Slagelse () is a town on Zealand,

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 ...

. The town is the seat of

Slagelse Municipality Slagelse Municipality is a municipality (Danish: '' kommune'') in Region Zealand on the west coast of the island of Zealand (Danish: ''Sjælland'') in Denmark. The municipality covers an area of 571 km². The municipality borders Kalundborg M ...

, and is the biggest town of the municipality. It is located 15 km east of Korsør, 16 km north-east of

Skælskør Skælskør () is a town in Zealand, Denmark. It is located in Slagelse Municipality. Until 2007 Skælskør was the seat of Skælskør Municipality. The town is located 17 km southwest of Slagelse and 12 km southeast of Korsør. Skælsk ...

, 33 km south-east of

Kalundborg Kalundborg () is a Danish city with a population of 16,211 (1 January 2022),Sorø.

History

Slagelse has been inhabited since at least the Viking Age, where it was a

Pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

site.

Trelleborg Trelleborg () is a town in Skåne County, Sweden, with 43,359 inhabitants as of December 31, 2015. It is the southernmost town in Sweden located some west from the southernmost point of Sweden and the Scandinavian peninsula. It is one of the ...

, a ring castle, was built near the current location of Slagelse in 980, which made the location strategically important. A church was built at Slagelse's current location in the 1000s. Around this time, coins were minted in Slagelse.

Antvorskov Antvorskov Monastery (Danish: ''Antvorskov Kloster'') was the principal Scandinavian monastery of the Catholic Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, located about one kilometer south of the town of Slagelse on Zealand, Denmark. It served as the Sca ...

was built in the 1100s by Valdemar I, who had recently acquired Zealand. He built the monastery in an attempt to gain control and favor with the locals. The monastery was used by the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headq ...

. Slagelse was granted the status of a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

in 1288 by

Eric V Eric V Klipping (1249 – 22 November 1286) was King of Denmark from 1259 to 1286. After his father Christopher I died, his mother Margaret Sambiria ruled Denmark in his name until 1266, proving to be a competent regent. Between 1261 and 1262, ...

. This gave the town a series of privileges, though eventually put it in competition with the neighboring market towns of Korsør and Skælskør. In the 1780s a road from

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 ...

to Korsør was built, and this road ran through Slagelse.

Sights

Slagelse Park (Danish: ''Slagelse Lystanlæg'') is a park located centrally in Slagelse. It is a green recreational area, with lakes, playgrounds and a maze. Slagelse - parti af Slagelse Museum

Slagelse Museum is located centrally in Slagelse. The museum focuses mainly on trade and artisanry. It includes a reconstruction of a shop from the 1940-1950s, as well as sections on local history. A part of the museum is dedicated to H. C. Andersen, who went to school in Slagelse.

Antvorskov

The Antvorskov Monastery Ruins are located in southern Slagelse. They are the ruins of Antvorskov Monastery, a monastery built in 1164 by Valdemar I. It was the first

monastery in Denmark, and was used as monastery until 1536 when the crown took over ownership and turned into a castle. Frederik II used the castle between 1580 and 1584. After that it was used by fief lords until 1717, when it became a ''ryttergods'' - a location for the Danish cavalry. It was sold in 1774 and most of the castle was torn down in 1816.Destinationsjaelland.dk
"Antvorskov Klosterruin" Retrieved 23 August 2020

Notable residents

Public thought and politics

* Ludvig Stoud Platou (1778–1833), historical and geographical writer * Georg Koës (1782–1811), philologist * William Christopher Zeise (1789–1847), chemist * Jørgen Peter Frederik Wulff (1808–1881), naval officer * Anna Laursen (1845–1911), schoolteacher and women's rights activist * Niels Erik Nørlund (1885–1981), mathematician * Margrethe Nørlund Bohr (1890–1984), editor and transcriber for Danish physicist Niels Bohr *

Hilmar Baunsgaard Hilmar Baunsgaard (26 February 1920, Slagelse – 30 June 1989) was a Danish politician who served as Prime Minister of Denmark from 1968 to 1971. He was a member of the Danish Social Liberal Party and the party's leader from 1968 to 1975. He wa ...

