Nysted is a town in Guldborgsund Municipality in

Region Zealand Region Zealand () is an Regions of Denmark, administrative region of Denmark. It is one of the five classified Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, NUTS-2 statistical NUTS statistical regions of Denmark, regions of Denmark. It was es ...

on the southeastern coast of the island of

Lolland Lolland (; formerly spelled ''Laaland'', literally "low land") is the List of islands of Denmark#List of 100 largest Danish islands, fourth largest island of Denmark, with an area of . Located in the Kattegat, Belts and Sund area, it is part of Re ...

in south

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 ...

. Nysted is located on the southern coast of Lolland, and has a population of 1,265 (1 January 2024).BY3: Population 1. January by rural and 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 ...

History

The town and harbour originated during the

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

near Aalholm Castle and a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

cloister A cloister (from Latin , "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open Arcade (architecture), arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle (architecture), quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cat ...

. The town was a natural crossroads for commerce and traffic on account of its having the only natural harbour on the south coast of Lolland. During this time Lolland, and especially its southern coast, was vulnerable to attack by

Wends Wends is a historical name for Slavs who inhabited present-day northeast Germany. It refers not to a homogeneous people, but to various people, tribes or groups depending on where and when it was used. In the modern day, communities identifying ...

, its neighbors on the opposite side of the Baltic Sea. Proximity to the castle was a great advantage to the people who lived there, but protection also meant that they belonged to the castle. On 7 December 1409 they were liberated when

Eric of Pomerania Erik of Pomerania ( 1381/1382 – 24 September 1459) ruled over the Kalmar Union from 1396 until 1439. He was initially co-ruler with his great-aunt Margaret I of Denmark, Margaret I until her death in 1412. Erik is known as Erik III as King of ...

gave Nysted merchant town status. This was re-established by King

Christian II A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Ch ...

in 1513. Like other merchant towns the citizens of Nysted joined in on Christian II's side in the

Count's Feud The Count's Feud (), sometimes referred to as the Count's War, was a Danish war of succession occurring from 1534 to 1536, which gave rise to the Reformation in Denmark. In the broader international context, it was a part of the European wars of ...

, which resulted in the capture of Aalholm Castle in 1534 when Jørgen von der Wisch was absent. The castle then was overtaken by Count Christoffer, who held it for two years. The town's coastal advantage as a natural harbour disappeared with the advent of the railroad.

Attractions

The massive Aalholm Castle (''Aalholm Slot ''), built ca. 1200, dominates the view from the harbour at Nysted. For over 1,000 years this stronghold has tried to protected the town's citizens. It is one of the oldest, preserved Middle Ages

fortress A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...

es in Denmark. The castle has been enlarged several times, most recently in 1889. The castle was sold to the Raben-Levetzau family in 1725, who owned the property until 1995 when it was sold privately. It is owned today by the estate of the late Stig Husted Andersen. There is no entrance to the castle itself, but access is available to the park and forest via a path from the town. The Aalholm Automobile Museum (''Automobilmuseet'') is now closed, and all the cars are sold.

Former municipality

Until 1 January 2007 Nysted was the seat of the former Nysted municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') in the former

Storstrøm County Storstrøm County () is a former county ( Danish: '' amt'') on the islands of Zealand (''Sjælland''), Møn, Falster, Lolland and some minor islands in southeast Denmark. The county was formed on 1 April 1970, comprising the former counties of Mar ...

. The municipality covered an area of 142 km², and had a total population of 5,417 (2005). Its last mayor was Lennart Andersen, 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, ...

. Nysted municipality ceased to exist as the result of ''Kommunalreformen'' ("The Municipality Reform" of 2007). It was merged with

Nykøbing Falster Nykøbing Falster (; originally named Nykøbing) is a city on the island of Falster in southern Denmark. It has a population of 16,682 (1 January 2025). Including the satellite town Sundby (Lolland), Sundby on the Lolland side, with a populatio ...

Nørre Alslev Nørre Alslev () is a town with a population of 2,363 (1 January 2025) ...

Sakskøbing Sakskøbing (), previously spelled Sakskjøbing, is a town on the island of Lolland in south Denmark. It has a population of 4,514 (1 January 2025).Stubbekøbing Stubbekøbing () is a town with a population of 2,196 (1 January 2024) ...

, and

Sydfalster Until 1 January 2007 Sydfalster was a municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') in the former Storstrøm County on the southern end of the island of Falster in south Denmark. Overview The municipality covered an area of 113 km², and had a total popu ...

municipalities to form the new Guldborgsund municipality. This created a municipality with an area of 907 km² and a total population of 63,533 (2005).

Notable people

Emil Aarestrup Carl Ludvig Emil Aarestrup (4 December 1800 in Copenhagen – 21 July 1856 in Odense) was a Danish physician and poet, who had just one single volume of poetry published throughout his lifetime, yet this gave him a lasting place in Danish litera ...

(1800–1856), a Danish physician and poet. He lived in Nysted from 1827 until 1838.

References

* Municipal statistics
NetBorger Kommunefakta
delivered fro
KMD
aka Kommunedata (Municipal Data) * Municipal mergers and neighbors
Eniro new municipalities map

External links

Guldborgsund municipality's official website (Danish only)

Nysted and the surrounding area committee
{{Authority control Former municipalities of Denmark Cities and towns in Guldborgsund Municipality Lolland