Gladsaxe Municipality () is a municipality (Danish, '' kommune'') near

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 ...

Region Hovedstaden The Capital Region of Denmark (, ) is the easternmost administrative region of Denmark, and contains Copenhagen, the national capital. The Capital Region has 29 municipalities and a regional council consisting of 41 elected members. As of 1 ...

on the island of

Zealand Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 Januar ...

(''Sjælland'') in eastern Denmark. The municipality covers an area of , and has a total population of 70,958 (2025). Its mayor is Trine Græse, 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 ...

(''Socialdemokraterne'')

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

. The site of its municipal council is the town of

Buddinge Buddinge is a suburb 10 km northwest of central Copenhagen, Denmark. The suburb used to be a small village, but by the 1960s merged with nearby suburban areas, subsequently becoming a suburb. The suburb is part of Gladsaxe municipal and is ...

. Other towns in the municipality are Gladsaxe,

Bagsværd Bagsværd () is a middle-class suburb located approximately 12 km northwest of central Copenhagen, in the Gladsaxe Municipality. Bagsværd houses the headquarters of Danish pharmaceuticals, pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk and biotechnology co ...

Mørkhøj Mørkhøj is a suburb c. northwest of central Copenhagen, Denmark. Mørkhøj is part of Gladsaxe Municipality. The area is mixed with single-family homes and public housing and light industry. It has c. 10000 inhabitants. History In 1635, M ...

and Søborg —but town limits are not distinguishable because the towns have grown together in an

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city". Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted ...

, Værebro in

and Høje-Gladsaxe are larger housing projects and home to many immigrants and being typical for many concrete highrise suburbs in Copenhagen. ''Picture of Gladsaxe Heights'

At Gladsaxe, there is a Guy-wire, guyed TV mast, which was built in 1955. It was the first TV transmission site in Denmark. Since 2014, Gladsaxe has been home to Copenhagen gem and mineral show, the largest gem and mineral show in Scandinavia. The show is an annual two-day event that attracts exhibitors from all around the world and an audience of thousands from Denmark and Sweden. Gladsaxe municipality was not merged with other municipalities by 1 January 2007 as the result of nationwide ''Kommunalreformen'' ("The Municipal Reform" of 2007).

Economy

Gladsaxe municipality is home to many company headquarters, including those of

Novo Nordisk Novo Nordisk A/S is a Danish multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Bagsværd, with production facilities in nine countries and affiliates or offices in five. Novo Nordisk is controlled by majority shareholder Novo Holdings A/S ...

Novozymes Novozymes A/S was a global biotechnology company headquartered in Bagsværd, outside of Copenhagen, Denmark. The company's focus was the research, development and production of industrial enzymes, microorganisms, and biopharmaceutical ingredie ...

and

Scandinavian Tobacco Group Scandinavian Tobacco Group is a manufacturer of cigars and traditional pipe tobacco. The city company is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, and is a publicly listed company on Nasdaq Copenhagen. History The company can trace its origin bac ...

and MT Højgaard.

History

According to ''Gladsaxe-bogen I'' (which focuses on then Gladsaxe-Herlev municipality up until 1909) by C.L.B. Cramer, humans first settled in Gladsaxe around 10.000 years ago. In 1670 the parishes of Gladsaxe and Herlev became "rider districts", and every farm had to house a rider/soldier or pay 48 rigsdales yearly. Cramer described "these years as probably some of the most uneasiest years in the parishes long history". In the 1720s the king built a school for riders in Gladsaxe, and his sister, Sophie Hedevig, built a school in Bagsværd. These were the first schools in Gladsaxe. In 1750, Gladsaxe Præstegaard burns down, along with some farms, with many people losing their lives. In 1945, Søborg School was used to accommodate 500 German refugees, meaning students at that school instead were educated at Marielyst School. This caused the school hours to be reduced from 50 to 40 minutes, with half the students meeting from 8 to 13 o'clock and the other half from 13 to 18 o'clock. In November of that year the refugees could move in at a badminton hall by Gladsaxev Street due to renovations providing room division and heating. During the 1960s and up until the 2000s, the headquarters of Denmarks Radio, the national broadcaster of Denmark, were located in Gladsaxe. Led Zeppelin, then playing as the New Yardbirds, performed together for the first time in front of a live audience at Gladsaxe Teen Club at the Egegård School (today Gladsaxe School) festive hall, Gladsaxe, Denmark, on 7 September 1968. In 1977–78, a 19-year-old student from Gladsaxe known as "Bombemanden" (The bomb man) was known for placing pipe bombs in public areas in Copenhagen, such as phoneboxes, hurting four although killing no one. In 1980, a library, Gladsaxe Hovedbibliotek, opened right by the town hall square, becoming the head library of Gladsaxe. In 1994, a McDonald's restaurant opened by the Buddinge Center.

Parks and open spaces

Park and green spaces in Gladsaxe Municipality include Aldershvile Slotspark, Bagsværd Fort Folkepark, Bagsværd Sø, Bagsværd Søpark, Gladsaxe Fort Gyngemosen og Høje Gladsaxe Park, Kagsåparken, Nybro Åmose, Radiomarken and Smør- og Fedtmosen. Almost every year, if not every year, there is a day called ''Gladsaxe Day'' (Gladsaxedagen in Danish), where people in Gladsaxe come together and celebrate.

