Damhus Lake ( da, Damhussøen or ') is a lake located just north of
Roskildevej
Roskildevej is a road between Copenhagen and Roskilde in the Danish capital area. The direct continuation of Vesterbrogade, which begins at Copenhagen's City Hall Square, the road begins at Pile Allé and continues through Frederiksberg, Valby, Rà ...
, between
Rødovre
Rødovre is a town in eastern Denmark, seat of the Rødovre Municipality, in the Region Hovedstaden. The town's population 1 January 2019 was 39,907, and in addition 145 persons had no fixed address, which made up a total of 40,052 in the munic ...
,
Vanløse
Vanløse is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It lies on the western border of the municipality. Vanløse covers an area of 6.69 km², and has a population of 36,115, making Vanløse the smallest district of Copenhagen ...
and
Frederiksberg
Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...
, on the western outskirts of inner
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 = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
. Damhus Meadow ( da, Damhusengen, links=no), once a part of the lake, is located on the north side of the lake.
History
Damhus Lake is an
artificial lake
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
which was created some time during the Middle Ages when a dam was built on
Harrestrup River (Harrestrup Ã…). The first known reference to it is from 1561 when king
Frederick II gives it to the
University of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...
. From 1618, the lake played a role in Copenhagen's water supply. It was then known as Langevadsdam. The name referred to the "Lange vad" ("long
ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
") to the south of the lake. The lake's current southern shoreline was defined in 1620–21 when an embankment was built across marshy stretch for the new
Roskilde Road. The aim of the embankment was not only to protect the road against flooding but also to secure a more stable supply of water to Copenhagen by raising the water level in the lake. The water drained into
St. Jørgen's Lake closer to the city through the artificial
Ladegård Canal.
The Roskilde Road was a
toll road
A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically ...
until 1915.
A building at the southwestern corner of the lake, Langevadsdamhuset, colloquially known as Damhuset, served as
toll house
A tollhouse or toll house is a building with accommodation for a toll collector, beside a tollgate on a toll road, canal, or toll bridge.
History
Many tollhouses were built by turnpike trusts in England, Wales and Scotland during the 18th an ...
. The lake gradually got its contemporary name from this toll house around 1800.
In 1849, a new embankment was constructed across the lake, separating it in two. In the 1920s and 1930s, Harestrup Å caused frequent floodings and it had also become known for its unpleasant odour. In 1938 it was therefore decided to regulate it in connection with the city's establishment of the new public park Vigerslevparken. The stream was disconnected from the northern part of the lake, known as Bagsøen ("The Rear Lake"), which was drained and converted into present-day Damhusengen (Damhus Meadow). In 1941, both lake and meadow were given status as public park. They were protected by the Conservation Authority in 1966.
References
External links
{{Commons
Damhus Lake / Damhus Meadowat Københavnergrøn/Copenhagen Green
Parks and open spaces in Rødovre Municipality
Geography of Copenhagen
Lakes of Zealand