs and tents where visitors are resting and enjoying the sea air in com fort and shelter, and last but not least, the green bathing- m achines and the swarm of bathers in the blue sea with its w hite-crested waves. Fano Nordsobad, tho rough ly up to date in all its a rran g e ­ m ents, has already an acknow ledged repu tation, and in all p robability a g reat future before it, as being, on the whole, the best of all the North Sea watering-places.

ESBJERG. E s b j e r g , less than 30 years ago a barren, heathery slope, has developed with quite American rapidity into a comparatively large town of 13.000 inhabitants, with as­ phalted streets and other m o ­

TH E RIBE CATHEDRAL

dern comforts. It has a physiognom y of its own, which can hardly be called Danish, being rather a curious m ixture of the newest of the new with relics of the oldest period of the tow n ’s existence. At a short distance from a fine new harbour, from which Danish farm produce is exported to E ngland, stands a railway-station which is no th ing but a droll addition to the little w ooden shed that sufficed for travellers when Esbjerg was in its em bryo state. W alking th rough the town, one sees large factories and elegant private houses beside small hovels or sites not yet built upon. One gets the general impression that E sbjerg has been built hurry-skurry, w ithout any plan or sense of beauty; one house has been put up in order to give shelter to the artisans wo rking at another, and so on. T hough from a municipal point of view bu t a village, it is in reality a busy tow n , whose inhabitants think of nothing bu t m aking g reat coups and earning large sums — all in no time. The rapid developm ent of Esbjerg can be best illustrated

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EN ROUTE FOR COPENHAGEN.

by g iv ing some figures. The custom receipts w ere, in 1876: 31.000 crowns (in 1896: abou t 310.000 crowns). The value of the artificial m anure im ported in 1876 was hardly V2 a million p o u n d s sterling (in 1896: 13 millions). The im po rt of coal has d u rin g these 20 years risen from 56.000 to abou t 2 m illion barrels, and that of tim ber from 15.000 cubic feet to 150.000.

The exports have risen since 1876 from 1 m il­ lion to 20 m illion lbs. of butter, xj2 m illion to 106 m illion lbs. of pork, 750 lbs. of fish to 3 m il­ lion lbs., and 4 m illion to 20 m illion eggs. R1BE. This venerable old tow n , full of histori­ cal relics, halfforgotten in the hu rry of m o ­ dern times, presents as striking a contrast to Esbjerg, though only an hour's trip from it, as one can well im a­ gine. H igh above the low town tow ers the

RUINS OF KOLDING- H #S

cathedral; from all sides you see its m ighty square tower, which once bore a spire. This m onum en t of the medieval hierarchy gives the place its character. You feel that you are in the Avignon of D enm ark, the cathedral rep resen ting the P o p e ’s palace. The country round Ribe is so flat that one can, it is said, see for 21 miles in every direction lying flat on on e ’s back.

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EN ROUTE FOR COPENHAGEN.

KOLDING . A trip of a couple of hours from E sbjerg takes us righ t across Jutland to Kolding. The town is rem arkable for the imposing, rom antic ruins of its old royal castle, destroyed by a disastrous fire in 1808. O utside the town scenes of idyllic beauty p re ­ sent themselves. The narrow fjord w inds like a broad river between w ooded banks, with here and there a prom inen t point, from which an unsurpassably beautiful view may be enjoyed. Walk o r drive inland, and the scenery is just as fine. It would be difficult to find a m ore truly Danish idyllic picture than, for instance, “M arielund", w ith its leafy trees e n ­ circling still water, its steeps, and ravines, and charm ing paths. It is not su rp rising that Kolding attracts a steadily increa­ sing n um b e r of tourists, and that one hotel after ano ther is b eing built on the fjord, to accomm odate those who come to enjoy good sea-bathing in these charm ing surroundings. Gustav Hetsch.

