Rudkøbing is a town in

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 ...

, on the western coast of the island of

Langeland Langeland (, ) is a Danish island located between the Great Belt and Bay of Kiel. The island measures 285 km2 (c. 110 square miles) and, as of 1 January 2018, has a population of 12,446.

. It is the seat of Langeland Municipality, in the Southern Denmark Region. The town is located southeast of

Svendborg Svendborg () is a town on the island of Funen in south-central Denmark, and the seat of Svendborg Municipality. With a population of 27,300 (1 January 2022), Svendborg is Funen's second largest city.Siø Siø is a small Danish island in the South Funen Archipelago between Tåsinge and Langeland. It is part of Langeland Municipality. With an area of 1.3 km2, as of 1 January 2014 it has a population of 16. Since 1681, a system of dykes has expa ...

through the Siøsund Bridge.

History

The first mention of Rudkøbing was in 1287, when it was given market town privileges by Duke Valdemar IV of Schleswig, who held the title of ''rigsforstander'' ( da) under King

Eric VI Menved Eric VI Menved (1274 – 13 November 1319) was King of Denmark (1286–1319). A son of King Eric V and Agnes of Brandenburg, he became king in 1286 at age 12, when his father was murdered on 22 November by unknown assailants. On account of his age ...

. The original Rudkøbing Church was built most likely in the late 12th century or early 13th century. During the

Count's Feud The Count's Feud ( da, Grevens Fejde), also called the Count's War, was a war of succession that raged in Denmark in 1534–36 and brought about the Reformation in Denmark. In the international context, it was part of the European wars of relig ...

(1534–1536) and again during the

Dano-Swedish War (1658–1660) The Dano-Swedish War of 1658–1660 was a war between Denmark–Norway and Sweden, with the former backed by the Dutch Republic and Poland. It is known in Denmark as the Second Karl Gustav War ( da, Anden Karl Gustav-krig), in Norway as Bjelkes ...

, Rudkøbing was under siege by Swedish troops. Both times, the town's

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere' ...

s prevented Rudkøbing from immediately falling, but the town eventually had to give in to the Swedes. The town was hit by the Black Plague during the 16th and 17th centuries, and experienced fires in 1590 and 1610. The Ørsted family, which most notably includes the brothers

Hans Christian Hans Christian may refer to: People * Hans Christian (musician) (born 1960), German-born musician and producer * Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875), Danish author and poet * Hans Christian Gram (1853–1938), Danish bacteriologist * Hans Chri ...

and

Anders Sandøe Ørsted Anders Sandøe Ørsted (21 December 1778 – 1 May 1860) was a Danish lawyer, politician and jurist. He served as the Prime Minister of Denmark in 1853–1854. Biography He studied philosophy and law at the University of Copenhagen and was ...

, has its origins in Rudkøbing. Their father was a pharmacist, and the brothers were born in the old pharmacy on Gåsetorvet. Across from their birth house is a statue of Hans Christian, and a statue of Anders is located at nearby Ørstedsparken, which is named in their honor. The old pharmacy remained in use until 2017. Rudkøbing got its first proper harbor in 1826 (it had previously only had a

pier Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...

). In 1898, in a town of about 3,500 people, there were 152 ships

based Brandon Christopher McCartney (born August 17, 1989), professionally known as Lil B and as his alter ego The BasedGod, is an American rapper. Lil B has recorded both solo and with Bay Area group The Pack. His solo work spans several genres, i ...

in Rudkøbing. Every year, over 2,500 ships (carrying over 18,000 metric tons of cargo) came in and over 2,800 ships (carrying over 11,500 metric tons of cargo) went out, mostly to and from elsewhere in Denmark. The town was connected by steam ferry routes to

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 ...

Korsør Korsør is a town on Zealand, Denmark. It is located in Slagelse Municipality. Until 2007 Korsør was the seat of Korsør Municipality. The town is located west of Slagelse, north-west of Skælskør and connects to Nyborg through the Great Bel ...

