Køge (, older spelling ''Kjøge'') is a Danish

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manc ...

on the coast of Køge Bugt (''Bay of Køge'') 39 km southwest of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. It is the principal town and seat of

Køge Municipality Køge Municipality (, ) is a '' kommune'' in the Region Sjælland on the east coast of the island of Zealand approx. 40 km southwest of Copenhagen. The municipality covers an area of 255 km² (98 sq. miles), and has a total population ...

, Region Sjælland (Zealand),

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. In 2025, the

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

had a population of 38,506.BY3: Population 1. January by urban areas, area and population density
The Mobile Statbank from

Statistics Denmark Statistics Denmark () is a Danish governmental organization under the Ministry of the Interior and Housing, reporting to the Minister of Economic and Internal Affairs. The organization is responsible for creating statistics on the Danish society ...

The natural harbour and strategic location have given Køge a long history as 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 rura ...

. Today, that past is evident in a well-preserved old town centre with many

half-timbered Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

houses. Køge is located in the

Copenhagen metropolitan area The Copenhagen metropolitan area or Metropolitan Copenhagen (, , literally "The Capital Area") is a large commuter belt (the area in which it is practical to commute to work) surrounding Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. It includes Copenha ...

and is connected to downtown Copenhagen by the E line of the

S-train The S-Bahn ( , ), , is a hybrid urban rail, urban–suburban rail system serving a metropolitan region predominantly in German language, German-speaking countries. Some of the larger S-Bahn systems provide service similar to rapid transit syst ...

commuter rail system. Køge is also on the Copenhagen-Ringsted Line that was opened in June 2019. The new line positioned Køge as a central hub in Denmark's transport system.

History

Like most Danish cities, the origins of Køge precede

written history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world his ...

. Køge was first recognized as an official

in 1288, as a Southern contrast to

Roskilde Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 53,354 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...

, the ecclesiastical center at that time, and was an important merchant town during the late Middle Ages. During the local witchhunt, called Køge Huskors (1608–1615), at least 15 people were convicted of witchcraft and burned at the stake. During the wars between Denmark and Sweden in the period of 1643–1720, the town suffered severely at the Battle of Køge Bay. In 1807, the town and surrounding area was the scene of the Battle of Køge between British and Danish troops. Køge remained a small town until the late 19th century, when industrial development and population growth began. Today, Køge forms the core of the 18th most populous

in Denmark.

Geography

Køge is located at the back of Bay of Køge, demarcated by Copenhagen to the north and the Stevns Peninsula to the south, where Køge Å (''Køge Creek'') meets the sea. Apart from Køge proper, the town's

consists of the suburbs of Køge Nord ( Ølby Lyng and Ølsemagle Lyng) to the north and Hastrup and

Herfølge Herfølge is a suburb of the town of Køge, Denmark, located about 5 kilometers south of central Køge, and is a part of Køge Municipality. The suburb is connected to Køge and Næstved by the Lille Syd railway line. Herfølge Church Herføl ...

to the south.

Economy

The port is directly connected with th
Scandinavian Transport Centre
a large business park on the northwestern outskirts of Køge, where – among others – the headquarters and the Danish distribution centre of the multinational, Danish-founded, discount supermarket chain Netto is located.

Culture

Museums

Køge Museum is located at 4 Nørregade in a preserved former merchant's house from the year 1619. Further down the street, at No. 29, lies KØS Museum of Art in Public Spaces. It is the only art museum in Denmark dedicated specifically to sketches and models for art works in the public realm. Among its holdings is the original model for

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" (), sometimes translated in English as "The Little Sea Maid", is a fairy tale written by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. Originally published in 1837 as part of a collection of fairy tales for children, the story foll ...

in Copenhagen.

Architecture

The historical architecture of the town centre is one of the major attractions of Køge. The oldest dated

house in Denmark, which is also the oldest dated building of the

nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; ) are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe, as well as the Arctic Ocean, Arctic and Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic oceans. It includes the sovereign states of Denm ...

built neither for nobility nor for religious purposes, can be found in Køge. It was built in 1527. Originally a section of a row of hovels, it is now a part of the public library. Pictures can be found in the gallery. Sankt Nicolai Church is located nearby. The tower of the church contains a lighthouse, which was the first one to be built in Denmark. Køge Town Hall dates from 1552 and is the oldest town hall in Denmark still in use as such. ''Køge Torv'', the

market square A market square (also known as a market place) is an urban square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world. A market square is an open area where market stalls are tradit ...

