Fæstningskanalen (literally "The Fortification Canal") is a canal in central
Kongens Lyngby
Kongens Lyngby (, Danish for "the King's Heather Town"; short form Lyngby) is the seat and commercial centre of Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Lyngby Hovedgade is a busy shopping street and the site of ...
,
Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality
Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality (occasionally spelled Lyngby-Tårbæk) is a municipality (Danish, '' kommune'') in the Capital Region of Denmark near Copenhagen on the eastern coast of the island of Zealand (Danish: ''Sjælland''). It is part of the ...
,
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. Created in the 1880s as part of the
new fortification ring around the Danish capital, it runs from
Lyngby Lake
Lyngby Lake (Danish: Lyngby Sø) is a lake located on the border between Lyngby-Taarbæk and Gladsaxe municipalities in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is the smallest of the four lakes that are located on Mølleåen. At the east ...
in the west to
Lyngby Hovedgade in the east. From there it originally continued to
Ermelunden in
Jægersborg Dyrehave
Dyrehaven (Danish 'The Deer Park'), officially Jægersborg Dyrehave, is a forest park north of Copenhagen. It covers around . Dyrehaven is noted for its mixture of huge, ancient oak trees and large populations of red and fallow deer. In July ...
, but this last leg of the canal is no longer filled with water. The project also included a more upstream straightening of the section of
Mølleåen
Mølleåen, also Mølleå, sometimes translated as the Millstream, is a small river in North Zealand, Denmark, which runs from the west of Bastrup Sø near Lynge to the Øresund between Taarbæk and Skodsborg. The valley contains several country ...
that connects
Furesø in the west to the west side of Lyngby Lake in the east. The canal complemented the West Rampart (Vestvolden) and a series of coastal fortresses which were built at the same time. In the event of an enemy invasion, a dam at each end of the canal, one at
Frederiksdal
Narsarmijit, formerly Narsaq Kujalleq and Frederiksdal, is a settlement in southern Greenland. It is located in the Kujalleq municipality near Cape Thorvaldsen. Its population was 66 in 2020. There has been a slow but steady pattern of emigration ...
and one at Ermelunden, would be opened, and the natural drainage of Lyngby Lake would be blocked, leading to the flooding of an extensive area of land along Hvidørebækken all the way out to the
Øresund
Øresund or Öresund (, ; da, Øresund ; sv, Öresund ), commonly known in English as the Sound, is a strait which forms the Danish–Swedish border, separating Zealand (Denmark) from Scania (Sweden). The strait has a length of ; its width v ...
coast. Water would also be led through
Gentofte Lake
Gentofte Lake (Danish: Gentofte Sø) is a lake in Gentofte in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, ...
to
Utterslev Mose
Utterslev Mose (English: Utterslev Boglands) is a large semi-natural area of lakes, reed beds and parkland located on the border between Copenhagen and Gladsaxe municipalities, approximately six kilometers northwest of central Copenhagen, Denmark ...
, leading to further floodings. Together with the moat in front of the West Rampart, this would create a complete water barrier around the Danish capital.
History
Fæstningskanalen was dug in 1887–88. A series of bridges were constructed by the engineering troops. The first was called Kirkegårdsbroen and connected Lyngby Church with Lyngby Assistens Cemetery. It remained intact until the 1920s, when the lower part of the canal was filled.
Restoration project
In January 2010, Lyngby-Taarbæk's utility company, Lyngby Forsyning, presented plans to partly restore the covered section of the canal as part of a scheme to protect central Kongens Lyngby against flooding under heavy rain. On the other side of Kanalvej, a road that runs next to the canal, Danica Pension is building a development, designed by
Henning Larsen Architects
Henning Larsen Architects is an international architectural firm based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1959 by Henning Larsen, it has around 750 employees.
In 2008, it opened an office in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and in 2011, an office in Munich, ...
, that includes the Microsoft Development Center Copenhagen.
Recreational use
Baadfarten, the boat service on Lyngby Lake and
Lake Bagsværd
Lake Bagsværd is a lake in northeastern Zealand, Denmark. After Furesø, it is the second largest lake in the Mølleå system. The lake is an appendix to the Mølleåen via Furå further on to Lyngby Lake.
The water quality in the lake is not ...
is based at Fæstningskanalen. It is located next to the bridge between Rustenborgvej and Sorgenfrivej. Canoe rental is also available.
Image gallery
Image:Mølleå at Frederiksdal.jpg, The Mølleåen at Frederiksdal
Narsarmijit, formerly Narsaq Kujalleq and Frederiksdal, is a settlement in southern Greenland. It is located in the Kujalleq municipality near Cape Thorvaldsen. Its population was 66 in 2020. There has been a slow but steady pattern of emigration ...
Image:Fæstningskanalen 03.jpg, Fæstningskanalen with Rustenborgvej 1
Image:Fæstningskanalen 06.jpg, The boat service at Rustenborgvej
References
External links
Fæstningskanalens VennerKanalvej
{{coord, 55.7724, 12.4963, type:landmark_region:DK, display=title
Parks and open spaces in Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality
Canals in Copenhagen
Fortifications of Copenhagen