Marstal Marstal () is a town in southern Denmark, located in Ærø Municipality on the island of Ærø. Marstal has a population of 2,120 (1 January 2022)Svendborg Svendborg () is a town on the island of Funen in south-central Denmark, and the seat of Svendborg Municipality. With a population of 27,300 (1 January 2022), Svendborg is Funen's second largest city.Interwar period, hovering above 4,000, with the census in 1930 recording a population of 4,129. The population peaked at 4,541 in 1950, and by 1965, it had fallen to 4,204. Around this time a suburb developed in Skrøbelev Parish ( da), which eventually grew together with Rudkøbing. Each year since 1991, the town has hosted

Langelandsfestivalen Langelandsfestivalen, also known as Denmark's largest garden party, is a Danish family festival. The festival began in 1991 and over time has grown into one of Denmark's biggest festivals with 30,000 to 35,000 visitors in 2008. It is usually hel ...

, a music festival which targets families. Usually lasting 8 days, the festival has performances from both Danish and foreign musicians. Rudkøbing was the seat of the former Rudkøbing Municipality in

Funen County Funen County ( da, Fyns Amt) is a former county (Danish: ''amt'') in central Denmark, comprising the islands of Funen, Langeland, Tåsinge, Ærø, and approximately 90 other islands, of which only 25 are inhabited. The county was formed on 1 Ap ...

, and is the seat of the current Langeland Municipality in the Southern Denmark Region. When Rudkøbing was its own municipality, there were often negotiations with the two other Langelandic municipalities of Sydlangeland and Tranekær to merge. These plans were repeatedly abandoned due to a lack of public support. In the 2007 Danish Municipal Reform, the three were forced together, and Rudkøbing has since been the municipal seat.

Transport

Bridges connecting Rudkøbing and Svendborg were built throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s, finishing in 1966. The old ferry route between the two towns gradually lost popularity due to the bridges, and the route was eventually ended. The ferry route to Marstal, which had been active since 1866, was closed in 2013, so that the only ferry on this route could be moved to the busy route between Marstal and Svendborg. The ferry route between Rudkøbing and Marstal opened again in December 2019. The

Langeland Bridge Langeland Bridge ( Danish, ''Langelandsbroen'') is a road bridge that connects the islands Langeland and Siø. From Siø a connection exists via Tåsinge to Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, ...

was built between 1960 to 1962. It connects Rudkøbing and the rest of Langeland to the island of

Siø Siø is a small Danish island in the South Funen Archipelago between Tåsinge and Langeland. It is part of Langeland Municipality. With an area of 1.3 km2, as of 1 January 2014 it has a population of 16. Since 1681, a system of dykes has expa ...

. Siø is further linked by the Siøsund Bridge to

Tåsinge Tåsinge () is a Danish island immediately south of Funen, opposite and facing Svendborg, divided from Funen by Svendborgsund.See detailed Denmark roadmap in References section. The island covers an area of circa . It is part of the South Funen A ...

, and Tåsinge is linked by the Svendborgsund Bridge to

Svendborg Svendborg () is a town on the island of Funen in south-central Denmark, and the seat of Svendborg Municipality. With a population of 27,300 (1 January 2022), Svendborg is Funen's second largest city.Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

, making Rudkøbing accessible by road. From 1911 to 1962, Rudkøbing was the main station of the Langeland rail network, called ''Langelandsbanen'' ( da). The network was connected to Svendborg in 1926, when a railway ferry route made it possible to move train wagons between Rudkøbing and the mainland of

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

Notable residents

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau by Gage Skidmore 2

Artists

* Jens Christian Bay (1871–1962), Danish American writer, bibliographer and librarian, who emigrated to the US in 1892. *

Preben Lerdorff Rye Preben Lerdorff Rye (23 May 1917 – 15 June 1995) was a Danish film actor. He appeared in 92 films between 1941 and 1989. He was born and died in Denmark. Selected filmography * '' The Child'' (1940) – Jurastuderende * ''En ganske alminde ...

(1917–1995), actor who appeared in 92 films *

Bjørn Watt-Boolsen Bjørn Watt-Boolsen (20 June 1923 – 28 December 1998) was a Danish film actor. He appeared in 50 films between 1943 and 1998. He was born in Rudkøbing, Denmark and died in Denmark. He was married to actress Lis Løwert. They married on 2 ...

