COPENHAGEN
HISTORY |
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Copenhagen was founded around year 1000 by Sweyn I Forkbeard (Svend Tveskæg) and his son Canute the
Great (Knud den Store). It
was only a fishing village until the middle of the 12th century when it grew
in importance after coming into the possession of Bishop Absalon, who
fortified it in 1167. The excellent harbour encouraged Copenhagen's growth
until it became an important centre of commerce (hence its name). It was
repeatedly attacked by the Hanseatic League. 1658-59 it withstood a severe
siege by the Swedes under Charles X. In 1801 a British fleet under Horatio
Nelson fought a major battle, the Battle of Copenhagen, with the Danish navy
in Copenhagen harbour. When British naval vessels bombarded Copenhagen in
1807, to prevent Denmark from surrendering its fleet to Napoleon, the city
suffered great damage and hundreds of people were killed. During World War
II Copenhagen was occupied by German troops as the rest of the country from
April 1940 until May 1945. The city has grown greatly since the war. |
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| Since the summer 2000, the cities of Copenhagen and Malmö have been
connected by a toll bridge/tunnel (Oresund Bridge), which allows both rail
and road passengers to cross. It was inaugurated in July 2000 by King Carl
XVI Gustaf of Sweden and Queen Margrethe II of Denmark. As a result,
Copenhagen has become the center of a larger metropolitan area which spans
both nations. The construction of the bridge has led to a large number of
changes to the public transportation system and the extensive redevelopment
of Amager, south of the main city. However, the bridge has not been as
widely used as was originally hoped, likely due to the high tolls, slowing
the planned integration of the region. Another hindrance to the integration
of the region is the lack of a commonly acceptable currency throughout the
area. It is still difficult to pay with either nation's currency in the
other country. |
