Hässleholm (older da, Hasselholm) is a

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

and the seat of

Hässleholm Municipality Hässleholm Municipality (''Hässleholms kommun'') is a municipality in Scania County in southern Sweden. Its seat is located in the city Hässleholm. The present municipality was created in 1974 when the former ''City of Hässleholm,'' itself i ...

Scania County Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne C ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

with 18,500 inhabitants in 2010.

Overview

Hässleholm was gradually developed from 1860 in connection with the construction of the main

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

line. There was no settlement on the spot before the arrival of the railway. The station got its name from a manor situated in the vicinity of a planned railway

junction Junction may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Junction'' (film), a 2012 American film * Jjunction, a 2002 Indian film * Junction (album), a 1976 album by Andrew Cyrille * Junction (EP), by Basement Jaxx, 2002 * Junction (manga), or ''Hot ...

. It gained the city title in 1914 and was then classified as one of Sweden's smallest cities. During the 20th century, it developed into a military hub. After the end of the

cold war The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, most of the military establishments were disbanded or moved to other locations. Snapphanen av Axel Ebbe-1

In 2000, Hässleholm's Cultural Center ("kulturhus") was opened. It features theatres, a library, a visitors center, and restaurants. East of the town center is the hometown park ("hembygdspark") with a statue called "

Snapphane A ''snapphane'' was a member of a 17th-century pro-Danish guerrilla organization, auxiliaries or paramilitary troops that fought against the Swedes in the Second Northern and Scanian Wars, primarily in the eastern former Danish provinces that ha ...

n", by the sculptor

Axel Ebbe Axel may refer to: People * Axel (name), all persons with the name Places * Axel, Netherlands, a town ** Capture of Axel, a battle at Axel in 1586 Arts, entertainment, media * ''Axel'', a 1988 short film by Nigel Wingrove * ''Axel'', a Cirque d ...

. The statue reminds of the area's history as a center for Scanian

insurgents An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric nature: small irreg ...

during the 17th-century struggles between Sweden and Denmark. Some of the town's most interesting and distinctive architecture is located along First Avenue ("Första avenyn"). The Central Train Station is at the west end of the street, in the very heart of the town. Hässleholm's church (built in 1914) lies at the east end of the street. Hotell Statt, the main and oldest hotel, is located on the north side, and on the south side is the town's oldest building, which now holds stores, offices, and apartments. The Swedish representative for the

2013 Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest 2013 was the 58th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Malmö, Sweden, following the country's victory at the with the song "Euphoria" by Loreen. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EB ...

Robin Stjernberg Robin James Olof Stjernberg (; born 22 February 1991, Hässleholm, Sweden) is a Swedish pop singer, songwriter and producer. He represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 on home soil on 18 May 2013 with the song "You". Stjernberg st ...

, was born in Hässleholm in 1991.

Sports

The local sports clubs are: *

Hässleholms IF Hässleholms IF is a Sweden, Swedish association Football, football club located in Hässleholm in Skåne County. Background Hässleholms Idrottsförening were founded on 1 May 1922. In addition to football, the club over the years has run sec ...

IFK Hässleholm IFK Hässleholm is a Swedish football club from Hässleholm that was established in 1905. The team is currently playing in Division 2 Östra Götaland. Several well known players have played at the club including England international strike ...

References

External links

Official site
Municipal seats of Skåne County Swedish municipal seats Populated places in Hässleholm Municipality Populated places in Skåne County 20th-century establishments in Skåne County {{Skåne-geo-stub