Skagen is located in Vendsyssel and is Denmark's northernmost
city. The city has 7,845 inhabitants (2020) and is located in
Frederikshavn Municipality under the North Jutland Region. It is
also the city center in Skagen Parish. In this northernmost area of
Jutland you can e.g. see The Sanded Church and visit the Branch that
separates the Skagerrak from the Kattegat.
Skagen is a
distinct tourist town, which is first and foremost known for its
distinctive nature and for its Skagen painters. The latter was a
group of Danish painters, P. S. Krøyer, Anna Ancher and Michael
Ancher - who found the area's natural light so special and exciting
that they settled on the northern tip of Jutland and created a
number of masterpieces in painting. These can today be seen at
Skagens Museum.
Skagen is also known for its fishing port and
for the Skagen Festival which was started in 1971.
The color
of the houses is special - skagen yellow - and characteristic are
the white edges of the roof tiles.
In Skagen there is Denmark's second highest lighthouse, Skagen Fyr or
Det grå fyr, from which there is a good view of the surrounding area.
The branch is visited by 2 million guests every year. On the way out
to Grenen, there are three lighthouses along the Kattegat – Vippefyret
(1627), Det Hvide Fyr (1747) and Skagen Grå Fyr (1858). It was important
that a lighthouse was located as far out on Grenen as possible because
of Skagen's Reef, which is an underground sand reef that continues out
from Grenen, and which changes direction depending on wind and current
conditions. The branch was therefore a dangerous place for ships to
pass, and a lighthouse was thus an important tool to avoid bumping into
the reef. It was necessary to build a new lighthouse approx. every
hundred years, because sand and gravel are constantly being deposited
along the west coast, which means that Grenen continues to grow towards
the northeast. By looking at the location of the three lighthouses, you
can thus see where the tip of Grenen was located when the lighthouse was
built. The lighthouses were always built as far out at the tip of the
Grenen as possible. Lighthouses were also built at the same distance to
the Kattegat and Skagerrak. Today, however, the three lighthouses are
much closer to the Kattegat than to the Skagerrak. This is due to the
continuous deposition of sand on the west coast and the Kattegat eroding
on the east coast.
Skagen Gray Lighthouse
Skagen Lighthouse
(in Skagen called "Det Grå Fyr" reopened 12 May 2017 as an international
bird experience center called Skagen Grå Fyr - Center for Migratory
Birds. In connection with the Center for Migratory Birds, the Danish
Ornithological Association operates the Skagen Bird Station.
Prior to the reopening, the lighthouse itself and the lighthouse
keeper's residence have been thoroughly renovated by RealDania City and
Byg and brought back to their original appearance.
The Skagen Grå
Lighthouse was inaugurated and lit for the first time on 1 November 1858
half an hour after sunset. It took 4 years and cost 200,000 Riksdalers
to build Skagen Grå Fyr, and the builder was N.S. Nebelong.
The
lighthouse was built in the middle of Skagen Odde so that there was an
equal distance to both adjacent waters - Skagerrak and Kattegat.
The tower has a height of 46 meters and is thus Denmark's second tallest
lighthouse.
The ascent to the top of the tower takes place via
the brick spiral staircase, which winds like a hollow cylinder and
consists of 210 steps.
From the top of the lighthouse there is a
360 degree view of the entire Grenen.
Churches
Skagen Church
was designed by C.F. Hansen and then rebuilt by Ulrik Plesner in
collaboration with Thorvald Bindesbøll.
Sankt Laurentii Church
(The Sanding Church) is located approx. four kilometers southwest of
what is today the center of Skagen.
The Skagen painters
Martinus Rørbye was among the first painters to visit and paint Skagen.
His Beach Scene from Old Skagen with a rising storm is dated 1834.
Several of his other Skagen paintings date from the late 1840s, such as
A ship on Skagen beach, The beach at Skagen Vesterby and Men of Skagen
on a summer evening in good weather.
Museums
Skagen's Museum
was established in 1908, initially without a fixed exhibition location,
but since 1928 has been at home in a purpose-built building on
Brøndumsvej in Skagen. The museum houses some of the Skagen painters'
most iconic works. In 2014, the museum merged with Anchers Hus and
Drachmanns Hus to form a new organization Skagens Kunstmuseer, which
today runs these three visitor sites.