THE HISTORY OF COPENHAGEN.

o p e n h a g e n is a comparatively m odern city, which in its first beginning s is said to have been con ­ nected with the herring fishery in the Sound in the M iddle Ages. The first time it is m en tioned, and then only

incidentally, is in the “Knytlinge Saga", u n d e r the nam e of “H avn" (harbour). In 1167 the town appears again in history as "Köpm annahafn", or, as Saxo calls it, mercatomm portus. K ing V aldem ar the G reat (1157—1182) bestow ed C openhagen and a g reat part of the su rround ing country on his friend and counsellor, the w arrio r Bishop Absalon, who, in a sense, may be considered the founder of the tow n , it being indebted to him for its first development. He defended it against pirates and other depredators, and in all probality founded the stro n g ­ ho ld (castrum de Hafn), which afterwards becam e the castle of C openhagen. From him the town passed into the hands of the episcopal see of Roskilde, and its citizens consequently becam e involved in the strife between the regal pow er and the clergy. The oldest records of Copenhagen abo u n d in accounts of fighting and disturbances. In the 12th and 13th centuries it was several times taken and sacked by the Han- seatic tow ns; in 1427 and 1428 the Lübeckers were, on the o ther h and , driven off w ith g reat loss. In 1416 K ing Eric of Pom eran ia took possession of the town in spite of the protest

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THE HISTORY OF COPENHAGEN.

of the clergy, and from this date the pow er of the bishops was practically at an end. The little tow n on the Sound was regained for the crown and new possibilities were opened to it. Christoph of Bavaria conferred upon it a new m un ici­ pal code (the first was conferred by Bishop Jakob E rlandsen in 1254). The first O ld enbu rg ian king, Christian I, founded the University in 1479, and his g ran d so n , Christian II, cheri­ shed g reat and far-reaching hopes of m aking C openhagen a m ighty trad ing city, a m art for the Baltic, and thus pu tting an

end to the commercial suprem acy of Lübeck in the North. D u ring his reign the S ound -dues (first im po ­ sed in 1425 o r 1426, and only re ­ pealed in 1857 by international compact) were for a short time col­ lected at C openhagen instead of Elsinore. These royal plans, however, came to nothing. W hen K ing Christian fled from his k ingdom , C op enh a ­ g en , which sided w ith him , had to stand tw o severe sieges, the first lasting seven m onths (1523 —24),

CHRISTIANS­ HAVN ON AMAQER

the second m ore than a year (1535 —36). The inhabitants en ­ du red the severest sufferings and privations, especially d u ring the latter of the sieges, for "they had no eatables in the town, neither horses, no r dog s, no r cats, no r crow s, no r anything bu t the leaves of the trees", and the result was that the town was obliged to capitulate both times. After the second siege Lutheran Protestantism was introduced. This change emanated from the highest authorities, bu t met with general approbation am ong all classes. W ith this event are naturally connected the new charter of foundation for the University (1539), and the first complete Danish translation of the Bible, prin ted in 1550. The reign of Christian IV (1588 —1648), especially between ( 2 )

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THE HISTORY OF COPENHAGEN.

1616 and 1624, was a happy time for Copenhagen, the prosperity, trade, and industry of which m ade considerable advance. The town was greatly en ­ larged and em bellished; many new private and public build ings were erected, som e of which exist at this day. The fortifications were im proved and extended, and a new, independen t town, C h ri­ stianshavn, was founded on the island of Am ager (incorporated with C openhagen in 1670). Several trad ing companies were formed, am ong which the

TH E “ M A N" (CHRIST) ON TH E TOW ER OF OUR sa v io u r ’ s CHURCH

East India Com pany was destined to becom e the m ost famous, p arti­

TH E TOW ER OF OUR SAVIOUR’S

cularly after its re -con stitu tion in 1670. The Thirty Years’ W ar and the w ar with Sweden, however, b ro u g h t great disaster upon Denmark; and some years later, d u ring Frederick Ill’s wars w ith Sw eden, the realm was threatened with destruction. It was the citizens and fortifications of C openhagen that held out against the Sw e­ dish king, Charles X Oustavus, in 1658 and 1659. This g lorious two years’ struggle, “The siege of C o p e n h a g e n “ pa r excellence, is also of note as a tu rn in g -p o in t in the history of the country. T he situation after the peace was so desperate th at extraordinary measures were required. The citizens of Copenhagen were rew arded for their

bravery w ith “p rivileges“ which w ere practically of no value, whilst hereditary succession and absolutism were in troduced to su p p o rt the crown against the nobility who had failed to do their duty by their native coun ­ try. At the time of this revo lu ­ tion the so-called “Kastel" was

