Ved Stranden (
lit. "At the Beach") is a canal side public space and street which runs along a short section of the
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 ...
side of
Slotsholmen Canal in central
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 ...
,
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 begins at
Holmens Kanal, opposite the
Church of Holmen, and runs west along the canal for one and a half blocks before widening into a small, triangular space adjacent to
Højbro Bridge and
Højbro Plads
Højbro Plads (literally "High Bridge Square") is a rectangular public square located between the adjoining Amagertorv and Slotsholmens Kanal, Slotsholmen Canal in the Indre By, City Centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. It takes its name from the Slotsh ...
. The name of the street refers to
Gammel Strand, 'Old Beach', which it formed part of until 1961.
Buildings
Most of the buildings in the street date from the rebuilding of the city following the
Copenhagen Fire of 1795 and are listed. No. 10 and 12 were built in 1796–1797 to the design of unknown architects. The
Gustmeyer House at No. 14 was designed by
Johan Martin Quist and completed in 1797. It is one of Copenhagen's first bourgeois residences with free-standing columns.
The former
Royal Hotel (No. 18), once one of the city's finest hotels, is from 1798 and was designed by
Jørgen Henrich Rawert but was expanded with an extra floor in 1886 after it had been taken over by a newspaper publishing house. It is now home to
Nordic Council
The Nordic Council is the official body for formal inter-parliamentary Nordic cooperation among the Nordic countries. Formed in 1952, it has 87 representatives from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden as well as from the autonomo ...
's operations in Copenhagen.
The
Ploug House at No. 20 was designed by
Andreas Hallander
Andreas Hallander (13 November 1755 – 3 April 1828) was a Danish master carpenter and architect who made a significant contribution to the city of Copenhagen. Together with the buildings of Johan Martin Quist, his classically styled apartment h ...
and built 1798-1799 for the merchant C. F. Friderici but takes its name after the writer and politician
Carl Ploug who acquired it in 1862. Its facade is decorated with pilasters.
The only building in the street which predates the Great Fire of 1795 is No. 16 which was built by
Philip de Lange for General War Commissioner Stephen Hansen in 1748. The only building of younger date is No. 2 at the corner of
Holmens Kanal, the former headquarters of ''Nordisk Genforsikring'', an insurance company, which replaced several older properties when it was built between 1932 and 1938. It was designed by N. P. P. Gundstrup and has 18 bays facing Ved Stranden, five bays facing Holemns Kanal and 18 bays facing
Admiralgade on the other side of the block.
Use
Ved Vejen is the site of a monthly flee market. The canal boats have a stop on the canal front.
Cultural references
The ''
Olsen-banden
The ''Olsen Gang'' (, ) is a Denmark, Danish comedy film series created by Danish director Erik Balling and special effects expert Henning Bahs about the eponymous fictional criminal gang. The gang's leader is the criminal genius and habitual o ...
'' gang steals a suitcase at Ved Stranden 6 in ''
The Olsen Gang's Big Score''. Ved Stranden is also used as a location in ''
The Last Exploits of the Olsen Gang'' at 0:52:19.
See also
*
Frederiksholms Kanal
*
Albrecht Ludwig Schmidt
References
External links
SourceImagesVed StrandenImageKøbenhavns Brandforsikring
{{coord, 55.6774, 12.5812, type:landmark_region:DK, display=title
Squares in Copenhagen
Streets in Copenhagen