Sakskøbing is a market town and station town in northeastern
Lolland with 4,595 inhabitants (2022), located in Guldborgsund
Municipality under Region Zealand. The town is located on both sides
of a narrow fjord passage in Sakskøbing Fjord, which to the
northwest opens into Smålandsfarvandet and to the southeast runs
together with Sakskøbing Å. At the transition section at Sakskøbing
Harbour, a bridge connects the two parts of the city via Brogade,
and a long main street cuts through the city from east to west.
Although Sakskøbing is an old market town, it appears in many
respects as a modern city. On the north side of the fjord, a new
residential area with apartments has been built, while on the south
side, a harbor silo, Qvades Silo, has been converted into a modern
residential high-rise and industrial buildings have been turned into
lucrative commercial properties. A large part of Sakskøbing's other
buildings were renovated after the year 2000, which gives observers
the impression of a well-maintained exterior. The modernity is
emphasized by the city's landmark, the smiling water tower Saxine,
which in 1982 had a smiling girl's face painted on it at the
suggestion of the architect Flemming Skude.
In Sakskøbing one
there are also a number of older and old buildings. Sakskøbing
Church was originally built as a village church in 1250 (dedicated
to the apostles Peter and Paul), but subsequently expanded with a
tower and nave in the following centuries. The tower, which was
completed with a spire in 1852, is 48 meters high. Hotel Saxkjøbing
dates back to around 1800, and is today also a restaurant run by
Claus Meyer
Sakskøbing is close to the E47 motorway and is
intersected in its southern part by secondary route 153. From the
center it is 9 kilometers to Maribo, just under 19 to Nykøbing
Falster, 26 to Rødbyhavn, just under 32 to Vordingborg and 35
kilometers to Nakskov. The town was until 1 January 2007 the
headquarters of Sakskøbing Municipality in Storstrøms County.
Although scissors are part of Sakskøbing's city coat of arms, the
city's name in its origin has nothing to do with the tools. The prefix
"Saks-" is derived from "Saxi", and is believed to be either an Old
Danish name for a male person or the name of the narrow stretch of fjord
towards the mouth of the river. The overall meaning of the name is
therefore "Trade Square at Saxi"; later a further derivation in the
direction of "scissors" as a tool, with the meaning "sheep shears". A
nearby village had the name "Saxtorp" (mentioned 1230).
The
Middle Ages
In Valdemar's Land Registry from 1240, the town is
referred to for the first time as "Saxakopingh". It originated as a ford
over the stream and was already referred to as a market town in 1270
together with Nakskov in Vestlolland. Christoffer II resided in the city
as duke from 1289 to 1315 and later as king from 1320. In 1306, Erik
Menved issued a letter by which he orders all his men, minters, wreckers
and others who live in Sakskøbing and trade there to pay to the
inhabitants of the city all the dues due to the king of the goods
carried out of the city. The king thus made Sakskøbing a mint and minted
the coins with the two sheep shears known from the city coat of arms. In
1328, Count Johan the Mild was also given free mint here, when Lolland
was pledged to him. The city's oldest known privileges, whereby
Christopher II granted and confirmed all the rights that the citizens
had in the time of previous kings in Denmark, were issued on 27 July
1320; they were later often confirmed, including on 24 June 1337 by
Count Johan, 1442 and 1449. Christoffer II lived some of his last days
in Sakskøbing, where he was attacked in 1332 by two noblemen, Henneke
Breide and Joh. Ellemose, who burned down the house above him, captured
him and took him to Count Johan at Aalholm, who, however, immediately
set the king free again.
Sakskøbing had a Helliggesthus in the
Middle Ages, mentioned in documents from 1483 and 1488; it seems to have
been located in the north-eastern part of the city at the later
Brostræde.
At the Reformation in 1536, the citizens of Sakskøbing were particularly anti-Catholic. Demanding the return of the fortunes that the Catholic Church had recovered over the years, they attacked several monasteries in anger. However, Christian III came to the rescue of the monasteries and punished the disobedient citizens. Sakskøbing faced several problems as the fjord gradually began to sand. The citizens now had to transport their goods on land between the market town and the small harbor at Oreby, from where shipping to Småland waters took place. The landowner at Orebygaard demanded his share and a conflict of interest arose, which the citizens won in the end.
