Copenhagen City Guide - History

1167 Bishop Absalon builds a bastion on Slotshlomen island
1254 Copenhagen is given chartered city status by the Bishop of Roskilde
1416 Copenhagen becomes the royal seat for much of Scandinavia
1428 The city successfully resists attack by the Hanseatic League
1443 Copenhagen replaces Roskilde as the Danish capital
1588-1648 Denmark is ruled by King Christian IV
1606-1634 Construction of Rosenborg Slot
1618 Christian IV constructs canals and streets in the city based on the Dutch model
1659 Copenhagen survives a siege by the Swedes with the assistance of the Dutch
1660 Peace between Denmark and Sweden is negotiated
1728 Two-thirds of the city is destroyed by fire
1794 The royal residence moves to Amalienborg Slot
1795 The district around Holmen's canal destroyed by fire
1800-1850 Danish Golden Age
1801 Battle of Copenhagen; the Danish fleet suffers heavy losses
1807 Copenhagen is attacked by the British in the Napoleonic Wars
1813 The State is bankrupt
1840s Tivoli Gardens are designed by Georg Carsten
4 Aug 1875 Hans Christian Andersen dies in Copenhagen
1897 Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek is constructed by Carl Jacobsen
1913 The first statue of the Little Mermaid is erected on the Langelinie
1940-45 Copenhagen is occupied by the Nazis; shipyards are bombed by the Allies
1970 Occupation of the derelict military grounds, later known as the Christiania Free Commune
1996 European City of Culture
1998 550th anniversary of the Royal Orchestra and 250th anniversary of the Royal Theatre
1998 Elm trees in the city are felled due to Dutch Elm disease
1999 Re-opening of the Statens Museum for Kunst