For the racehorse, see Kolding (horse).
Kolding
City
CountryDenmark
RegionSouthern Denmark
MunicipalityKolding
Coordinates55°29′30″N 9°30′0″E
MayorJakob Ville
First documented1231[1]
Area urban38.6 km²
Elevation50 m
Population as of2025
Population urban63645
Gender [2]31431 males and 32214 females
Population demonymKoldingenser, Koldinger
Time zoneCET (UTC+1)
Time zone (DST)CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code6000
Websitewww.kolding.dk

Kolding (ˈkʰʌle̝ŋ) is a Danish seaport city located at the head of Kolding Fjord in southeast Jutland. It is the seat of Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre and has numerous industrial companies, principally geared towards shipbuilding. The manufacturing of machinery and textiles and livestock export are other economically significant activities.

With a population of 95,897 (1 January 2025), the Kolding municipality is the eleventh most populous in Denmark. The city itself has a population of 63,645 (1 January 2025)[3] and is the eighth largest city in Denmark.

The city is part of the Triangle Region, which includes the neighbouring cities of Fredericia and Vejle. The city was recognized as a "Design City" by UNESCO in 2017.

History

Koldinghus would be besieged and presumably occupied by Holstein in 1369.

In the Battle of Kolding, fought on 25 December 1658, the allied Polish and Danish forces under hetman Stefan Czarniecki defeated the Swedish forces of Charles X Gustav of Sweden.[citation needed]

A battle between German and Danish forces took place near the town on 23 April 1849 during the First War of Schleswig.[4]

On 9 September 1955, Kolding was impacted by a high-end F2/T5 Tornado that displaced a car 20 meters into a yard.[5]

On 3 November 2004, the N. P. Johnsen's Fireworks Factory in the suburb of Seest exploded. One firefighter died, 85 people were injured, around 2,000 people were evacuated, and some of them lost their homes during this disaster.[citation needed]

Overview

Located in Kolding is the former royal castle of Koldinghus. This was built in the 13th century by King Eric Klipping and is a museum with certain parts of the castle, including its chapel and hall, being used for governmental ceremonial events. It was the last royal residence in Jutland. Another notable site is the 13th century stone Church of Saint Nicholas (Danish: Sankt Nicolai), which is one of the oldest in Denmark.[citation needed]

Main sights

The municipal museum, the Museet på Koldinghus, is located in the castle and former royal palace. It has a collection of Danish art from the late Middle Ages to the 1940s, miscellaneous artefacts of local interest, and an extensive collection of items in gold and silver.

The Trapholt art museum features many pieces primarily by Danish artists in its collections of arts from 1900 onwards and a smaller number of non-Danish exhibits. It also features a large collection of chairs.

Botanical garden Geografisk Have is a 14 hectares large park with more than 2,000 different trees, bushes, and plants organised in geographical areas.

Also Kolding houses the Danish Museum of Nurses (Danish: Dansk Sygeplejemuseum), which is situated in the reception building of the former tuberculosis sanatorium for children. The exhibition also include this past of the buildings. The main part of the sanatorium is now a hotel, situated in a minor forest and overlooking the water. The building itself is very beautiful and built to resemble a palace.

Education

A branch of University College South (Danish: University College Syd) can be found in Kolding.

A branch campus of University of Southern Denmark (Danish: Syddansk Universitet) is located in the former hospital which was closed in 1975. The new Campus Kolding opened downtown in 2014.[6] The new building of University of Southern Denmark will be built further to the east at Grønborggrunden in central Kolding.[7]

Kolding is also home to Design School Kolding (Designskolen Kolding), a university design school, which was established in 1967 to provide undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in the areas of fashion, graphic design and textiles.[8]

Sister cities

Kolding is twinned with the following towns.[9]

CityRegionCountryYear
AnjōAichi PrefectureJapan1997
DelmenhorstLower SaxonyGermany1979
DrammenBuskerudNorway1946
HuéscarGranadaSpain1982
LappeenrantaSouth KareliaFinland1947
NanortalikKujalleqGreenland2007
ÖrebroNärkeSweden1946
PanevėžysPanevėžys CountyLithuania2000
PisaTuscanyItaly2007
StykkishólmurWestern RegionIceland1979
SzombathelyVas CountyHungary1991

Transportation

Rail

Kolding is served by Kolding railway station. It is located on the Fredericia-Flensburg railway line and offers direct InterCity services to Copenhagen, Hamburg, Sønderborg, Aarhus and Esbjerg as well as regional train services to Fredericia and Esbjerg.[10]

Air

The city doesn't have it own airport. Residents in the city would use Billund Airport which provides direct routes to other parts of Denmark and Europe. It located 46 km (29 mi) which is 40 minutes drive north west of Kolding.

Notable people

Public service and public thinking

Arts and entertainment

Sport

See also

References

  1. ^ Bøje, Jens Anker (2007-06-19). "Kolding - byens historie i korte træk" (in Danish). kolding.dk. Archived from the original on 2007-06-07. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
  2. ^ BY1: Population 1. January by urban areas, age and sex The Mobile Statbank from Statistics Denmark
  3. ^ "BY3: Population 1st January by urban areas, area and population density". The Mobile Statbank from Statistics Denmark
  4. ^ Podhorodecki, Leszek (1985). Rapier i koncerz. Warsaw. p. 361. ISBN 83-05-11452-X
  5. ^ "European Severe Weather Database". Archived 12 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine.
  6. ^ "Campus Kolding"
  7. ^ "Syddansk Universitet". Archived from the original on 12 April 2011. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
  8. ^ "Design School Kolding". Cumulus. Archived from the original on 20 March 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
  9. ^ "Venskabsbyer". Archived from the original on 10 June 2007.
  10. ^ "Kolding Station" (in Danish). DSB. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  11. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 5 May 2020
  12. ^ Byars, Mel (2004). The Design Encyclopedia. L. King Pub. p. 307. ISBN 978-0-87070-012-5.
  13. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 5 May 2020
  14. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 5 May 2020
  15. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 5 May 2020