In the 17th century, Sakskøbing was hit by a general decline. The
Swedish wars ravaged Lolland-Falster and Swedish soldiers robbed and
burned down the market town in 1658, so the town fell into disrepair. In
1672 Sakskøbing had only 272 inhabitants. In the 18th century, the city
was hit by several large fires, the worst in 1728 and 1784, with 16 and
20 farms burnt down respectively. The Latin school was closed in 1740,
while a main post office was built in 1779.
The 19th century was,
with the exception of a major fire in the autumn of 1800, a prosperous
period for Sakskøbing, as many new buildings sprung up in the urban
environment. The harbor was put into use again in 1804, a smaller
shipyard was added in 1829 and the population increased from 549 in 1801
to 830 in 1834, 852 in 1840 and 915 in 1845.
Sakskøbing's population was increasing in the late 1800s and early
1900s: 917 in 1850, 1,058 in 1855, 1,149 in 1860, 1,409 in 1870, 1,485
in 1880, 1,499 in 1890, 1,560 in 1901, 1,62 2 in 1906 and 1,743 in 1911.
In 1855, the town had factories and industrial plants: 3 weaving
mills, 1 dyeing mill, 2 tanneries, 1 lime kiln, 1 pottery, 1
shipbuilding and brandy distilleries. In 1871, the town had factories
and industrial facilities: 2 weaving mills, 3 dyehouses, 2 tanneries, 2
lime kilns, 1 wool spinning mill, 2 beer breweries, 3 malthouses, 1
brandy distillery, 2 potteries, 1 shipbuilding. At the turn of the
century, the town had factories and industrial facilities: 1 iron
foundry and machine factory, 1 factory for dairy and agricultural goods,
1 steam sawmill and cutting mill, 1 co-operative dairy, 1 steam weaving
mill, 1 tannery, 2 white beer breweries, 1 small pottery, 1 dyehouse, 1
lime kiln, 5 malthouses and 1 small bicycle factory.
The
nutritional composition of the population was in 1890: 218 lived from
immaterial activity, 633 from craft and industry, 267 from trade and
turnover, 1 from shipping, none were fishermen, 4 from agriculture, 5
from horticulture, 191 from other professions, 41 from their means , 55
enjoyed alms, and 84 were in the Compulsive and Mental Asylum. According
to a census in 1906, the population was 1,622, of which 157 supported
themselves by non-material activities, 45 by agriculture, forestry and
dairying, none by fishing, 720 by crafts and industry, 332 by trade and
more, 85 by transport, 49 were tradespeople, 203 lived on public support
and 31 on other or unspecified business.
In Sakskøbing, markets
were held on the 3rd and 5th Tuesday in Lent with horses and cattle, on
8 July and 1 October with livestock and on 7 November with horses and
cattle.
Sakskøbing's unloading and loading area was located at
Oreby at the mouth of the fjord. Only smaller vessels (in 1870 with a
draft of 6 feet) could come up to the city through the fjord and the
stream. In 1886-87, considerable work was carried out, whereby the
harbor was expanded and regulated, bulwarks were placed and the fairway
from Oreby was deepened, so that it had a depth of up to 12 feet, the
harbor 8 feet. A pilot employed by the Port Committee had a residence at
Oreby.
During this period, intensive cultivation of sugar beet
began in Lolland-Falster, which meant increased economic activity in the
town. As a result, the Nykøbing Faster-Nakskov railway line was led
through Sakskøbing, and Sakskøbing Station was built at the current
Jernbanegade. In 1866, Maribo County built a large institution in the
city for mentally ill people, the Maribo County Forced Labour, Arbejds-
og Dåreanstalt, now called Saxenhøj. The philosophy at the time was that
society had - "a great need for space for 'fools' and for 'drowned',
lazy and stubborn poor people". – The institution could accommodate up
to 88 patients and 50 indigent members; today Saxenhøj functions as a
care institution for the mentally ill and homeless under the philosophy
"no one is hopeless".
In 1910, a large sugar factory was built in
the market town, Sakskøbing Sugar Factory. Together with Saxenhøj, it
was among the city's largest workplaces for many years. The factory
bought the steamship Havkatten, which every year, via tugboats, hauled
thousands of tons of beet in from Fejø and Femø for processing. In 1918,
railway tracks were laid from the factory to Sakskøbing Station due to
increased sugar exports.
