The Royal Copenhagen Shooting Society (

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

: Kongelige Kjøbenhavnske Skydeselskab og danske Broderskab) was founded some time before 1443 in

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 ...

. Originally it served to train citizens to contribute to the defence of the city but by the 18th century its activities were of a purely ceremonial and social nature. Today it is based at the Sølyst estate north of the city.

History

Early history

The first known reference to the Royal Copenhagen Shooting Society is from 1443. In the beginning it was involved with the training of citizens as part of the defence of the city but its activities had gradually become of a purely ceremonial and social nature. The society was based in the street Kompagnistræde, which was named after it, where No. 16 lies today.

Outside the Western City Gate

Since the activities were hardly compatible with a location inside the fortified city, the society was granted royal permission to conduct the shooting training outside the city. This took place at various sites from 1619 and in the 1750s a permanent shooting range was established outside the

Western City Gate The Western City Gate ( sr, Западна капија Београда, Zapadna kapija Beograda), also known as the Genex Tower ( sr, Кула Генекс, Kula Geneks) is a 36-story skyscraper in Belgrade, Serbia, which was designed in 1977 b ...

. In 1782 the society acquired a tract of land, stretching from present day

Vesterbrogade Vesterbrogade () is the main shopping street of the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. The 1.5 km long street runs from the City Hall Square in the east to Pile Allé in Frederiksberg in the west where it turns into Roskildevej. O ...

to the beach. The same year the foundation stone was laid for a mansion which was to serve as a venue for the society's social activities but due to shortage of funds construction came to a standstill several times and the building was not completed until 1787. When Vesterbro started to develop in the second half of the 19th century, after the city had been allowed to develop beyond its now decommissioned fortifications, the Royal Shooting Society once again found itself situated in urban surroundings. City authorities expropriated much of its grounds and in 1887, 100 years after the completion of its building, a tall wall was constructed to shield the newly established street

Istedgade Istedgade (also called ''Strassen'') is a 1-kilometer straight street in the district of Vesterbro in the Danish capital, Copenhagen. It starts at Copenhagen Central Station and runs parallel to Vesterbrogade to Enghave Plads and Enghaveparken. ...

from stray bullets from the shooting range. The wall was built to the design of architect Ludvig Knudsen in a neo-gothic style. Ludvig Knudsen also modernized the interior of the Shooting Society's mansion in the 1890s and added a small new wing towards the gardens.

Post-World War II move to Sølyst

After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the Society moved to Sølyst Manor near

Klampenborg Klampenborg is a northern suburb to Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located in Gentofte Municipality, directly on Øresund, between Taarbæk and Skovshoved. Like other neighbourhoods along the Øresund coast, Klampenborg is an affluent area with many ...

north of Copenhagen, while Copenhagen Municipality acquired the old headquarters and ultimately turned the building into the

Museum of Copenhagen The Museum of Copenhagen (Danish: Københavns Bymuseum) is the official museum of Copenhagen, Denmark, documenting the city's history from the 12th century to the present. History The Museum of Copenhagen was founded in 1901. Starting in 1925, t ...

The society today

As of 1997 the society had 138 members. Since the 16th century it has been a tradition that the Danish monarch is one of its members and this is also the case for Queen

Margrethe II Margrethe II (; Margrethe Alexandrine Þórhildur Ingrid, born 16 April 1940) is Queen of Denmark. Having reigned as Denmark's monarch for over 50 years, she is Europe's longest-serving current head of state and the world's only incumbent femal ...

and

Crown Prince Frederik Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark, Count of Monpezat, (Frederik André Henrik Christian; born 26 May 1968) is the heir apparent to the Danish throne. He is the elder son of Queen Margrethe II and Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark, Prince Henri ...

. Most notably, the former

United States Ambassador to Denmark The first representative from the United States to Denmark was appointed in 1827 as a Chargé d'Affaires. There followed a series of chargés and ministers until 1890 when the first full ambassador ''(Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipoten ...

, James P. Cain, is a member.

References

External links

Members

Society

Source
{{Authority control Organizations based in Copenhagen History of Copenhagen Vesterbro, Copenhagen