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THE HISTORY OF COPENHAGEN.

founded, and the fortifications were extended southwards, oc­ casioning the incorporation of a new quarter, “F rederiks- holm " or “Kalveboderne". A g reat deal of bu ild ing w ent on in the reign of Christian V, who enlarged the h a rb o u r considerably by new works at Christianshavn and Nyholm en (the New Islet). In the m iddle of the 18th century ano ther part of the tow n, the quarter of Amalienborg, was incorporated, and finally, in 1859, G amm el- holm was given up to building. A few years later, in 1867, the fortifications were demolished, the ram parts were levelled, and the g ro u n d thus gained was m ade over to the town (1870). Not till then did Copenhagen becom e the m odern city; an extremely active bu ild ing period followed, which cannot be said to have come to an end yet. It gives on some idea of the developm ent of the town to know that in 1680 it had but 42.000 inhabitants; in 1790: 100.000; in 1850: abou t 130.000; whereas now it has upw ard s of 413.000. C openhagen suffered g reat disasters in the 18th century. It was bom b a rd ed in 1700 by a fleet of English, Dutch, and Swedish vessels, bu t w ith no serious consequences. The great plague in 1711, which occurred d u ring a w ar with Sweden, was, on the contrary, very disastrous, involving much loss of property and hum an lives (about 23.000); and equally so was the great fire in 1728, which reduced 1670 houses, or two-fifths of the town, to ashes. Nevertheless, the time was in other respects so pro sperous that, simultaneously with the rebu il­ d ing of the town in 1731, the king (Christian VI) could begin

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THE HISTORY OF COPENHAGEN.

the b u ild in g of the splendid residential palace, "C hristiansborg", which was b u rn t dow n in 1794, rebuilt in the present century, and again consum ed by fire onO ctob er3 .1884 . Much the same h app en ed after the second g reat fire, in 1795, when 941 houses were b u rn ed to the g round . N ine years afterwards, no traces of the calam ity were to be found. The p rosperity of C o p en ­ hagen was ow ing to the very favourable state of trade tow ards the end of the century, when Denm ark succeeded in keeping aloof from the g reat European wars. D u ring the battle of “Rheden" (the road-stead of Copenhagen), on April 2. 1801, an English fleet threatened to attack the town, w ithou t h ow ­ ever carrying its th reat into execution. But in 1807 the English, w ithout any previous declaration of war, attacked Copenhagen and shelled it for three days, afterwards sailing off w ith the Danish fleet. This was a disaster for town and state, the political, financial, and econom ical effects of which m ight be traced even to the m iddle of this century. The year of freedom , 1848, b ro u g h t w ith it new strength and a fresh impetus, which has m ade itself felt to goo d pu rpo se in many different directions, especially d u rin g the reign of Christian IX, the present king. Carl Bruun.

CLIMATE AND HEALTH. THE CLIMATE O F COPENHAGEN .

o p e n h a g e n is situated in that part of Europe, the climate of which is chiefly determ ined by the num erous atm ospheric disturbances, which make their way eastwards from the north Atlantic, either righ t across or north of the British Islands,

and proceed in a n o rth -e aste rly direction. South and west w inds prevail, and these, b eing comparatively warm , give to the town, considering its locality, a very high mean tem p era­ ture. This is, a cco rd ing to observations ex tending over more than a hund red years, 4 5 1/ , 0 F., whilst the average of many places in the same latitude is only abou t 35°. Besides the above-m entioned prevalent w inds, there are frequent w inds from other directions, especially from the east; and, as the tem perature of the sea rises more slowly in summ er than that of the great expanses of land , whilst in w inter it falls m ore slowly, the climate of Copenhagen is partly deter­ m ined by the large land masses lying to the north, south, and east of it. As a result of these natural conditions, the easterly w inds, for instance, generally b rin g intense cold in w inter and a high tem perature in summer, whilst the westerly w inds are m ild in w inter bu t som ewhat cool in summer. The south-w esterly w inds, however, predom inate d u ring all the four seasons, and consequently Copenhagen has compa- - 21 -

