Ebeltoft (formerly spelled Æbeltoft) is located on Djursland in
East Jutland. With its 7,167 inhabitants (2020), the city is the
largest city in Syddjurs Municipality. Ebeltoft is located in
Ebeltoft Parish and belongs to the Central Jutland Region. Ebeltoft
is located on the west side of the peninsula Hasnæs, and is the only
East Jutland port town with a west-facing port.
The city was
probably built around the year 1200 with a market town privilege
from 1302 and is one of Denmark's largest destinations due to the
old town and a colorful shop and museum life (including
Farvergården, the Frigate Jutland and the Glass Museum), and it
almost doubles its population during the summer holidays. Near the
town is the nature area Mols Bjerge as well as many beaches with
Blue Flag and many cottages.
Molslinjen calls at the city by
fast ferries to Sjællands Odde. The Film Academy was established in
1993 on the hills north of Ebeltoft with the status of a folk high
school. The author Troels Kløvedal was based in a small town just
outside Ebeltoft.
In recent years, Ebeltoft has lost many
jobs, and now builds its economy mainly on tourism, which also means
that in recent years there has been more focus on tourism in the
city, and many new shops have opened. Many of Ebeltoft's stores are
specialty stores, such as lifestyle shops and a candy bar. In
addition, in and around the city you will find Denmark's largest
concentration of small studio glass workshops.
The name is spelled 1301 Æpplætofte, 1317 Æplætoft, 1356 Æblætofthæ, 1532 Æbeltovtth etc .; it has been thought to come from "abel" or "apple" (abild); the latter is probably the most probable, especially since the apple tree is found in the city's oldest seals (the name was Latinized to "pomagrina" and "pomagrium").
The Middle Ages
From the
beginning, the place has probably been a village or a fishing
village and was an annex to Draaby up to the Reformation (that it
must previously have been a separate pastorate is not likely). But
the name appears, as far as is known, for the first time in Erik
Menved's letter of 21 January 1301, whereby the town was granted
market town privileges. On August 25, 1317, the king issued a new
one, giving the citizens the same law and statutes as Viborg and
Aarhus. Its privileges were later many times confirmed and extended,
such as July 29, 1356, 1443, 1506, 1552, March 21, 1563, May 28,
1607, and November 30, 1648. The law mentioned in the letter of 1317
is probably the old Schleswig city court, of which the town received
a copy from Horsens the same year. In 1430 the byting is mentioned,
in 1479 a mayor. Incidentally, the City is mentioned only a little.
A large part of the city's medieval streets have been preserved,
and in 2015 Ebeltoft topped a list of best-preserved medieval towns,
which the National Association for Building and Landscape Culture
had compiled.
The Renaissance
In 1558 a Latin school was
established in the town.
The city suffered from the plague
1619-20 and was badly included in the wars of the 17th century,
especially 1627-29, when it was taxed so that its rich priest Niels
Pedersen had to provide it with money, and "the largest part of the
city was shot down" . As a result of the war, the Danish Atlas says
that "half the streets are deserted after that time, and stone walls
of the old houses close the scattered buildings together". The town
also suffered damage in 1643-45, and in the war of 1657-60 the
Swedes had their fortification on "Skansen", just as at that time
there was a battle in the cove between Swedish and Danish ships.
The city's main occupation was maritime trade, which was
particularly significant in the second half of the 17th century,
when the city grew its competitor Grenaa over its head, had large
grocery and warehouses, shipyards and a lucrative traffic,
especially in Bergen, as well as the large firewood transport from
the royal forests in the area brought much life. In 1672 the town
had 817 inhabitants. The government also had a grain warehouse there
("Magasingaarden", located on Adelgade, was demolished in 1806). The
Danish Atlas says that the city once had 30 ships, and its citizens
themselves report in 1772 that in earlier times it had some twenty
larger vessels. In the Great Nordic War, when it lost part of its
ships, however, the turning point occurred: in 1711 it had another
18 ships with 442 cargoes, 1732-35 12, 1768 9, 1772 5 and 1798 only
2 ships. In 1769 the city had 562 inhabitants and was smaller than
Grenaa.
The Latin school was abolished in 1739.
