Maribo a central town and old market town in the middle of
Lolland with 5,790 inhabitants (2020). It is primarily known as the
Cathedral City of Maribo with its majestic old monastery church,
Maribo Cathedral, as its landmark. It is also known as the
birthplace of the poet priest Kaj Munk. The city is one of the few
Danish market towns located inland - without direct sailing
connections to waters and seas around Denmark. The market town is
surrounded by the Maribo Islands, where in the summer tourist boats
sail around to the small islands. From the town's station there is a
veteran railway connection, Museumsbanen Maribo-Bandholm, to the
small port town Bandholm by Smålandsfarvandet and to Nakskov and
Nykøbing F with Lollandsbanen (Local train).
Maribo is
characterized by being an old town without much industry. In the
southern part of the center there are a number of older city
districts with small streets and alleys. At the cathedral there are
ruins of Skt. Birgitta Kloster from 1416, which was already in
disrepair when Leonora Christina lived here in the late 17th
century. Today there is a Catholic church in Maria Gade. Skt.
Birgitta Church was built for the Polish beet workers in 1897. Other
older buildings are Kapellangården from 1756 and Maribo Town Hall
from 1856 on Torvet.
Maribo is a traffic hub on Lolland. The
E47 motorway passes Maribo. From the city there are just over eight
km to Sakskøbing, just over 13 to Rødby, just over 28 to Nakskov, 26
to Nykøbing Falster and 52 kilometers to Vordingborg. Maribo is the
headquarters of Lolland Municipality and belongs to Region Zealand
Maribo Monastery was founded in 1416 and established by Queen
Margrete 1st (1353-1412) on the farm Grimstrup. The town of Maribo arose
at the monastery. The history of the market town of Maribo is therefore
inextricably linked with St. Birgitta Monastery (Maribo Monastery). In
the beginning of the 15th century, there was a small village Skimminge
in the place where Maribo is now. A special order within the Catholic
Church, the Birgittine Order, chose this place to build a monastery
dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The monastery, which was completed in
1416, was divided into two separate wings – one for monks and one for
nuns. The two groups met in the monastery church that was to become
Maribo Cathedral. The monastery church was built in the years 1413-1470.
The Birgittine Order now applied to the Pope for permission to call the
place Maribo, a derivation of "Marie-bo": a "religious abode of the Holy
Virgin". In the same year that the monastery was completed, it and the
surrounding settlement were granted market town rights by Erik of
Pomerania, and the Pope gave his consent to the place name Maribo in
1418. The history of the town begins from here. Maribo's city coat of
arms shows Saint Birgitta of Vadstena, who founded the Birgittine Order.
Even with market town rights, it was difficult for Maribo to develop
into an actual trading town because the town was not located by the sea.
But Maribo Kloster grew during the 15th century into one of Denmark's
noblest and most important monasteries, not least because many of its
residents and financial supporters belonged to the nobility. [source
missing] The Birgittine Order was also the guardian of the nearby
Østofte Church, which Christoffer of Bavaria had gifted Maribo
Monastery, and as the Pope had confirmed in 1453. The merchant town of
Maribo was to assist the monastery financially and provide able-bodied
citizens when construction work was required. Right up to the
Reformation, several kings, popes and cardinals favored and confirmed
Maribo Monastery's privileges by letters of indulgence to those who
donated gifts to the monastery. Gradually, other Danish monasteries
began to apply for admission to the order, such as Sankt Agnete Kloster
in Roskilde in 1487. Many wealthy men and women allowed themselves to be
appointed "brothers and sisters outside" in order to share in the
monastery's reputation. The monastery was thriving and even the
Reformation in 1536 did not diminish the monastery's power in comparison
to other Danish monasteries.
Like other Danish towns, Maribo was hit by the Count's Feud in 1534,
and the following year the town's citizens joined Christian II,
unsuccessfully attacked the monastery and took part in the looting of
several manors in the area. In 1535 they capitulated and paid homage to
Christian III in Nysted. After the Reformation in 1536, Maribo Kloster
became a noble virgin convent to which noblemen could refer their
unmarried daughters, and over time it developed into a retirement home
for elderly stately women. One of them was Christian IV's daughter
Leonora Christina Ulfeldt who, after her release from Blåtårn, spent her
last years in Maribo Kloster from 1685-1698. She is buried in the crypt
of the cathedral and on the tombstone is written: "Lord, if your word
had not been my comfort, then I would have perished in my misery." In
the 16th century, certain changes had taken place on the site. A violent
fire ravaged Maribo in 1549 and the monks' department at the monastery
was closed in 1551, 15 years after the abolition of Catholicism as the
state religion in Denmark. There were rumors that the chastity of the
nuns was in trouble in the first decades after the Reformation. In 1563,
the bishop of Odense, Niels Jespersen, had to present serious charges
against the nuns, partly for their adherence to papist teachings, partly
for persistent rumors of immorality.
