Until January 1, 2007 Rudkøbing Municipality was a municipality ( Danish: '' kommune'') in the former

Funen County Funen County () 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 April 1970, com ...

, on the central parts 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 also included the islands of

Strynø Strynø is a small Danish island lying west of Langeland, north-east of Ærø, and south of Tåsinge in the South Funen Archipelago. A constituent part of Langeland municipality, Strynø covers an area of 4.88 km2. The population of the island ...

, Strynø Kalv and a number of small uninhabited islands. The municipality covered an area of 62.94 km², and had a total population of 6,647 (2006). Its last mayor was Johan Norden, a member of the

Social Democrats Social democracy is a social, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achieving social equality. In modern practice, s ...

political party. Rudkøbing Municipality bordered Sydlangeland Municipality to the south and

Tranekær Municipality Until 1 January 2007 Tranekær Municipality was a municipality (Danish language, Danish: ''List of municipalities of Denmark (1970–2006), kommune'') in the former Funen County, on the northern parts of the island of Langeland. It also included the ...

to the north and west, connecting to

Siø Siø is a small Denmark, 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 ...

through the

Langeland Bridge Langeland Bridge (Danish language, Danish, ''Langelandsbroen'') is a road bridge that connects the islands Langeland and Siø. From Siø a connection exists via Tåsinge to Funen. It was built from 1960 to 1962. Dimensions The Langeland Bridge ...

. The municipality ceased to exist as the result of ''Kommunalreformen 2007'' (the Municipality Reform of 2007). It was merged with the Sydlangeland and Tranekær municipalities to form the new Langeland municipality. The new municipality belongs to the

Region of Southern Denmark The Region of Southern Denmark (, ; , ; ) is an administrative region of Denmark established on Monday 1 January 2007 as part of the 2007 Danish Municipal Reform, which abolished the traditional counties ("amter") and set up five larger regions ...

History

The town of Rudkøbing was granted

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 ...

rights in the 1200s, though struggled to compete with the numerous illegal trade ports around the island. During the

Northern Wars "Northern Wars" is a term used for a series of wars fought in northern Europe, northern and northeastern Europe from the 16th to the 18th century, primarily between the territorial rivals of the Swedish Empire, Tsardom of Russia, Poland–Lithuani ...

in the middle of the 1600s, Rudkøbing was occupied by the

Swedes Swedes (), or Swedish people, are an ethnic group native to Sweden, who share a common ancestry, Culture of Sweden, culture, History of Sweden, history, and Swedish language, language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countries, ...

. The occupation hurt the already struggling town, and the population dwindled. In the later parts of the 1700s the town began to recover, and during the industrialization the town and the island grew in population and activity. A new harbour was constructed in Rudkøbing in 1847, and the roads of the island were improved. Steamboat routes to

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 ...

Svendborg Svendborg () is a town on the island of Funen in south-central Denmark, and the seat of Svendborg Municipality. With a population of 27,616 (1 January 2025), Svendborg is Funen's second largest city.Ærø Ærø () is one of the Denmark, Danish Baltic Sea islands, and part of the Region of Southern Denmark, Southern Denmark Region. Since 1 January 2006 all of Ærø has constituted a single Municipalities of Denmark, municipality, known as Ærø M ...

were established, and the population of Rudkøbing was tripled during the 1800s. In the Middle Ages, when Denmark was divided into hundreds, Langeland was divided into two hundreds. These were Langeland's Northern Hundred (Danish: ''Langelands Nørre Herred'') and Langeland's Southern Hundred (Danish: ''Langelands Sønder Herred''), the latter also including the island of Siø. The island of Strynø was part of Sunds Hundred, which encompassed Svendborg and the town's surrounding area, as well as numerous islands in the

South Funen Archipelago The South Funen Archipelago () is the popular name for the part of the Baltic Sea south of the ports of Faaborg and Svendborg on the Danish island of Funen. The depth of the sea is typically between 20 and 30 meters. The archipelago includes s ...

. The two hundreds on Langeland were part of the

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

(Danish: ''len'') of Tranekær Fief, which became Tranekær County in 1662. Sunds Hundred, with Strynø, meanwhile became a part of

Nyborg County Nyborg is a city in central Denmark, located in Nyborg Municipality on the island of Funen and with a population of 17,990 (2025). It is the easternmost settlement on Funen. By road, it is located 34 km east of Odense, 35 km north of ...

. In 1793 the two counties of Tranekær and Nyborg were merged to form

Svendborg County Svendborg County () is a former province in Denmark, located on the southern half of the island of Funen in central Denmark. Svendborg County was established in 1793 and abolished in 1970 when it merged with Odense County forming the new Funen Coun ...

, which was merged with

Odense County Odense County () is a former province in Denmark, located on the northern half of the island of Funen in central Denmark. Odense County was established in 1806 and abolished in 1970 when it merged with Svendborg County forming the new Funen Count ...

in 1970 to form

(Danish: ''Fyns Amt''). This county was dissolved in 2007, and the entirety of Funen County became a part of the

. In 1842 Denmark was divided into smaller administrative divisions, namely parish municipalities (Danish: ''sognekommunner''). The borders of these municipalities were largely based on the country's

parishes A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

. In the 1970 municipal reform these parish municipalities were dissolved. Five parish municipalities had merged already in 1966 to form Rudkøbing Parish Municipality, which then became Rudkøbing Municipality in 1970. This municipality lasted until 2007 when it was merged with the municipalities of Sydlangeland and Tranekær.

Historical divisions

Towns

Approximately 70% of the municipality's population lived in the city of Rudkøbing, with the remainder living in rural areas. Smaller villages in the municipality include Spodsbjerg, Fuglsbølle and Ny Skrøbelev. Rudkøbing was located in the western part of the municipality. The municipality also included the island of Strynø. The only settlement on the island is called Strynø By. This village is located centrally on the island, and houses the island's attractions and facilities. It connects to the ferry harbour through a short road. In Strynø By is Strynø Church. Below is the population from 2006 of the one larger settlement of the municipality, namely Rudkøbing.

Politics

Municipal council

Below are the municipal council elected since the municipality's creation in 1970 and until 2001, which was the last election before the municipality was dissolved.

Mayors

Since the creation of the municipality in 1970 and until it was dissolved in 2007, the mayors of Rudkøbing Municipality were:

Parishes

The municipality consisted of six parishes and six churches. * Fuglsbølle Parish ( Fuglsbølle Church) * Longelse Parish ( Longelse Church) * Rudkøbing Parish (

Rudkøbing Church Rudkøbing Church is a church located in Rudkøbing, 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 populati ...

) * Simmerbølle Parish ( Simmerbølle Church) * Skrøbelev Parish ( Skrøbelev Church) * Strynø Parish ( Strynø Church)

Symbols

Rudkøbing Municipality's coat of arms was three blue fish on a white background.

References

{{Langeland Municipality Former municipalities of Denmark