Nyboder District

You are now in Nyboder district. Quite different, huh? Each ochre house on this street is far from going unnoticed. In fact, we’re in a residential area, built in 1631 under King Christian IV’s impulsive demand. At the time, the city was endlessly growing, a good thing, since the King was determined to transform Copenhagen into a major developed city. With an increasing number of inhabitants and soldiers, he decided to build a district for the marine army and their families. Each family was placed inside these common houses, where they would share kitchens with the neighbouring building. At first, homes were built outside of the city’s walls, but they were finally introduced inside as the city grew bigger. If you’re wondering, “Nyboder” means “new small houses” in Danish. In 1641, just 10 years after construction began, there were more than 600 common houses, arranged in about 20 rows similar to those around you now. However, these buildings are not the originals, in the past, they were single-story buildings—we’ll see a fine example of this a bit further along our tour.This district was independent, for it had its own police, school, hospital and even a church, which is in front of you, built in 1877. Dedicated to Saint Paul, it is made of red granite, reminiscent of Northern Italian architecture as if you were transported in Lombardy. You can see its bell from down here, towering the whole Nyboder district from its 47 meter height. Today, these houses still welcome the army, though in recent years they’ve also become home to other citizens.