In 1596, another great fire
ravaged Maribo, and the monastery church became the parish church of the
market town of Maribo. In the same year, the King had the chancellor
review the monastery's "lifestyle" and on that occasion installed a new
fundats, which was to maintain the original idea of a monastery for
virgins. However, it did little to help the monastery's reputation,
which had suffered irreparable damage. Maribo town was ravaged by even
more plagues in 1601, as the Plague hit the town with devastating force.
In 1621, the demolition of Maribo Monastery began, which had its right
as a welfare institution revoked. The monastery's assets and
buildings/bricks were initially donated to the Sorø Noble Academy and
later (upon the closure of the noble academy) donated to Frederik III
and Queen Sophie Amalie in 1665. In 1647, the monastery part was given
the function of a priest's residence and retained this function until
1770, with the exception of the years 1695-1718. A town fire in 1713
destroyed 25 houses and farms.
Due to several plagues in the
following decades, in 1769 the town of Maribo had just 504 inhabitants.
The following year they demolished the monastery's old monk section and
replaced it with a new rectory. Although the monastery church survived,
Maribo was now hit by economic and significant decline. The town was a
small and poor trading area. Not least because a number of landowners on
Lolland, who had large incomes through grain breeding on the island's
fertile lands, circumvented the law and traded outside the small market
town. This poverty made it too impossible for the town to maintain the
abbey church, which began to decay.
In the year 1800, the population was 680 in Maribo market town. A small strengthening of the town occurred in 1803, when Lolland-Falster, which until then had been part of the Diocese of Funen, was made a new independent diocese, and the monastery church became the cathedral of the area. The bishop, however, resided in Nykøbing Falster. Just as the sheriff of Maribo County resided in Nykøbing. Lolland-Falster's Stifttidende also moved to Falster's main town. It was not until 1843 that trade development began, as merchant A.C. Quade started an extensive trade in grain and used Bandholm as a shipping port. Distilling brandy was also an important production in Maribo in the 19th century, just as a large immigration of Polish seasonal workers for beet field work in 1893 and 1929 left its mark on the cityscape. In 1896, the town got its own brewery, Maribo Bryghus.
"Maribo", market town in Musse Herred on Lolland approximately in the
middle of the country, in a pretty area by Maribo Lake, is 1 1/2 miles
from Sakskøbing, 2 from Rødby, 2 3/4 from Nysted and 3 1/2 from Nakskov,
10 1/2 from Heiligenhafen in Holstein, 21 1/4 from Copenhagen.
The town has 1,200 inhabitants, 173 farms and houses in the town, and 11
houses and 2 mills outside the same, 8 streets and alleys, a very large
square - in the middle of the same town hall - 4 gates and 1 church (the
previous monastery church). This is 109 cubits long and 87 cubits of it
has a width of 45 cubits, 22 a width of 20 cubits. Its internal height
is 20 cubits. The town's actual parish church burned down in 1596; from
its remains, the so-called "Dronninggård" was built. The monastery
church then became a parish church. The monastery was called Skinninge,
then Maribo, and was founded in 1417 by Eric of Pomerania for nuns of
the order of St Birgitta.
The city has two public civic schools
(with 200 children). The town's own lands amount (according to the
information provided) to 40 acres, and the royal lands which the town
leases 150 acres. - After Dr. Paulli's topography: 500 barrels
registered for 173 barrels of hartkorn, including the hartkorn of Maribo
Ladegaard and the town of Refshales, which also belong to the parish -
all replaced and of mediocre quality. The most important trade routes
are grain trading and brandy distilling.
In addition to the usual
officials, the bishop and the county administrator live in the city. The
town clerk is also the town clerk. The town's coat of arms is a standing
cross, presumably the Virgin Mary, as the town probably owes its coat of
arms to the monastery of Mariæ, as well as its name. There are no market
days, but on Mondays and Thursdays there is a grain market in Bandholm –
the customs office – about 1 mile from the town, where the merchants
have most of their warehouses. The consumption in 1828 was approximately
16,238 Riksbankdaler (of which 7,588 was the brandy tax alone). Maribo
has the best water of all the market towns on Lolland. Instead of a
civilian armed force, a police force is envisaged.
The town has a
beautiful location, between 2 lakes, of which the southern lake (Maribo
Lake) is the largest; its circumference is 4 miles. Its surroundings and
wooded islets offer the most picturesque views. On the island of Borø in
the lake there used to be a castle which was demolished in 1251, after
having stood for 400 years. Near the town is a beautiful little forest,
called "Bang's garden", with a beautiful view of the main farms Søholt
and Engestofte. Another – Lysemose Forest – is the residents' regular
entertainment venue. The mail from Copenhagen arrives and departs for
Nakskov on Sunday and Wednesday evenings; arrives from Nakskov and
departs Monday and Thursday night.