CLIMATE AND HEALTH.

ratively m ild winters and cool summers, or, in other words, an insular climate. For the sake of com parison we shall state some facts reg a r­ d in g the respective tem peratures of G reenw ich and C o p en ­ hagen. The degrees are Fahrenheit. The three summ er m onths p roper, June, July, and A ugust, have in Copenhagen a mean tem peratu re of 59 7 2 °—627 2 °, which is abou t the same as that of the south-eastern part of England, whereas May, Sep tem ­ ber, and O ctober are som ew hat colder in Copenhagen than in G reenw ich. The proxim ity of the A tlantic materially in­ fluences the tem perature of G reenw ich d u rin g the winter, which is, on an average, 7 0 higher than that of Copenhagen. In com p aring the tem perature of the two places it is interesting to note that the highest mean tem peratu re on record of the w arm est m onths of the w inter in C openhagen (Novem ber to April) is the same as the average tem perature of G reenw ich for the same months. The absolutely highest tem peratu res recorded in C openhagen d u rin g May to S eptem ber is respectively 8 4 7 2°—9 0 7 2° as against 8 7 7 2°—97 at G reenw ich. G reenw ich has, on an ave­ rage, 15 days with a maximum tem perature of 80° or more every year, while Copenhagen has only 7 such days. The rig o u r of the C openhagen winter, com pared with that of G reenw ich , is dem onstrated by the low read ings observed; the num b er of days when the therm om eter falls below the freezing -po in t, and of days when the m aximum tem perature is below the freezing-point (the so-called ice-days) being con­ siderably g reater in Copenhagen than in G reenw ich. The rainfall and other climatic conditions connected th ere­ with, are very sim ilar to those of the neighbou rhood of Lon­ don, although they are a great deal more favourable to every kind of ou t-o f-doo r life. The average annual rainfall of C op en ­ hagen is 22 inches, distributed over 167 days (that of G re en ­ w ich is abou t 25 inches); bu t on m ore than one half of these 167 days the rainfall is very slight; and especially d u ring the 22

CLIMATE AND HEALTH.

sp ring and summ er m onths there are often lengthy periods of dry weather. Even when a prevalence of continued southerly o r westerly w inds bring s frequent showers, these are generally in summ er only short ones, now and then accom panied by

th u n d e r - storm s, and quickly suc­ ceeded by fine weather. During the three summer mon ths,JuneJu ly , and August, the sun has been ob­ served to shine on an average six hours a day. Speaking g en e ­ rally with regard to the climate of Copenhagen, one may say that, from the m iddle of May till the beg inn ing o r end of Septem ­ ber, sho rter and longer periods of changeable w ea­ ther are to be ex­ pected. But the passing showers,

TH E “ROUND TO W ER“ AND “REGENSEN"

which are often welcome because they lay the dust of the streets and the roads and make the air fresher, the m oderate winds, the ab und an t sunshine, and the pleasant temperature, may be considered favourable climatic conditions for open-air life. V. Willaume-Jantzen, Subdirector of the Meteorological Institute.

CLIMATE AND HEALTH.

