Prøvestenen, also known as Benzinøen, is an artificial island off the northeast coast of

Amager Amager ( or, especially among older speakers, ) in the Øresund is Denmark's most densely populated island, with more than 212,000 inhabitants (January 2021) a small appendage to Zealand. The protected natural area of ''Naturpark Amager'' (includi ...

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 ...

. It is located between the Amager Hill combined incineration plant and ski slope to the north and

Amager Strandpark Amager Strandpark (Amager Beach Park) is a seaside public park in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located on the island of Amager and includes an artificial island and offers a total of of beaches. From the beach, the Middelgrunden wind farm can be ...

to the south. It was created as a marine fortress to guard the entrance to Copenhagen Harbour in the second half of the 18th century and served military purposes until 1922. It now houses the city's petroleum harbor. Prøvestensbroen at the end of Prags Boulevard links it with the rest of Amager.

History

The area traces its history back to 1713 when a marine battery was established at the site by wrecking the floating dock Prøvestenen. The work was led by

Ole Judichær Ole (Olaus) Judichær (20 March 1661 29 September 1729) was a Danish shipbuilder and admiral in the Royal Danish Navy. Early life Ole (or Olaus) Judichær was born on 20 March 1661 in Gotland,Bjerg in Gyldendal although this date may have been ...

. Another marine fortress,

Trekroner Fort Trekroner Søfort (literally ''Three Crowns Sea Fortress'') is a Coastal defence and fortification#Sea forts, sea fort at the entrance to the Copenhagen#Harbour, Copenhagen harbour. From 1713 until after World War I, Trekroner Fort was part of th ...

, was also built at this point. The battery fell into neglect over the following years. In 1723-24 three more ships were wrecked at the site to expand it but it was once again severely damaged by storms and ice and in 1736. In 1736, it was proposed to decommission it but the plans were never executed and it existed with a single guard until 1767–1767. It played a role in the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801. In 1802, a new marine fortress with the same name was created a little further to the north by wrecking three ships of the line. It fell into disrepair after the end of the English Wars in 1814 and was decommissioned in 1828. A third Prøvestenen Fortress was built at the site in 1859–63 to design by

Ferdinand Meldahl Ferdinand Meldahl (16 March 1827 – 3 February 1908) was a Danish architect best known for the reconstruction of Frederiksborg Castle after the fire in 1859. Meldahl was one of the leading proponents of historicism in Denmark. Biography He was ...

. The fortress was decommissioned in 1922 and sold to the Royal Danish Navy. It was subsequently converted into a Petroleum Harbour. Copenhagen's Port Authority took over all the former marine fortresses in 1933. Successive Land reclamations increased the area of the island over the next decades. An embankment connecting Prøvestenen to Amager was also built but has later been replaced by a new one.

Today

Prøvestenen is still home to Copenhagen's Petroleum Harbour but much of the capacity is no longer needed following the oil crisis in the 1970s and the discovery of oil and gas in the North Sea. Remains of Meldahl's fortress are still seen at the site. Plans for the large new Copenhagen Marina with room for 1,500 boats was put on hold in 2011.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Provestenen, Copenhagen Amager Fortifications of Copenhagen Petroleum infrastructure in Denmark 1713 establishments in Denmark