Politics

Municipal council

Gladsaxe's municipal council consists of 25 members, elected every four years. Below are the municipal councils elected since the Municipal Reform of 2007.

Twin towns – sister cities

Gladsaxe is twinned with: * Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf (Berlin),

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, Germany *

Gagny Gagny () is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Geography Gagny is located 10 km to the east of Paris. Until the law of 10 July 1964, the commune was part of the department of Sein ...

, France * Haabersti (Tallinn), Estonia * Klagenfurt, Austria *

Koszalin Koszalin (; ; , ) is a city in northwestern Poland, in Western Pomerania. It is located south of the Baltic Sea coast, and intersected by the river Dzierżęcinka. Koszalin is also a county-status city and capital of Koszalin County of West Pomera ...

, Poland *

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the largest town in population between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district () of Minden-Lübbecke, situated in the cultural region ...

, Germany *

Narsaq Narsaq ( Danish: ''Nordprøven'') is a town in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. The name ''Narsaq'' is Kalaallisut for "Plain", referring to the shore of Tunulliarfik Fjord where the town is located. History People have liv ...

Kujalleq Kujalleq (Greenlandic language, Greenlandic: , ) is a municipality on the southern tip of Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. The administrative center of the municipality is in Qaqortoq (formerly called Julianehåb). Creation The munic ...

, Greenland *

Neubrandenburg Neubrandenburg (, Low German ''Niegenbramborg'', both lit. ''New Brandenburg an der Havel, Brandenburg'') is a city in the southeast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is located on the shore of a lake called Tollensesee and forms the urban c ...

, Germany * Paisley, Scotland, United Kingdom *

Pirkkala Pirkkala (; ) is a municipality in Finland, located in the Pirkanmaa region. It lies to the southwest of the regional capital, Tampere. The population of Pirkkala is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . I ...

, Finland *

Ski Skis are runners, attached to the user's feet, designed to glide over snow. Typically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partially secured heel. For climbing slopes, ski skins c ...

, Norway *

Solna Solna ( or , ), also known as Solna Municipality, is a municipality in central Stockholm County, Sweden, located just north of Stockholm City Centre. Its seat is located in the town of Solna, which is a part of the Stockholm urban area. Solna i ...

, Sweden *

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

, Croatia *

Sutton Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to: Places United Kingdom England In alphabetical order by county: * Sutton, Bedfordshire * Sutton, Berkshire, a List of United Kingdom locations: Stu-Sz#Su, location * S ...

, England, United Kingdom * Taitō (Tokyo),

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan *

Veszprém Veszprém (; , , , ) is one of the oldest urban areas in Hungary, and a city with county rights. It lies approximately north of the Lake Balaton. It is the administrative center of the county of the same name. Etymology The city's name derives ...

, Hungary

Notable people

* Nancy Eriksson (1907–1984), Swedish politician and a member of the Swedish Riksdag * Thomas Rørdam (born 1952), lawyer, President of the

Supreme Court of Denmark The Supreme Court (, lit. ''Highest Court'', , ) is the supreme court and the third and final instance in all civil and criminal cases in the Kingdom of Denmark. It is based at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen which also houses the Danish Pa ...

Mette Bock Mette Bock (née Samuelsen, born 26 July 1957 in Gladsaxe) is a Danish political scientist, journalist and former politician. She was a member of the Folketing from 2011 to 2019, representing the Liberal Alliance party. She served as Minister of ...

(born 1957), political scientist, journalist and politician *

Allan Steen Kristensen Allan Steen Kristensen (1958–1997) was a Danish person who, as a 19-year-old student, placed nine pipe bombs in and around Copenhagen in 1977–1978. He was nicknamed the 'Bomb Man from Gladsaxe' (''Bombemanden fra Gladsaxe'') and 'Mystical X' ('' ...

(1958–1997), criminal *

Thomas Bo Larsen Thomas Bo Larsen (born 27 November 1963) is a Danish film actor, born in Gladsaxe, Denmark. Career He was nominated for a Bodil Award in 1995 for Best Supporting Actor in ', and later won two Robert Awards, the first in 1996 for Best Actor in ...

(born 1963), actor *

Lars Mikkelsen Lars Dittmann Mikkelsen (; born 6 May 1964) is a Danish actor. He is known for his roles as Copenhagen mayoral election candidate Troels Hartmann in the Danish police procedural '' The Killing'', the character Charles Augustus Magnussen in the t ...

(born 1964), actor *

Jonatan Spang Jannik Kåre Jonatan Spang Olesen (born 4 February 1978) is a Danish standup comedian, actor and former theater director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mountin ...

(born 1978), standup comedian, actor and theatre director

Sport

* Frederik Hansen (1885–1981), wrestler * Per Frimann (born 1962), footballer *

Peter Schmeichel Peter Bolesław Schmeichel (born 18 November 1963) is a Danish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. During eight seasons at English club Manchester United, he won 15 trophies including five Premier League titles, three FA C ...

MBE (born 1963), footballer * Bo Spellerberg (born 1979), handballer * Chanan Colman (born 1984), Danish-Israeli basketball player * Louise Mai Jansen (born 1984), swimmer *

Daniel Wass Daniel Wass (born 31 May 1989) is a Danish professional association football, footballer who plays for Danish Superliga club Brøndby IF, Brøndby and the Denmark national football team, Denmark national team. He is capable of playing as a midfi ...

(born 1989), footballer