, is, with an area of almost 1

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...

(2.5

acres The acre ( ) is a unit of land area used in the British imperial and the United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, ...

), the largest

town square A town square (or public square, urban square, city square or simply square), also called a plaza or piazza, is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town or city, and which is used for community gatherings. Relat ...

in Denmark outside Copenhagen and the largest and best-preserved medieval town square in Denmark. There are fair days on the square Wednesday and Saturday. The Third largest

Viking Ring Fortress A Viking ring fortress, Trelleborg-type fortress, or trelleborg (pl. ''trelleborgs''), is a type of circular fort of a special design, built in Scandinavia during the Viking Age. These fortresses have a strictly circular shape, with roads and g ...

was found near the village of Lellinge west of Køge. Kjøge Miniby (Kjøge Mini-Town) is a historically correct model of the town from the year 1865 – built to a scale of 1:10.

Sports

The football club HB Køge was created through a merger of professional football between Herfølge Boldklub and Køge Boldklub in 2009. It currently plays in the

Danish 1st Division The 1st Division (''1. Division'') is the second-highest football league in Denmark, also known as NordicBet Liga for sponsorship reasons. From 1945 to 1991, the 1. Division was the name of the highest level of football in Denmark. With the for ...

. Their home ground is Køge Sports Park (Capelli Sport Stadium).

Gallery

File:Køge during winter.jpg, Køge in the winter Image:Koege ToexensSkole.JPG, New entrance to the former Tøxens Skole in Køge (now Sankt Nicolai Skole Nord) Image:OldestbuildinginKoege.jpg, Oldest dated house in Køge, also the oldest dated half-timbered house in Denmark Image:Køge - gammelt bindingsværkshus, Kirkestræde.jpg, Modern photo of the oldest dated half-timbered house in Køge and Denmark Image:Køge - Kirkestræde.jpg, Looking down Kirkestræde (Church Street) in Køge. Køge's church (Sankt Nicolai Kirke is behind the trees) Image:Sankt Nicolai Kirke Koege Denmark.jpg, Køge church (Sankt Nicolai Kirke) Image:Køge - gamle huse i Kirkestræde.jpg, Old houses on Kirkestræde (Church Street) in Køge Image:Køge - statue af Frederik 7. - Torvet.jpg, Statue of King Frederik VII in the centre of Køge's town square Image:Køge museum.JPG, Køge Museum with the yellow painted town hall in the background Image:Kunstmuseet-Koege-Skitsesamling.jpg, KØS - museum of art in public spaces Image:Køge Miniby2.jpg, Part of Kjøge Miniby (Kjøge Mini-Town) the historical Mini-Town File:Water tower in Koge, Denmark.JPG, Water tower in Køge

Transport

Roads

The partial Y interchange, where the Danish part of the motorway E20 meet the Danish part of the motorway E47 and E55, is located only few kilometers northwest of Køge.

Railway stations

Køge railway station is the principal railway station of the town. The

Copenhagen S-train The Copenhagen S-train (), the S-train of Copenhagen, Denmark, is a key part of public transport in the city. It is a hybrid urban rail, urban-suburban rail serving most of the Copenhagen urban area, and is analogous to the S-Bahn systems of Ber ...

network has a line which begins at the station, which also offers

regional train Regional rail is a public rail transport service that operates between towns and cities. These trains operate with more stops than inter-city rail, and unlike commuter rail, operate beyond the limits of urban areas, connecting smaller cities a ...

s to

and

Næstved Næstved () is a town in Næstved Municipality, the municipality of the same name, located in the southern part of the island of Zealand (Denmark), Zealand in Denmark. Næstved has several adult education centers, five Primary education, elemen ...

and

local train Regional rail is a public rail transport service that operates between towns and cities. These trains operate with more stops than inter-city rail, and unlike commuter rail, operate beyond the limits of urban areas, connecting smaller cities a ...

s to the Stevns Peninsula. There are also an

station in the northern part of Ølby Lyng and a local train station in the southern suburb of Herfølge. The Køge North railway station opened on 1 June 2019 and serves as an

Intercity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the train categories in Europe, classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to InterRegio, regional train, r ...

regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

and

station.