THE SANITARY COND IT ION O F CO PENHAGEN . The sanitary conditions of a town are generally g aug ed by its annual death rate, that is the num ber of deaths in a year per thou sand inhabitants. O f all the European capitals, Co­ penhagen had in i8g6 the lowest rate o f mortality only 16.5 per thousand, while Stockholm had 16.8, Berlin 17.9, London 18.2, Christiania 18.3, Dresden 18.9, Paris 19, Rome 19.1, V i­ enna 22.3, Munich 23.2, Buda-Pesth 25.4, St. P etersbu rg 30.9. This low death rate m ight, in the case of a single year, be due to exceptionally favourable circumstances; bu t that such is no t the case in this instance may be gathered from the fact, that the mortality of Copenhagen has been g radually decrea­ sing d u rin g the last 20 years. In 1875 it was 27.4; in 1880, 24.7; in 1885, 20.1; in 1890, 20.3; and in 1895, 19 per 1000. O ne cause of this is to be found in the circum stance that C openhagen is almost perfectly free from those epidem ics which an English autor very practically has term ed: "dirty diseases". Cholera has only once, in 1853, seriously attacked C o p en ­

hagen; in 1857, when the disease broke out again, the epidem ic was very li­ mited. Exanthematic typhu s has only made its appearance once since 1872; this was in 1893, when the outbreak was confined to a large b u ild ing oc­ cupied by w orking people. T ypho id fever has never spread very widely, as will appear from the fact that in 1875 only 52 deaths from it occurred; in 1880, 60; in 1885, 23; in 1890, 26; in 1895, 56; in 1896, 24; whilst it must be rem em bered that the p o p u la ­ tion has increased from abou t 210.000 in 1875, to about 340.000 in 1896. It is ^almost unnecessary to add that m a­ larial fever is quite unknow n. Small-

A PART OF T H E TOW N HALL, SEEN FROM "TIVO LI"

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CLIMATE AND HEALTH.

TH E QUAY AT TH E EXCHANGE

pox is of such rare occurrence that few physicians in C op en ­ hagen have ever had the chance of seeing it; single cases have occurred, where the disease has been comm unicated by seamen to persons who have not been re-vaccinated; bu t the authorities have always succeeded in immediately stam ping it out. The excellent sanitary condition of C openhagen is to a g reat extent ow ing to its splendid drinking-w ater. The w ater supply is, in contrast to that of London for instance, entirely und e r the m anagem ent of the municipal authorities, and the whole of it is obtained from Artesian wells, surface-water being no longer used. Every week a bacteriological exam ination of the w ater is made. As it contains iron, it cannot be conveyed direct from the springs into the pipes, bu t m ust previously be exposed to the oxidation of the air and filtered. The sewerage system of Copenhagen is a very com plete and efficient one; the only draw back to it being that the se­ w age is carried into the harbour. However, g reat im p rove­ ments in this respect are already in progress. Large u n d e r­ g ro u n d canals will convey the sewage u n d e r the h a rb o u r to

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CLIMATE AND HEALTH.

the island of Amager, where it will be pum p ed into the Sound on the opposite side of the island. This will materially im ­ prove sanitary matters by m aking it possible to introduce water closets everywhere. It has hitherto been necessary to set limits to their introduction in those parts of the city w here the sewage flows into the inner harbour. After the completion of these im provem ents it will be possible to discontinue the pail system which has been in use up till now . W hat ever may be the defects of this system , it is to be noted that C o ­ p enhagen has carried it th rough m ore consistently than any o ther city of the same size, c e ss-p o o ls, such as are used in Paris, Munich, etc.; not having existed for a g reat many years. These are always d angerou s because they are likely to foul the soil. C openhagen , having the sea on one side and productive land on the other, has always a plentiful and fresh supply of such perishable articles of food as fish, vegetables, and milk. The milk supply is under the control of the sanitary officers. As regard s meat, every animal m ust be exam ined and killed in the large public slaughter houses. No meat is offered for sale unless passed by the municipal veterinary surgeon, and then only in shops u n d e r the control of the bo ard of health, who also supervise the sale of meat sausages and sim ilar articles. K Caroe, Medical officer of Health.

THE FREE PORT AND THE HARBOUR OF COPENHAGEN.

h e traveller visiting Copenhagen for the first time, and arriving by sea from the north, should take his seat on deck at E lsinore, where the vessel, leaving the waves of the Cattegat, passes into the smooth and sheltered waters of the Sound.