In the
19th century, the city developed little, although the improved port
conditions brought some more life, and it was one of the country's
smallest market towns.
In the War of 1807-14 the city was
also occupied by the enemy, in 1808 some of the Spaniards lay here.
Early industrialization
Businesses of 1890: 192 lived by
intangible enterprise, 114 by agriculture, 11 by horticulture, 21 by
fishing, 12 by shipping, 495 by industry, 176 by trade, 183 by
various day-care enterprises, 65 by their means, and 15 enjoyed
alms.
In Ebeltoft, around 1900, 4 markets were held annually:
1 in February, 1 in March and 1 in June with horses and cattle, 1 in
September with cattle and sheep.
Of factories and industrial
plants there were around 1900: 1 tannery, 1 malt factory, 2
breweries (one with malt factory), 1 distillery, 1 brickworks, 2
mills and 1 communal dairy.
"Æbeltoft Avis" and "Æbeltoft
Folkeblad" were published in Byen ("Æbeltoft Dagblad" was published
in Randers).
The interwar period
During the interwar
period, Ebeltoft's population was slightly increasing: in 1916
1,704, in 1921 1,959, in 1925 1,877, in 1930 1,897, in 1935 2,037,
in 1940 2,026 inhabitants. No suburban development took place.
At the census in 1930, Ebeltoft had 1,897 inhabitants, of which
140 subsisted on intangible activities, 692 on crafts and industry,
266 on trade, etc., 187 on transport, 262 on agriculture, forestry
and fishing, 133 on housework, 181 were out of business and 36 had
not stated source of income.
The post-war period
After
World War II, Ebeltoft continued its population development. In 1945
there were 2,104 inhabitants in the market town, in 1950 2,167
inhabitants, in 1955 2,265 inhabitants, in 1960 2,227 inhabitants
and in 1965 2,485 inhabitants. No new suburban development outside
the municipal boundaries took place.
The municipal reform in 1970
In 1301, King Erik Menved issued
market town privileges to Ebeltoft, and the town was a market town
until this concept disappeared with the Municipal Reform in 1970.
Thereafter, Ebeltoft was the capital of Ebeltoft Municipality until
the Municipal Reform in 2007, when it was part of Syddjurs
Municipality.
Ebeltoft was the terminus of the Ebeltoft-Trustrup Railway
(1901-1968). In the city itself, the only reminder of this is the name
of Jernbanegade, which led down to the white, classicist station
building, which was demolished in 1970.
North of the city is the
8 km long Gravlev trail, which follows the track from Vibæk Skovvej to
Gravlev.
Ebeltoft is famous for the museum ship Frigate Jylland. In 2013, just
over 90,000 people visited the ship, which dates from 1857.
Glass
- The museum for glass art is Denmark's most important museum for glass
art. The building, which houses the Glass Museum, was designed by Hack
Kampmann and Christian Kampmann, and was expanded in 2006 with a new
wing designed by the architectural firm 3XN. The animal park Ree Park -
Ebeltoft Safari has a large number of animals, and is named after the
rich man Karsten Ree, who finances the park with money he got from the
sale of Den Blå Avis'.
The old town hall was built in 1789, and
is among the city's major tourist attractions.
In 2020, the Maltfabrikken opened, a center for art, culture, business, events and community. The striking buildings which formerly housed S.B. Lundbergs Maltfabrik, was in disrepair after the factory closed in 1998, and was temporarily threatened with demolition. Local zealots wanted it differently, and through joint efforts they managed to raise funds to buy and save the iconic building and industrial monument. Both local citizens and businesses as well as non-profit foundations and Syddjurs Municipality have contributed to realizing the project. Tegnestuen Praksis is behind the architectural transformation of the Maltfabrikken. In its first six months after opening in June 2020, the malt factory was visited by up to 500,000 guests from home and abroad.
In 2002-2003 Ebeltoft Rotary Club took to creating a number of activities for the town and its tourists. The result was the first Ebelfestival which took place in 2004. The Ebelfestival has since become an established part of cultural life in Ebeltoft and is held every year in week 42. The vision for the festival is: "To provide good experiences and knowledge about apples and about Ebeltoft's history and culture".