Alderstrøst refers to two residential complexes built by

Association of Craftsmen in Copenhagen The Association of Craftsmen in Copenhagen (Danish language, Danish: Haandværkerforeningen i Kjøbenhavn) is an interest organisation based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Its 2,200 members are owners of small and medium large companies. It is affiliated w ...

to provide affordable housing for elderly, indigent members and their widows in the

Nørrebro Nørrebro (, ) is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is northwest of the city centre, beyond the location of the old Northern Gate (''Nørreport''), which, until dismantled in 1856, was near the current Nørreport station ...

district of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. The oldest is located on

Nørrebrogade Nørrebrogade is the principal shopping street of the Nørrebro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It runs from The Lakes in the southeast to Nørrebro station in the northwest, linking Frederiksborggade and Queen Louise's Bridge with Frederikssun ...

(Nørrebrogade 17, Baggesensgade 10 and Blågårdsgade 9). The other one is located at the corner of

Nørre Allé Nørre Alle (literally "North Avenue") is a street in Copenhagen, Denmark, running from Blegdamsvej in Nørrebro in the south to Vibenshus Runddel in Østerbro in the north. It runs through University of Copenhagen's North Campus which is cent ...

(No. 15–19) and Møllegade (No. 28–30). The Nørreborgade complex is no longer owned by Håndværkerforeningen.

History

Creating the foundation

On a board meeting in 1852, the idea was conceived for a "collection lottery" which was to raise funds for the construction of affordable housing for elderly craftsmen in Copenhagen but the lottery was not approved by the authorities until 1857. The Alderstrøst Foundation was established by in 1862.Other contributions came from gifts and grants.

Alderstrøst in Nørrebrogade

An 11,606 square alen (4,180 m²) site on Nørrebrogade was acquired the architect Theodor Sørensen, who had recently completed

St. John's Church St. John's Church, Church of St. John, or variants, thereof, (Saint John or St. John usually refers to John the Baptist, but also, sometimes, to John the Apostle or John the Evangelist) may refer to the following churches, former churches or other ...

, Nørrebro's first church, was charged with the design of the first residences. The building was completed in 1863. It was expanded with a new wing on Baggesengade and a connecting building in 1870–71. The complex was expanded again in 1870 when a new wing was built on Blågårdsgade. All the buildings are in four or five storeys and the complex originally contained 194 homes.

Alderstrøst in Nørre Allé

Alderstrøst (Johan Gottlieb Julius Aagaard)

A new, 15,848 square alen (5,708 m²) site was acquired on the corner of Møllegade and Nørre Allé in 1892. The side on Nørre Allé flanked Bræstrups Stiftelse, anothercharitable housing complex. The new building was designed by Thorvald Sørensen, Theodor Sørensen's son. The foundation stone for the new building was set on 16 January 1893 and it was completed in 1895. The complex consisted of a main wing on Møllegade, both of which in five storeys, and twofour-storey buildings on Nørre Allé. At the time of its inauguration, the complex contained 35 free residences and 226 residences with low rent. Im 1937-38, Håndforeningen purchased Bræstrups Stiftelse at Nørre Allé 17. The building was demolished and replaced by a new building designed by Henning Hansen. It is designed in a restrained, Functionalist style with horizontal lines in the brickwork and with use of building materials similar to those of the older buildings.

Later initiative

In 1936, Haandværkerforeningen launched an architectural competition for a third Alderstrøst in

Emdrup Emdrup is a neighbourhood straddling the border between the Bispebjerg and Østerbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located between Utterslev Mose in the west and the Helsingør Motorway in the east, just south of the border with Gladsax ...

. The competition was won by Henning Hansen but the complex was instead given the name Håndværkerhaven (The Craftsman Garden).

Today

The complex is no longer owned by Håndværkerforeningen but is now a section of FSBbolig. The complex on Nørre Allé was refurbished for DKK 22+ millions between 2003 and 2008 by AI-gruppen A/S and MT Højgaard. The complex now contains 156 apartments.

References

External links

Alderstrøst
Håndværkerforeningen
Source
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alderstrost Residential buildings in Copenhagen Nørrebro