Anchers Hus, formerly
Michael and Anna Anchers Hus, was the home of the artist couple Anna and
Michael Anchers at Markvej 2 in Skagen. They bought the house on 18
February 1884, after their daughter Helga was born the year before in
1883. The family lived in the low house facing the road for almost 30
years, before the house was extended in 1911-13 with a studio building
to the north designed by the architect Ulrik Plesner. The studio
building is parallel to the original house and is connected to it by an
intermediate building with a long dining room and stairs to the first
floor. This part of Plesner's extension contains Michael Ancher's studio
as well as a connection to Anna Ancher's studio, which is furnished with
a skylight. To the east is a kitchen section with pantry, kitchen,
utility room, storage room and bathroom. On the first floor there is,
among other things, a bedroom with access to the balcony, Helga's room,
a girls' room and a staircase down to the utility room. The extension
itself is connected to the older, lower long one by a corridor with a
skylight. The old long was restored in 1924-25.
After the death
of Michael Ancher in 1927 and Anna Ancher in 1935, Helga Ancher later
took over the house. After Anna Ancher's death, Helga moved out, and the
house remained uninhabited ever since. Helga owned the house until her
death in 1964, after which it passed to the Helga Anchers Fond.
According to her wishes, Ancher's House has been preserved as an
artist's home with the family's original furniture and interior, as well
as a larger collection of artworks by both the family itself and other
artists of the time, which stand as they did when Anna and Michael
Ancher lived there.
The home has been open to the public as a
museum since 1967, and in 2014 merged with Skagens Museum and Drachmanns
Hus to Skagens Art Museums.
Drachmanns Hus was the author Holger
Drachmann's last residence before his death in 1908. Opened as a museum
in 1911 and houses, among other things, house for his personal
belongings and art collection. Open to the public from April to October.
Beyond that are the Skagen Teddy Bear Museum and the Skagen Odde
Nature Center.
Skagen is one of Europe's best bird migration
spots. In May 2017, a new international bird experience center opened in
Skagen Grå Fyr. In this new experience centre, the public can go on a
virtual experience journey and follow the many migratory birds that
visit the Skagen and Grenen area every year. There are new and different
exhibitions changing all year round and visitors can follow the daily
work with, among other things, ringing in Skagen Bird Station. There is
also a café and access to the top of the old lighthouse.
Skagen's football club, Skagen Idrætsklub, is behind the biggest surprise in Danish football, when they knocked Brøndby IF out of the 1986-87 National Cup tournament, after a penalty shoot-out. Skagen also has a handball club, tennis club and Orienteering Club, in addition to being part of the elite superstructure Vendsyssel Elite Badminton through the club Skagen Badminton Club.
Skagen is mentioned for the first time as early as the 1st century
AD. by Pliny the Elder:
Promenturium Cimbrorum excurrens in maria
longe paeninsulam efficit quae Tastris appellatur (Naturalis Historia,
Book IV, 97), which in Danish translates to the peninsula of the Cimbri
extends far into the seas and forms a promontory called Tastris.
It
is the only time the name Tastris is mentioned, while the name Skagen,
which means pointed headland, first appears as Skaffuen in 1284. Skagen
was therefore originally the name of the entire headland, Skagens Odde,
which forms the tip of Vendsyssel. A person from Skagen is called a
skagbo (seen also spelled "skawbo" according to the dialect of the
area).
The origin of Skagen - or Scaven, in older times written Skafuen, Skauffen; the name comes from "Skage", ie a headland or a strip of land that runs into the sea, cf. Vendsyssel's old name "Vendilskage", is mentioned in a document issued by freehold farmers in Vendsyssel from 1355, printed in Suhms Danmarks Historie XIII p. 828, in which it is reported, "that an ancient king on the hunt visited a farmer by the name of Thorkel Skarpæ, who then lived in Oorn (ɔ: Byen Vogn), and at his prayer the same Thorkel handed over the whole of Skagen adjoining land for grazing for his savages. The shepherd of the wild horses by the name of Throndr first thought of fishing at Skagen and built the first house on Skagen's field on behalf of the same Thorkel, and since then many more had built there on behalf of prescribed Thorkel. The truth is that from that stream east of Hosyo and Reten and straight to the outermost Skaugheret has from ancient times been Kongens Strandbred, called Kunghsforstrand, and is recognized to be so yet, just as the Forstranden has never been built by anyone n, before Jutland a few years ago was destroyed and oppressed by the Lord's War ". Which king is alluded to is unknown; Suhm guesses at Erik Klipping, but it must surely be a much earlier king.
In
1299, Erik Menved offered, in order to satisfy Esger Juul, to divest
part of the crown estate, including 1/6 of Skagen. His first market
town privileges were given to the city by Erik of Pomerania on 22
January 1413, and they were later confirmed in 1442, 1451, 1545,
1560, 1598 and 1648. In 1507 King Hans issued a city court for
Skagen, in 1519 Christian II the free birch and the birch right.
