Halmtorvet (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

: The Haymarket) is a public square in the Vesterbro 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 a ...

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 ...

. It is located next to Copenhagen Central Station in front of the Meat District. The oblong square eventually turns into

Sønder Boulevard Sønder Boulevard ( lit. "South Boulevard") is a boulevard in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark, whose broad central reserve has been turned into a linear park with various facilities for sports and other activities. It runs from Halm ...

, a broad street with a park strip in its central reserve, which continues to

Enghavevej Enghavevej is a major street in the Vesterbro and Kongens Enghave districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It runs from Vesterbrogade in the north to Sydhavns Plads in the south, linking Kingosgade with Sydhavnsgade and Borgbjergsvej. History 18th an ...

Enghave station Enghave station is a former station on the S-train network in Copenhagen, Denmark. The station opened on 11 November 1911. S-train service commenced on 1 November 1934 and was latterly served by trains on Vestbanen and Frederikssundbanen. Until ...

History

Copenhagen's haymarket was originally located just inside the Western City Gate where the City Hall Square lies today. It closed on 1 January 1888 and relocated to the area outside the new Livestock Market which had opened at the site in 1879. Market days were Wednesday and Saturday and up to several hundred loads of hay and straw were traded and distributed to cattle and horse stables around the city. Halmtorvet c

Up through the 20th century, with improved infrastructure, livestock moved out of the city and horses lost their role in transportation, and the haymarket finally closed. The area fell into despair and became associated with

prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...

and drug dealing. The site was also dominated by through traffic, buses and goods transport. The area underwent gradual

gentrification Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and planning. Gentrification often increases the ...

up through the 1990s and Halmtorvet was thoroughly refurbished from 1999 to 2003 as part of a major programme for

urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...

in the Vesterbro area. The first stage was designed by the office of the City Architect and completed in 2000. The second and third stages were designed by the Park Office of the City and carried out in 2003. In order to obtain a coherent space in the area a large gas regulator in front of the Brown Meat District was removed.

Square layout

The square has an oblong shape. To make the space more attractive to

urban life Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of peop ...

, the new layout introduced one-way traffic which is taken along a single lane on the south side of the square. A roundabout on the corner of the Brown Meat District, distributes traffic south and north of the Central Station. In the centre of the square, in front of

Øksnehallen Entrance to Øksnehallen Øksnehallen is an exhibition space located on Halmtorvet in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. The building is a former market hall, part of the Brown Meat District. History The Cattle Market opened on 2 ...

, there is an oval pool surrounded by large open spaces and playgrounds. Other areas have elevated lawns and flower beds with terraced sides. Other elements in the refurbishment include new paving and items of street furniture.

Buildings

The north side of the square is lined with residential buildings from the 1890s. The building between Lille Istedgade and Abel Cathrine Gade was built from 1897 to 1898 to the design of Emil Blichfeldt who has also designed the main entrance of

Tivoli Gardens Tivoli Gardens, also known simply as Tivoli, is an amusement park and pleasure garden in Copenhagen, Denmark. The park opened on 15 August 1843 and is the third-oldest operating amusement park in the world, after Dyrehavsbakken in nearby Kla ...

on the other side of the

Central Station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

. Built in 1961, ''Borgenhus'', at No. 20, is the only building in Inner Vesterbro under City Plan West, a municipal plan from 1958 for condemnations and

in the area. The south side of the square, from the roundabout up to the beginning of Sønder Boulevard, borders on the

Meat Packing District The Meatpacking District is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan that runs from West 14th Street south to Gansevoort Street, and from the Hudson River east to Hudson Street. The Meatpacking Business Improvement District alon ...

. The original meat market was planned and designed by

Hans Jørgen Holm Hans Jørgen Holm (9 May 1835 – 22 July 1916) was a Danish architect. A pupil of Johan Daniel Herholdt, he became a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and a leading Danish proponent of the National Romantic style. Biograph ...

in 1878 but over the years new buildings were added to the design of other architects, including

by Ludvig Fenger in 1901. The section closest to the Central Station is known as the Brown Meat District. It is the older part and generally dates from about 1900. The section closest to Sønder Boulevard is known as the White Meat District and was built in the first half of the 1930s to the design of City Architect

Poul Holsøe Poul is a Danish masculine given name. It is the Danish cognate of the name Paul. Poul may refer to: People * Poul Andersen (1922–2006), Danish printer *Poul Anderson (1926–2001), American writer * Poul Erik Andreasen (born 1949), Danish foo ...

. Halmtorvet 29 is the former headquarters of

Alfred Benzon A/S Alfred Benzon A/S was a wholesaler of chemicals based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Its former headquarters at Halmtorvet 29 in Vesterbro was converted into apartments in 2008. History The company was founded by Alfred Benzon (1823–1884) on 1 Ja ...

Halmtorvet today

Halmtorvet is now lined on either side by cafés and restaurants. Part of the Brown Meat District,

at No. 11, a former market building, now serves as an exhibition venue which houses a broad variety of events, exhibitions and flea markets.

Husets Teater Husets Teater is a studio theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark. It takes its name from the Huset cultural centre in the city centre, where it was founded in 1975, but has since 1995 been based at Halmtorvet in a building which is part of the Kødbyen ...

is a small studio theatre based in another building of the Brown Meat District. Borgenhus, the modern building at No. 20, houses Station City, the

Copenhagen Police Department 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 ...

's police station for the city centre.

References

External links