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City Hall Square ( da, Rådhuspladsen, ) is a
public square A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true square, geometric square, used for community gathe ...
in the
centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
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 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 ...
, located in front of the
Copenhagen City Hall Copenhagen City Hall ( da, Københavns Rådhus) is the headquarters of the Copenhagen City Council as well as the Lord mayor of the Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. The building is situated on City Hall Square in central Copenhagen. Architect ...
. Its large size, central location, and affiliation with the city hall makes it a popular venue for a variety of events, celebrations and demonstrations. It is often used as a central point for measuring distances from Copenhagen. City Hall Square is located at the southwestern end of the
pedestrian street Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town reserved for pedestrian-only use and in whi ...
Strøget Strøget () is a pedestrian, car free shopping area in Copenhagen, Denmark. This popular tourist attraction in the centre of town is one of the longest pedestrian shopping streets in Europe at 1.1 km. Located at the centre of the old city o ...
which connects it to
Kongens Nytorv Kongens Nytorv ( lit. "The King's New Square") is a public square in Copenhagen, Denmark, centrally located at the end of the pedestrian street Strøget. The largest square of the city, it was laid out by Christian V in 1670 in connection with ...
, the other large square of the city centre, passing
Gammeltorv Gammeltorv (Old Market) is the oldest square in Copenhagen, Denmark. With adjoining Nytorv it forms a common space along the Strøget pedestrian zone. While the square dates back to the foundation of the city in the 12th century, most of its build ...
/
Nytorv Nytorv ( English: New Square or New Market) is a public square in the centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. Together with the adjoining Gammeltorv it forms a common space, today part of the Strøget pedestrian zone. The square is dominated by the imposi ...
and
Amagertorv Amagertorv (English: Amager Square), today part of the Strøget pedestrian zone, is often described as the most central square in central Copenhagen, Denmark. Second only to Gammeltorv, it is also one of the oldest, taking its name from the Amage ...
along the way. Opposite Strøget,
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. On ...
extends into the Vesterbro district and later crosses the border to
Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...
.
H. C. Andersens Boulevard H. C. Andersens Boulevard is the most densely trafficked artery in central Copenhagen, Denmark. The 1.3 km long six-lane street passes City Hall Square on its way from Jarmers Plads, a junction just north of Vesterport station, to Lange Bridge wh ...
, Copenhagen's most heavily congested street, and
Vester Voldgade Vester Voldgade ( lit. "West Rampart Street") is a street in Copenhagen, Denmark which runs from Jarmers Plads to the waterfront between Frederiksholms Kanal and Langebro, passing the City Hall Square on the way. Together with Nørre Voldgade an ...
pass the square on either side of the city hall. Apart from the City Hall, notable buildings around the square include Politikens Hus, the headquarters of national daily newspaper
Politiken ''Politiken'' is a leading Danish daily broadsheet newspaper, published by JP/Politikens Hus in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1884 and played a role in the formation of the Danish Social Liberal Party. Since 1970 it has been independe ...
, and
Industriens Hus Industriens Hus is the home of the Confederation of Danish Industries (''DI – Danish Industri''). The building is located at the corner of H. C. Andersens Boulevard and Vesterbrogade, opposite the City Hall Square, in Copenhagen, Denmark. ...
, the headquarters of the DI.


History


Hay market and exhibition area

City Hall Square is located at the site of Copenhagen's old hay market and 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 ...
of the
Fortifications of Copenhagen The fortifications of Copenhagen is the broad name for the rings of fortifications surrounding the city of Copenhagen. They can be classified historically as follows: * The medieval fortifications dating from the 12th century * The bastioned fort ...
. When the fortifications were disbanded in the 1850s, it was decided to use the vacant land for an exhibition area which played host to first the
Nordic Exhibition of 1872 Nordic most commonly refers to: * Nordic countries, written in plural as Nordics, the northwestern European countries, including Scandinavia, Fennoscandia and the North Atlantic * Scandinavia, a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in ...
and later the
Nordic Exhibition of 1888 The Nordic exhibition of Industry, Agriculture, and Art of 1888 (''Den Nordiske Industri-, Landbrugs- og Kunstudstilling i Kjøbenhavn 1888'') was an exhibition that aimed to feature the best of art, industry, and agriculture from the five Nordi ...
.
Vilhelm Klein Vilhelm Klein (6 March 1835 – 10 February 1913) was a Danish architect who adopted the Historicist approach, frequently emulating the so-called Rosenborg style and the Italian Renaissance style. Early life Born in Copenhagen, Denmark as the ...
designed an exhibition building for the first exhibition which was built at the corner of Vesterbro Passage which was built from 1870 to 1872. The four-winged, two-storey building was built in red brick to a design which was inspired by
Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...
architecture. In 1879 the centre of the complex was re-built into a large domed exhibition hall. On 1 January 1888 the hay market moved to a new location outside
Kødbyen Kødbyen (; also known as the Meat District or Meatpacking District, after the New York Meatpacking District) is a district of Vesterbro in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is situated between the railway lines going into Copenhagen Central Station and ...
, the new cattle and meat market which had opened in 1878. The site is still named
Halmtorvet Halmtorvet (English: The Haymarket) is a public square in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located next to Copenhagen Central Station in front of the Meat District. The oblong square eventually turns into Sønder Boulevard, ...
after it. The main venue of the Nordic Exhibition of 1888 was a large timber structure topped by a huge dome with a flag pole at its top. Its architect was the young and unknown
Martin Nyrop Martin Nyrop (11 November 1849 18 May 1921) was a Danish architect. Early life and education Nyrop was born on 11 November 1849 at Holmsland, Ringkøbing, the son of parish priest Christopher Nyrop (1805–1879) and Helene Ahlmann (1807–1874). ...
who was later also to design the new city hall.