Christian IV's beloved
daughter Eleonora Christine, since 1698, is buried in the cathedral. The
tombstone that has covered her resting place was in a broken state when
(in 1829) it was taken up to be framed in a new frame. In the burial
site, a skull, a number of other bones, some brass and iron zirates, and
a piece of gold braid were found - the latter presumably placed on the
completely crumbled coffin. These remains of the noble king's daughter
are now gathered in a new oak coffin and lowered into the repaired
grave, over which the old memorable and restored headstone will be
placed. In the narrower part of the church, called the Virgin's Choir,
country fashion is held. A provincial library founded by printer K. H.
Seidelin, founded in 1795, is set up here, which is currently numbering
over 7000 volumes. In Maribo is a printing house.
Maribo's population was increasing in the late 1800s but stagnated in
the early 1900s: 1,667 in 1850, 1,960 in 1855, 1,992 in 1860, 2,156 in
1870, 2,403 in 1880, 2,542 in 1890, 3,838 in 1901, 3 .750 in 1906 and
3,874 in 1911.
Maribo had a customs office and loading area at
Bandholm. By law of 20 November 1868 (concession of 8 January 1869) the
construction of a railway between Maribo and Bandholm was established.
The line, owned by a private partnership, was opened on 2 November 1869.
In addition, Maribo became a station on the Lolland-Falster line.
Pursuant to the law of 25 March 1872, the government gave Privatbanken a
concession on the construction of a railway from Orehoved over Nykøbing
and Maribo to Nakskov with a siding to Rødby. The private bank left the
concession to its own limited company, and on 22 August 1872 the
3-mile-long Orehoved-Nykøbing line was opened, on 1 July 1874 the
8.6-mile-long line from Guldborg Sund over Sakskøbing and Maribo to
Nakskov and Rødby.
In 1855, the town had factories and industrial
plants: 1 printing house, 5 beer breweries, 10 brandy distilleries, 1
chocolate factory, 2 tanneries, 1 lime kiln, 4 potteries, 1 cotton wool
factory, 2 clothing factories, 1 brick factory. In 1871, the town had
factories and industrial plants: 1 printing house, 3 beer breweries, 2
brandy distilleries, 4 tanneries, 1 lime kiln, 2 potteries, 2 clothing
factories, 1 brickworks, 2 wool spinning mills, 1 steam mill, 2 mills.
Of factories and industrial facilities, the town had at the turn of the
century: 1 steam mill (joint stock company, 34 workers), 1 wooden goods
factory (12 to 16 workers), 3 beer breweries (15 workers), 1 machine and
wagon factory ("Vulcan", 130—140 workers) , 1 wool spinning mill, 1 pig
slaughterhouse (joint stock company, 16 workers), 1 lime kiln, 2
potteries, 1 dairy, 1 soda factory, 1 iron foundry, 1 sugar factory
built in 1897 at Skovnæs and from 1898 belonging to "De danske Sugar
Factories" (300 workers), and 1 printing house.
The nutritional
composition of the population was in 1890: 328 lived from immaterial
activity, 1,247 from craft and industry, 478 from trade and turnover,
none from shipping, 4 were fishermen, 51 from agriculture, 26 from
horticulture, 306 from other professions, 71 from their means , 28
enjoyed alms, and 3 were in prison. In the rural district in 1890, the
distribution of livelihoods was: 4 lived from immaterial activity, 97
from agriculture, 11 from industry, 4 from trade, 33 from day laborers
and 3 from their means. According to a census in 1906, the population
was 3,750, of which 306 supported themselves by non-material activities,
65 by agriculture, forestry and dairying, 6 by fishing, 2,238 by crafts
and industry, 685 by trade and turnover, 210 by transport, 82 were
shopkeepers, 132 lived on public support and 26 on other or unspecified
business.
In Maribo, 5 markets were held: 3 in Lent with horses
and cattle, 1 in June with hugs, horses and cattle and 1 in October with
hugs.
The interwar period
During the interwar period, Maribo's
population was almost stagnant: in 1916 4,196, in 1921 4,442, in 1925
4,618, in 1930 4,606, in 1935 4,490, in 1940 4,399 inhabitants. But at
the same time there was growth in the suburbs of Ny Østergade and
Idasminde in Hunseby Municipality as well as Håred in Hillested Parish,
where a number of people with work in Maribo settled.
At the
census in 1930, Maribo had 4,606 inhabitants, of which 378 supported
themselves by non-material activities, 1,8734 by crafts and industry,
869 by trade etc., 400 by transport, 138 by agriculture, forestry and
fishing, 485 by housework, 410 were out of business and 53 had not
declared the source of income.