For Copenhagen, in a manner, begins where the little town of Elsinore, with its beautiful old castle of K ronborg, ends. The many villas, large and small, which are dotted along the w ind ing coast from Elsinore southwards, are nearly all inhab i­ ted in summ er by the families of wealthy Copenhagen citizens. The cannons on the ramparts of "T rekroner" stand like sentries before the city, the old fortress itself m arking the d i­ vision between the outer and the inner road-stead. Those ves­ sels which, on their way from or to the Baltic, only call at Copenhagen to get supplies of provisions or coal, ancho r in the former. The latter, where tourist steamers, yachts, and small craft lie at anchor, is sheltered by the island of Refshale on the east and the land on the west. D uring the summ er m onths quite a fleet of Royal and Imperial yachts may som e­ times be seen lying here, when the Danish K ing and Queen are visited by their illustrious relations from abroad. C on ­ spicuous am ong st these beautiful vessels are the Russian Im­ perial yachts, the “S tandard", the "P olar Star", the "C zarewna",

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THE FREE PORT AND THE HARBOUR OF COPENHAGEN.

TH E PORT OF CO PEN ­ HAGEN

and the English Royal yacht the "O sbo rn e", which last often lies here, d u ring the visit of the Princess of Wales. — This inner road-stead makes a g o o d starting po in t for o u r survey of the new Free P o rt and the old H arbou r of C openhagen. The spacious, deep docks of which we just caugh t a glim pse when passing "T rekroner", tog e th er w ith the eno rm ou s block of bu ild ing s rising above the p rom enade of "Langelinie", from the Free P o rt of Copenhagen. It extends over an area of 150 acres, 89 of which are land; and where it is now situated the wawes of the Sound w ashed the old shore only seven years ago. In the sp ring of 1891 the Danish R igsdag (Parliament) pas­ sed "The Free P o rt Bill", and som e few m onths later the g reat undertak ing was comm enced. The area on w hich the new po rt was to be constructed was reclaim ed from the sea — ex­ tensive dam s were built, the w ater was p um p ed out, and the bed which the .waves had w ashed over for centuries, was laid bare. Steam excavators w ere used in o rd er to obtain the n e ­ cessary depth for the docks (1.094.000 cubic metres of earth were removed). This m aster-w ork of eng ineering was pu shed on w ith such energy that it was com pleted in the course of a year. On N ovem ber 1st, 1893, prince V aldem ar of Denmark, by simply pressing an electric button, opened the dam s which separated the drained area from the sea, and the w ater rushed in and filled the docks, which are from 24 to 30 feet deep, w ith abou t 12.000 feet of quay frontage. O ne year later, on N ovem ber 8th, 1894, the bu ild ing s were finished, the railways constructed, etc.; and the Free P o rt of C openhagen , one of the best in the world, was opened to traffic. The cost of this g reat work was £ 1.200.000.

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THE FREE PORT AND THE HARBOUR OF COPENHAGEN.

The G eographical situation of the Free P o rt is excellent. The com parative shallowness of the Baltic ports makes of it a natural transit place for the good s of the large transatlantic steamers. The distribution of good s is facilitated by the p e r­ fect system of steam -ferries connecting Copenhagen with Sweden and Norw ay on one side, and Funen, Jutland, and the whole of the European continent on the other; in ad d i­ tion to which there are the num erous lines of steamers to the Baltic and the North Sea. O ne of the small steamers which play all day between the Free P o rt and the old F larbour conveys us across the inner roads tow ards the custom house (the "T oldbod") of C op en ­ hagen. The beautiful prom enade of "Langelinie", w ith its fine old trees, is the first th ing to catch the eye. W here t h e * old part of the p rom enade joins the new part, which was form ed by the bu ild ing of the Free Port, we see a small, well p rotected harbour, full of pleasure boats of all descriptions. The yachting and row ing clubs of Copenhagen have their head -quarters here. The H arbou r authorities have construc­ ted a solid bu ild ing of iron and granite just below the p ro ­ menade, in which the row ing clubs have their boat sheds, cloak and bath room s. Across the roads comes the sound of h am ­ m ering from the busy eng ineering works of Burmeister & Wain on the island of Refshale, which em ploy some 1800 men. It was in this sh ip -y a rd that the late Czar A lexander III of Russia drove the first rivet of his new yacht, the "S tandard", which he did not live to see completed. This magnificent vessel, which cost about £ 500.000; was delivered in 1896 to his son, Czar N icholas II. That same summ er the y o u n g Czar

