Åboulevarden is a street and

promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwes ...

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 , establishe ...

. It is 975 meters long and runs west to east from ''Vester Allé'' to ''Europaplads'' at

Dokk1 Dokk1 or Dokken is a government building, public library and culture center in Aarhus, Denmark. It is situated on '' Hack Kampmanns Plads'' in the city center by the waterfront next to the Custom House. Dokk1 is part of the much larger development ...

. The street is situated in the

Indre by Indre By (lit. English, "Inner City"), also known as Copenhagen Center or K or Downtown Copenhagen, is an administrative district (''by'') in central Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. It covers an area of , has a population of 26,223, and a p ...

neighborhood where it is a popular thoroughfare for pedestrians. The center contains Aarhus river which splits the street in a north and south side. The north side is pedestrianized in its entire length and contains the park Mølleparken and the recreational space ''Vadestedet'' (The Ford). The south side has a road on the western third, providing access to ''Emil Vetts Passage'', ''Busgaden'' and the parking complex for Magasin du Nord. The east section is one of the most popular areas in the city for outdoor congregation, packed with bars and cafés.

History

Aarhus originates as a Viking fort that was defended by moats and ramparts up to the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. The precursor to Åboulevarden stems from 1477 when king Christian I gave permission to develop the southern ramparts along the river and houses were built on it. In 1674 a narrow alley along the

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the ...

was transformed into a wider street which was named ''Aagade'' (

Literal translation Literal translation, direct translation or word-for-word translation, is a translation of a text done by translating each word separately, without looking at how the words are used together in a phrase or sentence. In Translation studies, trans ...

.: River Street) running from

Immervad Immervad, previously Emmervad, is a pedestrian street in Aarhus, Denmark, which runs north to south from Lille Torv to Åboulevarden and Frederiksgade. The alley ''Sankt Clemens Stræde'' leads to Immervad from the east. The street is situated in ...

to Skolegade. Åboulevarden was constructed between 1898 and 1934 along the river on the streets Aagade and ''Louisegade'', running from ''Vester Allé'' to ''Christiansgade''. At the coast it was extended further through a now non-existent street known as ''Revet'' and finally to ''Dynkarken'' and ''Europaplads'' where it ends. Between 1930 and 1958 the river was paved over in order to widen Åboulevarden and allow for parking in the center. In connection with this redevelopment the street was named Åboulevarden. Originally only the section that was Aagade was supposed to be named Åboulevarden but member of the city council and editor of the newspaper Demokraten proposed using the name for the entire stretch which was approved, thus eliminating ''Louisegade'' as a street name. In 1989 Aarhus city council decided the river should be opened again. It took 16 years, until September 2005, before work began and another 2½ years for the section along Immervad to ''Vester Allé'' to be opened. On 28 June 2008 the new section of river was inaugurated and work on the last section from ''Mindebrogade'' to the harbor front began. The last section was finished in the fall of 2015.

The Ford

When the river was opened in the 2000s the opportunity to create a new recreational space near the water was realized with the project that became known as ''Vadestedet'' (The Ford). The name refers to a ford that used to lead over the river by ''

''. When the river was opened a bridge was established there to connect ''

Frederiksgade Frederiksgade is a street in the Frederiksstaden neighbourhood of central Copenhagen. It runs east from Store Kongensgade to Toldbodgade on the waterfront, passing the Marble Church, Bredgade and Amaliegade on the way. At the Marble Church th ...

'' to Immervad. Next to the bridge a system of steps was created by the river, initially known as ''Den Spanske Trappe'' (The

Spanish Steps The Spanish Steps ( it, Scalinata di Trinità dei Monti) in Rome, Italy, climb a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base and Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church, at the top. The monumental stairwa ...

) in reference to the steps in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, but today officially named ''Vadestedet''. The steps lead to the edge of the river and are designed with seating. The Ford has become one of the most popular areas for outdoor recreation in the city and is packed with people in the evenings and when in the daytime when weather permits. The area east of the Ford is packed with bars and cafés and functions as a small leisure district in its own right.

Gallery

File:Mølleparken (åen).jpg File:Åboulevarden 1212.jpg File:Aarhus river, 4.jpg File:Frederiksgade 1.jpg File:Aarhus Å (Vadestedet).jpg File:Aarhus Å (Åboulevarden).jpg File:Åboulevarden (maj).jpg

References

External links

{{commons category, position=left Streets in Aarhus