Port of Køge

The Port of Køge is one of the oldest ports in Denmark but has been modernised over the last few years. Since 2002, there has been a ferry connection to

Rønne Rønne () is the largest town on the Denmark, Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea. It has a population of 13,675 (1 January 2025). It was a municipality in its own right from 1970 until 2002, when Bornholm was a Bornholm County, county (D ...

on the Baltic island of

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

, operated by BornholmerFærgen.

Notable people

Jesper Brochmand Jesper Rasmussen Brochmand (5 August 1585 - 19 April 1652) was a Danish Lutheran clergyman, theologian and professor who served as Bishop of the Diocese of Zealand from 1638 until his death. Brochmand was a key founder of the dogmatic system th ...

(1585 in Køge - 1652) a Danish Lutheran clergyman, theologian and Bishop of the Diocese of Zealand * Hans Holst (before 1619 - after 1640) a Danish woodcarver did work in St Nicholas Church * Marie Toft (1813 in the Gammel Køgegård manor – 1854) a wealthy Danish landowner who managed Rønnebæksholm and wife of philosopher N. F. S. Grundtvig * Carl Christian Amussen (1825–1902) emigrated to New Zealand 1857, then to

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

in 1868, where he was their first jeweler * Emmy Drachmann (1854–1928) a Danish writer and the wife of Holger Drachmann * Harald Bergstedt (1877-1965) a Danish writer, novelist, playwright and poet * Finn Kjærsdam (born 1943) a Danish Land Surveyor, brought up in Køge * Michael Falch (born 1956) a Danish singer, guitarist, author and actor IMDb Database
retrieved 19 June 2020 * Doggie (artist) (born 1966) a Danish hip-hop artist in Copenhagen and Istanbul * Ulla Miilmann (born 1972) is the principal flautist of the DNSO, brought up in Vemmedrup * Michael Qureshi (born 1976) discredited Danish journalist, used fake sources

Sport

* Ove Frederiksen (1884–1966) a tennis player, competed at the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad () and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 6 July and 22 July 1912. The opening ceremony was he ...

* Hans Pedersen (1887 in Højelse near Køge – 1943) a Danish gymnast who competed in the

1912 This year is notable for Sinking of the Titanic, the sinking of the ''Titanic'', which occurred on April 15. In Albania, this leap year runs with only 353 days as the country achieved switching from the Julian to Gregorian Calendar by skippin ...

and

1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics (; ; ), officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad (; ; ) and commonly known as Antwerp 1920 (; Dutch language, Dutch and German language, German: ''Antwerpen 1920''), were an international multi-sport event held i ...

* Henry Larsen (1916–2002) rower, team bronze medallist

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and officially branded as London 1948, were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus cau ...

Børge Raahauge Nielsen Børge Daniel Raahauge Nielsen (26 March 1920 in Køge, Denmark – 5 October 2010 in Odense, Denmark) was a Danish rower who competed in the 1948 Summer Olympics. In 1948 he was a crew member of the Danish boat which won the bronze med ...

(1920–2010) rower, team bronze medallist

* Casper Ankergren (born 1979) a former football goalkeeper, 319 club caps * Klaus Nielsen (born 1980) a pro. mountain biker, competed at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

* Søren Larsen (born 1981) retired footballer, 229 club caps and 20 for

* Nicklas Pedersen (born 1987) a Danish former footballer with 250 club caps and 13 for

, now U17 manager at HB Køge * Lena Grebak (born 1991) a Danish female badminton player *

Emil Holst Emil Holst (born 9 January 1991) is a Danish badminton player. He competed at the 2015 European Games and won a silver medal in the men's singles. Achievements European Games ''Men's singles'' European Junior Championships ''Boys' sing ...

(born 1991) a Danish badminton player * Sebastian Lander (born 1991) a road bicycle racer, won the Danish national road race championship in 2012

References

External links

Historic maps of Køge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koge Municipal seats of Region Zealand Municipal seats of Denmark Cities and towns in Region Zealand Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea Populated places in Køge Municipality