29

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THE FREE PORT AND THE HARBOUR OF COPENHAGEN.

sailed in her from C openhagen to Eng land , which was her first voyage. M aking ou r way am ong steamers of every size, plying in all directions, we now pass th rough the "Bom løb", the narrow en trance to the H arbou r of C openhagen , w ith the custom ­ house on the righ t and the anchorage of the fleet on the left. In the little box on the cu stom -h o u se pier stands a H a rbou r officer, who hails each one of the inw ard and o u t­ w ard b o u n d ships. Listen to his brief questions and the answ ers he receives, and you will get an idea of the close, daily comm unication between England and Denmark. You will feel as if you were stand ing in a street with crow ds of people passing to and fro, every second person calling to you: "I come from England!" or “1 am g o in g to England!". The large fleet of the U nited Steam -Ship C om pany of Copenhagen daily conveys Danish farm ing produce — butter, po rk , eggs etc.; — to the English market. The large, heavily laden E ng ­ lish steamers b rin g English coals to Denmark. U pw ard s of 35.000 sailing vessels and steamers pass the w a tch -m an on ^ the custom -house pier in the course of a year. Leaving the custom -house behind, we observe to the left an unrigged m an-of-w ar of the old fashioned type. It is the gu ard -sh ip of the fleet-anchorage, the frigate "Sjæ lland", which in 1864 took part in the battle of Heligoland. In a line with the "Sjælland" lie several o ther veterans of the Danish Royal Navy, which are now used as naval barrack-ships. Behind them we see the Royal Dock Yard. To the righ t there are extensive quays w ith old warehouses and granaries, etc. Beyond the place where the g reat steamers of the "Thingvalla Line", trad ing between C openhagen and New York, are m oo red , we see "Am alienborg", the residence of Royalty; in the backg round the m ighty dom e of the Frederick Church, its gilt lines shin ing brightly in the sun, tow ers above the su rround ing town. At " K n ippelsb ro ", which connects the city of C openhagen w ith the old subu rb "Christianshavn" and the island of Amager,

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T H E FREE PORT AND T H E HARBOUR OF COPENHAGEN.

TH E "KVÆ STHUS"- PIER

ou r boat enters the canals that on all sides su rround the island of "S lotsholm en". We pass the fish-market of Copenhagen on "G amm el S trand", where, in the early m orning, the fisher­ men land their cargoes. At lenght we reach the southern part of the h a rbou r "K alvebodstrand". This is the quarter of "the black d iam ond s"; along the quays lie the large English stea­ mers, un lo ad ing coals from the m ines of England. Before us, along the shore, lies the subu rb of Vesterbro, and in the distance we see a num ber of factories and tall chim ­ neys, the smoke from which veils the outskirts of the city and the shore. Away to the south, where the Sound and the Baltic meet, you may see a fleet of sailing vessels and steamers ap ­ p ro ach ing — the H a rbou r of C o p e n h a g e n ! Anthon Maaløe.

THE CAPITAL OF DENMARK. PHY S IOGNOMY O F CO PENHAGEN .

THE

OPENHAGEN is not one of those cities which impress by their luxurious splendour. But a p ­ proach it sailing up the lovely Sound, and see it lying before you , its beautiful outline b ro ­ ken by the g reat dom e of the F rederick’s Church

