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Fredericia

Coordinates: 55°34′N 9°45′E / 55.567°N 9.750°E / 55.567; 9.750
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Fredericia
Town
The statue Landsoldaten ("The Foot Soldier") in Fredericia, Denmark
The statue Landsoldaten ("The Foot Soldier") in Fredericia, Denmark
Coat of arms of Fredericia
Coat of arms
Fredericia is located in Denmark
Fredericia
Fredericia
Location in Denmark
Fredericia is located in Region of Southern Denmark
Fredericia
Fredericia
Fredericia (Region of Southern Denmark)
Coordinates: 55°34′N 9°45′E / 55.567°N 9.750°E / 55.567; 9.750
CountryDenmark
RegionSouthern Denmark
 (Syddanmark)
MunicipalityFredericia
Founded1650
Current municipality1970
Area
 • Urban
27.3 km2 (10.5 sq mi)
Elevation
15 m (49 ft)
Population
 (2024)[1]
 • Urban
41,544
 • Urban density1,500/km2 (3,900/sq mi)
 • Gender [2]
20,759 males and 20,785 females
DemonymFredericianer
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
DK-7000 Fredericia
Area code(+45) 72
Websitewww.fredericia.dk

Fredericia (Danish pronunciation: [fʁeðəˈʁetɕæ])[3] is a town located in Fredericia Municipality in the southeastern part of the Jutland peninsula in Denmark. The city is part of the Triangle Region, which includes the neighbouring cities of Kolding and Vejle. It was founded in 1650 by Frederick III, after whom it was named.

The city itself has a population of 41,544 (1 January 2024)[1] and the Fredericia Municipality has a population of 52,485 (2024).

History

[edit]
Plan of Fredericia in 1900
Obelisk erected to the memory of huguenots arriving in the city after being driven out of northeastern France and Belgium by troops of Louis XIV

After the devastation caused by the Thirty Years War in a largely unfortified Jutland, King Christian IV realized the necessity of building a strong fortress in Jutland, and decided that this project could be combined with his plans for building a large town in Jutland.

A fortified encampment was built on a point of land called Lyngs Odde, near the current location of Fredericia, with a rampart stretching to either side of the point, thus protecting the encampment from attacks. However, the fortifications were not perfect, and when Swedish Field Marshal Lennart Torstenson invaded Jutland, he was able to break through the ramparts. It was Frederick III who was finally able to complete the plans for the fortification, also adding a flank fortification on nearby Bers Odde as suggested by Danish Marshal of the Realm Anders Bille.

On 15 December 1650, the King signed the document giving the town its first privileges, and work on the new fortifications could begin. In 1651, the town was named Frederiksodde (Frederick's Point) after the king, and on 22 April 1664, it was given the new Latinized name of Fredericia.

Every 6 July, the town of Fredericia holds a festival to commemorate the 1849 Battle of Fredericia, fought during the First War of Schleswig, in which Danish troops won a victory over the Schleswig-Holstein rebels who were laying siege to the town. Fredericia's landmark, Landsoldaten, was unveiled on 6 July 1858.[4]

Present

[edit]

The municipality today is part of the East Jutland metropolitan area with 1.2M inhabitants,[5] and is the site of Fredericia municipality's municipal council.

The town is a major barracks, home to the Royal Danish Army's Signals Regiment (Telegrafregimentet), which is located at Rye's Barracks (Ryes Kaserne) and Bülow's Barracks (Bülows Kaserne).

Transportation

[edit]

The town is one of Denmark's largest traffic hubs.

Rail

[edit]
Fredericia railway station in 2013.

Fredericia railway station is the principal railway station of the town.[6] It is an important railway junction where the Copenhagen-Fredericia Line, the Fredericia-Aarhus Line, and the Flensburg-Fredericia Line all meet.[7] The station was opened in 1935 together with the opening of the Little Belt Bridge across the Little Belt.[7] The train services are operated by the railway company DSB.[6] It offers direct InterCity services to Copenhagen, Odense, Aarhus, Aalborg, Struer, Esbjerg, Sønderborg, Flensburg and Hamburg.

Air

[edit]

The nearest airport with scheduled national and international flights is Billund Airport c. 45 km west of Fredericia.

Sport

[edit]

Speedway

[edit]

The Vejlby Speedway Center, run by the Fredericia Motor Klub, is located on the northern outskirts of Fredericia and is a mini speedway track for bikes with 50cc and 80cc engines.[8] Fredericia Speedway competed in the town from 1958 to 2005 at various venues, including the Fredericia Speedway Center (the old Fredericia Stadion) and the Frederikslyst Motorbane.[9]

Notable people

[edit]
Vilhelm Buhl, pre-1954

The Arts

[edit]
Svend Melsing, 1921

Sport

[edit]
Annette Jensen, 2016
  • Jesper Bank (born 1957 in Fredericia) a sailor, twice Olympic gold medallist in 1992 and 2000
  • Peter Kjær (born 1965 in Fredericia) a Danish former footballer with 459 club caps
  • Thomas Sørensen (born 1976 in Fredericia), football goalkeeper, 497 club caps and 101 for Denmark
  • Patrick Hougaard (born 1989 in Fredericia) a Danish motorcycle speedway rider
  • Annette Jensen (born 1991 in Fredericia) a Danish handball player
  • Sara Thygesen (born 1991 in Fredericia) a badminton player, specializing in doubles play.
  • Katrine Veje (born 1991 in Fredericia) a footballer, over 200 club caps and 119 for Denmark women

Twin towns

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b BY3: Population 1. January by urban areas, area and population density The Mobile Statbank from Statistics Denmark
  2. ^ BY1: Population 1. January by urban areas, age and sex The Mobile Statbank from Statistics Denmark
  3. ^ Erik Hansen: SprogbrevetDR nr. 72, sproget.dk (in Danish)
  4. ^ "Kulturcentret Assistens". Archived from the original on 15 June 2006. Retrieved 14 July 2006.
  5. ^ Vision Østjylland (PDF) (in Danish). Styregruppen for projekt Byudvikling i Østjylland. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 February 2009. Retrieved 12 September 2013.
  6. ^ a b "Fredericia Station" (in Danish). DSB. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  7. ^ a b Fredericia Banegård on Danske Jernbaner
  8. ^ "Official home page". Fredericia Motor Klub. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  9. ^ "FREDERICIA VEJLBY". Speedway Life. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  10. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 7 May 2020 [unreliable source?]
  11. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 7 May 2020 [unreliable source?]
  12. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 7 May 2020 [unreliable source?]
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fredericia.
Wikisource has the text of the 1905 New International Encyclopedia article "Fredericia".
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