(1920–1989), politician and leader of the Danish Social Liberal Party from 1968–1975 * Villum Christensen (born 1954), politician and MF * Kim Christiansen (born 1956), politician and MF *

Stén Knuth Stén Knuth (born 15 December 1964 in Slagelse) is a Danish politician who is a member of the Folketing for the Venstre political party. He was elected into parliament in the 2019 Danish general election. Knuth has been in the municipal counci ...

(born 1964), politician and MF * Louise Schack Elholm (born 1977), politician and MF * Rasmus Horn Langhoff (born 1980), politician and MF

Art

Johan Jacob Bruun Johan Jacob Bruun (30 November 1715 – 4 January 1789) was a Danish painter. Often working in gouaches, he is most known for his topographic prospects which herald the development of a Danish landscape painting. Biography He was born in Slage ...

(1715–1789), painter * Andrea Krætzmer (1811–1889), ballet dancer * Didrik Frisch (1835–1867), landscape painter * Ludvig Abelin Schou (1838–1867), painter * Hans Egede Budtz (1889–1968), actor * Ella Ungermann (1891–1921), actress *

Vilhelm Lauritzen Vilhelm Lauritzen (9 September 1894 – 22 December 1984) was a leading Danish modern architect, founder of the still active architectural firm Vilhelm Lauritzen Arkitekter. Biography Vilhelm Lauritzen was born in Slagelse, Denmark. He studied ...

(1894–1984), architect and founder of the Vilhelm Lauritzen Architects architectural firm *

Hardy Rafn Hardy Rafn (17 September 1930 – 23 January 1997) was a Danish film actor. He appeared in 34 films between 1956 and 1997. He was born in Slagelse, Denmark and died in Denmark. Selected filmography * '' Father of Four in the City'' (1956 ...

(1930–1997), actor * Stig Brøgger (born 1941), artist * Torben Lendager (born 1951), singer * Kirsten Siggard (born 1954), singer and 3-time participant of the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

* Karsten Kiilerich (born 1955), director, writer and animator * Elle Klarskov Jørgensen (born 1958), sculptor * Simone Egeriis (born 1992), pop singer *

Alex Høgh Andersen Alex Høgh Andersen (born May 20, 1994) is a Danish actor, model and photographer. He is mostly known for the role of Ivar the Boneless in the historical drama television series ''Vikings'' (2016–2020). Personal life Andersen was born on 20 M ...

(born 1994), actor

Sport

* Fred K. Nielsen (1879–1963), college football coach * Hans Olsen (fencer) (1886–1976), fencer * Poul Toft Jensen (1912–2000), football player * Gunner Olesen (1916–1979), gymnast * Villy Moll Nielsen (1927), field hockey player * Poul Moll Nielsen (1930 - 1992), field hockey player * Torben Alstrup Jensen (1930 - 2007), field hockey player *

Willy Kristoffersen Willy Kristoffersen (born 18 October 1933) is a Danish field hockey player. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the ...

(born 1933), field hockey player * Ernst Pedersen (born 1935), former sports shooter *

Vagn Bangsborg Vagn Bangsborg (born 28 May 1936) is a former Danish cyclist. He competed in the team time trial at the 1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( ...

(born 1936), former cyclist * Ole Ritter (born 1941), former cyclist *

Bo Braastrup Andersen Bo Braastrup Andersen (26 March 1976 - ) is a Danish football manager and former goalkeeper. He is currently managing Stavanger IF. Playing career Bo Braastrup Andersen played for Lyngby FC, Bristol City F.C., Djurgårdens IF, Viking FK, UD La ...

(born 1976), football manager and former goalkeeper * Martin Kristjansen (born 1977), boxer * Joachim Persson (born 1983), badminton player * Buster Juul (born 1993), handball player * Niklas Larsen (born 1997), cyclist

References

{{Authority control Municipal seats of Region Zealand Municipal seats of Denmark Cities and towns in Region Zealand Slagelse Municipality