and all the many spires and towers, and you are sure to think it charm ing. O r enter it from the fine vaulted hall of the p rin ­ cipal railway-station, preferably by night, when you at once find yourself in the crowd of the V esterbro’s Passage, with the electric lights of the "T ivo li“ garden on one side and those of the “V ariétés“ on the other, and you get the impression of a lively, fascinating capital. C openhagen has a charm of its own, a characteristic, picturesque beauty, a refined, old-fashio­ ned homeliness, m ore attractive than the splendid m onotony of m any of the g reat m odern cities. Even the stranger soon discovers, that C openhagen consists of an old and a m odern part, although the difference between them is g radually disappearing. Boulevards skirt the old town, replacing the ram parts and the picturesque moats, whose still waters reflected the foliage of fine old trees. The “Kastei“ near “L angelinie“ is the last rem n an t of the ram parts; the beautiful public parks along the Boulevards — the “Ø stre A n læ g “, the “Ø rsteds P a rk “, the “Botanic G a rd en s“ and the “Aborre

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T H E CAPITAL OF DENMARK.

Park" — are all that rem ains of the moats and their su r­ roundings. C openhagen is not really a very old city. There have been too many destructive fires for it to retain any medieval stamp. The "H elligaandshus" (the cloister ad jo in ing the Church of

the Holy Spirit), which has been recently re ­ stored, and some ru i­ ned vaults, are the only very old remains. Two distinct bu ild ing p e ­ riods have given C o ­ penhagen its architec­ tural character. The first was d u rin g the reign of the royal bu il­ der, Christian IV, in the first half of the 17th century. The second was d u rin g the last half of the 18th century, an interm ediate stage b e­ tween the Rococo and the Empire style. The nobility and the great m erchants were then the ru ling powers, and

TH E FREDERICK’S CHURCH

in H arsdorff Copenhagen possessed an architect whose genius and whose fine appreciation of antique art were perhaps u n e ­ qualled in Europe. To get an adequate impression of Christian IV’s architecture —an independent treatm ent of the G erm an and Dutch Renaissance style — one should first exam ine the g race­ ful R osenborg Chateau with its slender towers, so picturesquely placed am idst delightful gardens; and then go on to H ø jb ro ­ plads, where the peasant-wom en from Amack, in their heredi- ( 3 ) - 33 -

T H E CAPITAL OF DENMARK.

tary Dutch costume, sit selling fruit, vegetables, and flowers, whilst H o lm en ’s C hurch in the b a ckg round and the fine Ex­ change with its fantastic dragon-spire, eloquently w itness to their royal builder's artistic taste and gift of attracting the right men to his service. In the immediate vicinity of H ø jb roplads are two private buildings, one in Ø stergade, b elong ing to the "Efterslægt" Society, and the other, "H afnia"s bu ild ing on the Amagertorv, both of which date from the same period, as do also the "R ound T ow er" (Rundetaarn), which immediately adjoins T rinity Church, and seriously interferes with the traffic in the narrow and busy street, and "R egensen" (a hom e for students) just opposite it. Am agertorv and H ø jb rop lad s are in a m anner the heart of the stirring life of the city. Leaving Am agertorv by Ø stergade you come to Kongens Nytorv, once the centre of Copenhagen, a large, open square with fashionable hotels, business p re ­ mises, shops, restaurants, and cafés, w ith the Royal Theatre and C h arlo ttenbo rg castle, the head -quarters of the fine arts in Denmark. Beyond C harlo ttenbo rg the picturesque Nyhavn canal, w ith its old houses and num erous old-fashioned vessels, looks like a relic of bygone days am ong these m odern su r­ roundings. Starting from Am agertorv in the opposite d irec­ tion and p ro ceed ing westw ards along the Vi mm el skaftet, you come to G amm el T o rv and Nytorv, with the old Town Hall and solid, oldfashioned m erchan t’s houses; a fountain in the m iddle sends forth its refreshing jets of water and it is an old established custom that it should send up gilt balls on the birthdays of the K ing and Queen. C lose by this square is F rue Plads. Several of the finest churches of Copenhagen have been destroyed by fire; even the Church of ou r Lady is almost en ­ tirely a m odern structure, dating from the revival of the clas­ sical style at the b eg inn ing of this century. It has a square tow er surm oun ted by a plain gilt cross; the entrance is in the style of an antique tem ple façade; and the body of the bu ild ing

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Made with