Throughout the interwar period, Sakskøbing's population was almost
stagnant: in 1916 1,781, in 1921 1,798, in 1925 2,012, in 1930 2,100, in
1935 2,106, in 1940 2,235 inhabitants. But at the same time there was
growth in the suburb of Rørbæk in Sakskøbing Landsogn on the north side
of Sakskøbing å, where a number of people with work in Sakskøbing and
especially at the sugar factory settled.
At the census in 1930,
Sakskøbing had 2,100 inhabitants, of which 189 supported themselves by
non-material activities, 724 by craft and industry, 395 by trade etc.,
181 by transport, 69 by agriculture, forestry and fishing, 171 by
housework, 345 were out of business and 26 had not stated the source of
income.
The post-war period
After the Second World War,
Sakskøbing continued its stagnant population development. In 1945 there
were 2,473 inhabitants in the market town, in 1950 2,520 inhabitants, in
1955 2,583 inhabitants, in 1960 2,526 inhabitants and in 1965 2,590
inhabitants. In the country parish, Rørbæk also stagnated.
Recent
times
The sugar factory was a productive enterprise for many decades,
but from 1973 it began to decline due to the energy crisis. In 1991 De
Danske Sukkerfabrikker was forced to shut down production completely,
while the lump sugar factory and packing plant were allowed to continue.
Today, most of Sakskøbing Sugar Factory is used for private residences
and commercial leases.
The town is just north of the Sydmotorvejen, and Primary route 9
runs from Nykøbing Falster via Sakskøbing on to Maribo and all the
way to Odense.
From Sakskøbing Station, the Lollandsbanen
departs for Nykøbing F Station and Nakskov.
Maribo-Sakskøbing
Power Plant is located on the western edge of the city and supplies
electricity and heat. It is owned by I/S Refa, who bought it from
DONG Energy in 2012 for DKK 92 million. DKK.
Sakskøbing has several festivals throughout the year, especially in
the summer season. Thus, a pea festival is held in July, where, among
other things, is communal dining on the main street. In September, the
Sydhavsøernes Fruit Festival is held, where local producers come to
town, where they exhibit and sell fruit. The festival started as a
harvest market in 2007, but has developed tremendously since then, and
over 20,000 people visited the festival in 2014, where, among other
things, was the DM in smoothies and competitive eating of fruit. The
mayors of Guldborgsund and Lejre Municipality (John Brædder and Mette
Touborg), rowers Mads Rasmussen and René Holten Poulsen and Christian
Bitz and Jens Stenbæk participated in the 2014 match dinner.
Hotel Saxkjøbing was built around the year 1800 and since 2006 has been
run by Claus Meyer as a hotel and restaurant that mainly uses local
ingredients. The neighboring building, which housed the Saxkjøbing
Theater, was taken over in 1968 and integrated into the hotel.
Other old buildings in the city are Wichmands Gård built in the 1770s,
located on the corner of Brogade and Torvegade. Its ancient origins are
most clearly felt inside the courtyard, while the front of the house
appears more modernized. Another old building is the Juniorsstiftelsen
in Juniorsgade, built in 1802 by the merchant Lars Hansen Junior for the
benefit of the city's poor. Another older building is Det Gamle Rådhus
from 1887-88 on Torvet by Søndergade.
Sakskøbing contains several areas within sports. In 1905 Sakskøbing
Roklub was founded, and a clubhouse built by the harbor in 1922. This
clubhouse is still used by the club. In 1934, a bathhouse at the rowing
club was moved out to the marina, and a swimming club was founded in
1935. A gymnastics association was founded in 1907 and within football,
the ball club Frem Sakskøbing was founded in 1905. The club's men's
division managed to reach the final of the National Cup tournament in
1960, where they lost 2-0 to AGF. Since 1950, the club has had its home
ground at the Sakskøbing Stadium at Holmeskoven. The Sakskøbing Scouts
were started back in 1936 as a boys' group, under the name Gylden Sax.
In 1942, Princess Magrethe started Trop, which was a girl group. In
1976, the two groups started working together, and today it is a group
under the name Sakskøbing Spejderne
In 1972 Sakskøbing Sports
Center, nicknamed Saxemarken, was inaugurated and further expanded in
1981. It contains two sports halls, a cafeteria and a swimming pool.