The post-war period
After World
War II, Maribo continued its stagnant population development. In 1945
there were 4,681 inhabitants in the market town, in 1950 5,141
inhabitants, in 1955 5,197 inhabitants, in 1960 5,235 inhabitants and in
1965 2,590 inhabitants. On 1 April 1950, the suburb of Ny Østergade was
incorporated into Købstaden. Somewhat later, a new suburb, Refshale,
emerged in Maribo's rural district.
Modern times
In 1970,
Maribo County was abolished and the city of Maribo now came under the
larger Storstrøms County. It was disbanded in 2007 and replaced by
Region Zealand. Today, Maribo and Nykøbing Falster are considered a
cultural center for Lolland-Falster with all its museums, the cathedral
and several manors in the area. There is a short distance to forests,
lakes, the sea and Knuthenborg Safaripark.
The next major
development for Maribo will probably occur if the Fehmarnbelt connection
to Germany is finally decided.
Denmark's first private railway, the Maribo-Bandholm Railway opened
in 1869 and connected Maribo and Bandholm on the north coast of Lolland.
However, the operation was stopped in 1952 and today it only runs as
part of the Museumsbanen Maribo-Bandholm.
The Lollandsbanen stops
at Maribo Station on the way from Nykøbing Falster to Nakskov.
The southern motorway runs north of the city and the primary route runs
through the city from Nykøbing Falster to Tårs.
A large part of the city's business is located in the northern end of
the city, and it includes, among other things, a division of the law
firm Advodan.
Retail trade in the city is primarily around the
Torvet by the old town hall, which today contains a tourist information
center, and spreads up Vestergade and Østergade on both sides of the
Torvet. In addition, the Lollandscentret can be found on the south side
of Østergade, which contains a number of shops and cafés.
Hotel
Søpark is centrally located in the city, close to the Cathedral and with
a view of Søndersø. It has three stars and 109 rooms. It is owned by
Milling Hotels, which also has hotels in Odense, Kolding and Middelfart.
In the south-western part of the city, between the outdoor museum and
Søndersø, lies Maribo Sø Camping.
Maribo Gymnasium was founded in 1937 in central Maribo, and today has
around 400 students. The catchment includes a large area around Maribo,
as the nearest high schools are in Nakskov and Nykøbing Falster.
VUC Storstrøm has a branch in the city.
CELF offers vocational
education in transport and logistics in Maribo.
There are several
primary schools, including Sankt Birgitta Skole, which is a Catholic
private school.
The city museum Stiftsmuseet Maribo is located on the railway station
square and displays items from 14,000 years of history in the area.
Storstrøm's Art Museum previously had premises in the same building, but
in 2007 it moved to Fuglsang Gods under the name Fuglsang Art Museum. In
addition, there is the Maribo Open Air Museum with old houses and
workshops rebuilt in the area. Both the Stiftsmuseet Maribo and the
Maribo Frilandsmuseum are part of Museum Lolland-Falster.
Maribo
Miniby or Minibyen in Maribo opened in 2011 and has around 70 buildings
from between 1850 and 1900, built as the city looked during this period.
They are all built in 1:10 scale.
Nørregadeteatret is a regional
theater located in the city. Here, one of the episodes for the fifth
season of The Night Watch was recorded with Mick Øgendahl as co-host in
2012. The theater is located in the Kulturværket, where cinema shows are
also shown, concerts are held and art exhibitions are held. The building
was built in 1911 as an electricity plant, and it was inaugurated as a
cultural center in 2011.
From a boat bridge outside the
cathedral, the tour boat Anemonen departs, which sails around Søndersø
and out to Borgø, where the remains of Refshaleborg can be seen.
The museum railway Maribo-Bandholm runs on the section where the now
closed Maribo-Bandholm Railway is located. The museum railway was
founded in 1962, and it includes locomotives and carriages from 1869 to
1935 from several of the country's private railways.
Maribo Jazz
is a four-day music festival held every year on the third weekend of
July. Maribo Rock was for several years an annually recurring music
festival in the city. It was held for the last time in 2015 after
several years of poor ticket sales. The festival started in 1995 and
over the years has included Shu-bi-dua, Gnags, Lars Lilholt, Kim Larsen
& Kjukken, Infernal and Big Fat Snake played at the festival.
Maribo Cathedral was built in the 15th century as a monastery church for
Maribo Monastery, which was founded by monks from Vadstena monastery in
Sweden. Today, only the church remains, which has since been turned into
a cathedral. The ruins of the monastery can be found next door.
The Maribo Halls include the Maribo Swimming Hall and the associated athletics stadium. Maribo Football Club plays here. Maribo Roklub has courses of 2 km in Søndersø. The club was founded in 1896 and has caproning, kayaking and canoeing. Maribo Sø Golfklub is located on the eastern edge of the city next to the lake.