(1923–1998), actor who played several characters in the ''

Olsen-banden The ''Olsen Gang'' ( da, Olsen-banden, no, Olsenbanden, german: Die Olsenbande) is a Danish comedy film series created by Danish director Erik Balling and special effects expert Henning Bahs about the eponymous fictional criminal gang. The gang ...

'' films. *

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau Nikolaj William Coster-Waldau (; born 27 July 1970) is a Danish actor and producer. He graduated from the Danish National School of Performing Arts in Copenhagen in 1993, and had his breakthrough role in Denmark with the film '' Nightwatch'' (19 ...

(born 1970), actor, who played

Jaime Lannister Ser Jaime Lannister is a fictional character in the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' series of fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin and its television adaptation ''Game of Thrones'', where he is portrayed by Danish actor Nikolaj Coste ...

in the TV series '' Game of Thrones''.

Athletes

* Ingrid Larsen (1912–1997), diver who competed in the 1932 Summer Olympics. * Hans Jørgen Boye (born 1942), retired rower, competed in the 1964 Summer Olympics.

Politicians and public thinkers

Erik Bredal Erik Bredal (1608 – 18 May 1672) was a Danish-born, Norwegian Lutheranism, Lutheran Bishop. Erik Bredal was born in the town of Rudkøbing, on the island of Langeland in south-central Denmark. Bredal came from a clerical family. His fathe ...

(1608–1672), Danish-born Norwegian

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

bishop. *

Otto Fabricius Otto Fabricius (6 March 174420 May 1822) was a Danish missionary, naturalist, ethnographer, and explorer of Greenland. Biography Otto Fabricius was born in Rudkøbing on the island of Langeland, Denmark, where his father was a rector. In his ...

(1744–1822),

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

, naturalist,

ethnographer Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject o ...

, and

explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

of Greenland. *

(1778–1860), politician and jurist, who served as

Prime Minister of Denmark The prime minister of Denmark ( da, Danmarks statsminister, fo, Forsætisráðharri, kl, Ministeriuneq) is the head of government in the Kingdom of Denmark comprising the three constituent countries: Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Island ...

1853–1854 * Mads Johansen Lange (1807–1856), nicknamed the ''King of Bali'', Danish trader, entrepreneur, and peace maker on Bali. Several of his descendants, including Crown Prince Tunku Abu Bakar of

Johor Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares maritime ...

, visited Rudkøbing in 2011.

Scientists

* Hans Christian Ørsted (1777–1851), physicist and chemist who discovered that electric currents create magnetic fields, known for

Oersted's law In electromagnetism, Ørsted's law, also spelled Oersted's law, is the physical law stating that an electric current creates a magnetic field. This was discovered on 21 April 1820 by Danish physicist Hans Christian Ørsted (1777–1851),H. A. M. ...

(1816–1872), botanist, mycologist, zoologist and

marine biologist Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifi ...

.Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography, Oersted, Anders Sandöe
retrieved 24 April 2020 * Marianne Schroll (born 1942), specialist in

geriatric medicine Geriatrics, or geriatric medicine, is a medical specialty focused on providing care for the unique health needs of older adults. The term ''geriatrics'' originates from the Greek γέρων ''geron'' meaning "old man", and ιατρός ''iatros' ...

Gallery

Image:Rudkøbing - Gåsetorvet ved Brogade.JPG, Statue of Hans Christian Ørsted on Gåsetorvet. File:H.C. Ørsted - Rudkøbing.jpg, Closeup of the Ørsted statue on Gåsetorvet. File:Rudkoebing 1900.jpg, Map of Rudkøbing in 1900. Note the archaic spelling of the town's name. File:Rudkøbing - Langelandsbroen.JPG, The

, as seen from Rudkøbing. File:RudkøbingBanegårdVejside.JPG, The old railway station in Rudkøbing. File:Rudkøbing Kirke 2007.jpg, Rudkøbing Church.

External links

Rudkøbing on danmarkshistorien.dk
(in Danish)
Dansk Center for Byhistorie – Rudkøbing

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudkobing Municipal seats of the Region of Southern Denmark Municipal seats of Denmark Cities and towns in the Region of Southern Denmark Langeland Municipality