The new city hall and its square

In the 1880s, plans were conceived to build a new city hall on the grounds, and in 1888, the expo area was cleared. An architecture competition was held in early 1889. Apart from Nyrop, who won the competition,
Vilhelm Dahlerup Jens Vilhelm Dahlerup (4 August 1836 – 24 January 1907) was a Danish architect who specialized in the Historicist style. One of the most productive and noted Danish architects of the 19th century, he is behind many of the most known buildings ...
and Valdemar Koch were among the participating architects. The design of the city hall was greatly inspired by the
Palazzo Pubblico The Palazzo Pubblico (''town hall'') is a palace in Siena, Tuscany, central Italy. Construction began in 1297 to serve as the seat of the Republic of Siena's government, which consisted of the Podestà and Council of Nine, the elected officia ...
in
Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, and the design of the square was accordingly modeled on the shell-shaped
Piazza del Campo Piazza del Campo is the main public space of the historic center of Siena, Tuscany, Italy and is regarded as one of Europe's greatest medieval squares. It is renowned worldwide for its beauty and architectural integrity. The Palazzo Pubblico and i ...
outside that building. On 28 July 1894, the foundation stone was laid. When it was inaugurated in 1905, the square in front of it became one of the most central and important spaces of the city. The square was redesigned in 1995 and 1996 by KHR Architects, on the occasion of Copenhagen being the European Capital of Culture. The intersecting street leading from Vesterbrogade to Strøget was removed, uniting the two sides of the square. A bus hub was built on the northern side of the square. In 2010, work began on a
metro station A metro station or subway station is a station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called a "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase Train ticket, tickets, board trains, and Emergency eva ...
on the site, requiring a major reorganisation of the site, with work was opened on 29 September 2019.


Sculptures

* The Dragon Fountain (Danish: ''Dragespringvandet''), depicting a bull and a dragon in combat. Designed by
Thorvald Bindesbøll Thorvald Bindesbøll (21 July 1846 – 27 August 1908) was a Danish National romantic architect, sculptor and ornamental artist. He designed the Dragon Fountain, Copenhagen (''Dragespringvandet'') and is perhaps best known as the creator of t ...
and
Joakim Skovgaard Joakim Frederik Skovgaard (18 November 1856 – 9 March 1933) was a Danish painter. He is remembered above all for the frescos which decorate Viborg Cathedral. Biography Born in Copenhagen, from an early age he was trained in drawing and paintin ...
, out was inaugurated in 1904. * The Weather Girl (Danish: ''vejrpigen'') is perched high on the Richs Building on the corner of Rådhuspladsen and Vesterbrogade. It is a gilded sculpture group telling the weather. One sculpture rotates to the front, depicting the girl with her bicycle. When the weather is set for rain, another sculpture rotates to the front, depicting her with an umbrella walking her dog. The sculpture group is from 1936 and designed by
Einar Utzon-Frank Aksel (Axel) Einar (Ejnar) Utzon-Frank (30 March 1888 – 15 July 1955) was a Danish sculptor and professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. During his lifetime, he produced many sculptures, some of which stand as public monuments. U ...
. *The
Lur Blowers The Lur Blowers (Danish language, Danish: Lurblæserne) is a monument located next to Copenhagen City Hall, City Hall in Copenhagen, Denmark, consisting of a bronze sculpture of two lur players mounted on top of a tall terracotta column. The monume ...
is a bronze depicting two
lur A lur, also lure or lurr, is a long natural blowing horn without finger holes that is played with a brass-type embouchure. Lurs can be straight or curved in various shapes. The purpose of the curves was to make long instruments easier to car ...
blowers standing atop a
column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...
on
tile Tiles are usually thin, square or rectangular coverings manufactured from hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, baked clay, or even glass. They are generally fixed in place in an array to cover roofs, floors, walls, edges, or o ...
s. Standing 20 m tall, it was created in 1911 to 1913 by Siegfried Wagner. *A statue of
Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisti ...
is in the square.


Description

The square's central area is 9800 m². It is often a venue for
demonstrations Demonstration may refer to: * Demonstration (acting), part of the Brechtian approach to acting * Demonstration (military), an attack or show of force on a front where a decision is not sought * Demonstration (political), a political rally or prote ...
and
buskers Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performance is pr ...
, and several bars and
nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...
s are located in the vicinity. Rådhuspladsen also houses one of the city's bus centrals.


Trivia

* In the Danish board game ''Matador'' (an early derivative of the game ''Monopoly''), Rådhuspladsen is the most expensive location (see also Localized versions of the Monopoly game).


See also

*
Vester Voldgade Vester Voldgade ( lit. "West Rampart Street") is a street in Copenhagen, Denmark which runs from Jarmers Plads to the waterfront between Frederiksholms Kanal and Langebro, passing the City Hall Square on the way. Together with Nørre Voldgade an ...
* Hotel Bristol (Copenhagen) * 2000 UEFA Cup Final riots


References


External links


Den Nye Rådhusplads



Source
{{DEFAULTSORT:City Hall Square, Copenhagen Squares in Copenhagen Tourist attractions in Copenhagen Vesterbro, Copenhagen Odonyms referring to a building