Petersværft (literally "Peter's Wharf") is a locality situated on the south coast 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 ...

, between

Vordingborg Vordingborg () is a market town and old ferry town on the south coast of the island of Zealand in Denmark. Because of three large estates surrounding the town, a coherent urban development has not been possible, which is the reason why three sat ...

and Kalvehave, in southeastern

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 ...

. It consists of a small, private harbor that belongs to the

Petersgaard Petersgaard is a Neoclassical manor house and agricultural estate located between Kalvehave and Vordingborg in Vordingborg Municipality, on the southern part of Zealand, in southeastern Denmark. The Neoclassical main building overlooks Ulvsund ...

estate and a few scattered houses. Several of the buildings have been listed on the Danish registry of protected buildings and places. Petersværft is situated at the foot of a hill, Stehlebakken. It is surrounded by Langebæk Skov to the east and Stensby Skov to the west.

History

Peter Johansen, a merchant and shipowner from

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 ...

, acquired the estate Kalvehave in auction from the Crown in 1774. He renamed it Petersgaard and constructed a Neoclassical main building on the land in the period 17667-80. In 1777 he also established a dockyard at the site. Ships built at the dockyard included ''Enigheden'' (1781) ''Cron Princesse Louice Augusta'' (1784) and ''Christiane'' (1785). ''Cron Princesse Louice Augusta'' was built for the

Danish Asiatic Company Danish Asiatic Company (Danish language, Danish: Asiatisk Kompagni) was a Denmark-Norway, Danish trading company established in 1730 to revive Danish-Norwegian trade on the Danish East Indies and China following the closure of the Danish East Ind ...

and was the largest Danish ship built outside Copenhagen at the time. Peter Johansen died on the Petersgaard estate in 1798 and his heirs sold it to the Crown the following year. The Crown sold Petersgaard to Jacob Bentzon Resch but kept the forests and dockyard. Petersværft was from 1807 to 1814 used as a naval base and for rebuilding the Danish navy which had been confiscated by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

in the aftermath of the Battle of Copenhagen in 1807. Several new buildings were constructed at the site.

Harbour

The harbor comprises a 30 x 20 m harbor basin situated on the west side of a 69 m long pier. The harbor basin is reserved for the owner of the harbor (Petersgaard) and the residents of

Tærø Tærø () is a small Denmark, Danish island in the Ulvsund Strait (Baltic Sea) between Zealand and Møn, not far from Bogø and the Farøbroerne, Farø Bridges. Located in Vordingborg Municipality, the island has an area of . there was only one i ...

. Other sailors are allowed to berth at the end of the pier for periods of up to 24 hours.

Buildings

The Forest Coachman's House (Skovkuskeboligen, Petersværft 5), also known as Forpagterboligen, dates from the late 18th century. It is a thatched building with half-timbered gables. Skovridergården (Petersværft 3) dates from circa 1800. It is a brick building with a red tile roof. It also comprises an L-shaped, half-timbered, thatched barn. The Officers' House (Petersvært4) is the only surviving building from Petersværft's years as a naval base. The oldest part of the building is from 1807 but it was expanded in 1885 and 1903. It is an L-shaped brick building with a half hipped red tile roof. Skovfogedstedet (Petersværft 2) is a one-storey, thatched house from 1905 which was expanded in 1916. It also comprises a thatched outbuilding. Both buildings were listed in 1994.

References

{{coord missing, Denmark Ports and harbours of Denmark Listed buildings and structures in Vordingborg Municipality Thatched buildings in Denmark Danish companies established in 1777