Like other market towns, Skagen had mayors and councilors as well as
town bailiffs, in 1580 it also got a town clerk, and even according
to the ordinance of 28 January 1682, Skagen was one of the towns
that kept 1 mayor and 2 councilors, while the authorities in other
North Jutland market towns, such as Hjørring, Thisted and Nykøbing,
were reduced to one town bailiff.
Skagen's church was the
town's old parish church, consecrated to St. Laurentius, and after
an unlikely legend built by Scots and Dutch, who used to fish under
the coast. It was a considerable church, "the longest in
Vendsyssel", built in Gothic style of brick, with vaulted nave and
chancel into one, tower to the west, porch to the south and sacristy
to the north. Sankt Laurentii Kirke was in 1459 "with adjoining
Chapels" transferred to Aalborg Helligaands Hospital, in exchange
for this "should provide Church and Chapels with such a Priest and
Chaplain as they can preside", and until 1677 the Call belonged to
Aalborg Hospital. At the church there was formerly a Sankt Laurentii
Fountain, which was considered sacred.
In addition, as
mentioned, there were a couple of chapels, namely one in Højen, of
half-timbering and thatched roof, and one, which was originally
supposed to have stood in Østerby but in the 17th century was moved
to Vesterby; it was of half-timbering, 17 bays long and with a
free-standing bell tower.
In 1517, Hans Tysk in Skagen
received royal permission to build a house and a chapel north of
Skagen and accommodate sick people. This chapel, dedicated to St.
James, which Frederik I deeded to Bishop Stygge Krumpen in 1523, has
hardly been identical with any of the other two chapels, but nothing
else is known about it.
From the earliest times, fishing has
been Skagen's main industry, and it traded, especially with salted
fish, in the ports of Danish waters, especially Varberg, and in
German ports such as Lübeck and Rostock. Just as later, it was the
ink trade that was run. Arable farming and cattle breeding have
probably also had some significance in the past, because the fields
mentioned in the above-mentioned document of 1355 were still found
in recent times but are later almost completely destroyed by sand
flight. Sand flight and dune formation may have taken place in the
country long ago, but it is only from the 16th century that the sand
flight appears as a real land plague after the destruction of the
forests, which had hitherto set the boundaries, and the consequent
promotion of dune plants, when the fuel from the forests had run
out. It is also in the 16th century that people on Skagen hear about
the conquest of the lands by the sand after the forests right up to
Råbjerg had been cut down, and in 1593 it is said that the sand had
penetrated over the cultivated fields and had settled around the
farms. In addition, large storm surges, such as in 1592 and 1593. In
the latter year, 14 farms and houses disappeared.
Also in recent times the flight of sand continued its destruction, until it reached its climax in 1775, when the sand on Great Day of Prayer "with a violent and terrible storm of N. E. penetrated on and past the Church, which had hitherto been free, destroyed that part of the town's field soil, which lay there around and in the vicinity ", whereby the priest lost both fields and meadows. The damage continued, albeit on a smaller scale, until in recent times the sand has been partially dampened by planting dune roofs and mare straw. The sea has also done much damage in the 19th century, especially at Højen, where it still takes away from the land; thus storm surges occurred on February 14 and November 27, 1825, and again on February 14, 1868.
In
the mid-16th century and 300 years onwards, the area was hit by
various catastrophic events. The climate became colder and the area
was hit by severe storms and flash floods. The fishing failed and
the sand escape increased.
When the temperature drops, the
ice builds up in the Norwegian and Swedish mountain areas, which
caused the water level to drop and the beach width to increase,
exposing more sand that the wind could blow around the landscape.
The vegetation largely disappeared by deforestation for the fuel,
the lighthouses, houses, boats and warfare and the delicate
vegetation was further destroyed by livestock which were allowed to
walk in the dunes and eat the sparse growth and trample the root net
to pieces. The agricultural land became sandy and the city became
poorer and poorer.
Skagen has had a Latin school, established
in the middle of the 16th century at the instigation of Bishop Oluf
Chrysostomus, and which was closed in 1740.
In 1556 it is
mentioned that a quantity of beer was introduced to Skagen, and in
1557 it is said that it was especially butter that the people of
Skag picked up in Varberg, and they watched closely over their
market town rights, so that in the middle of the 16th century a
fishing village was established ". Tornby "or" Thorneleje "near
Skagen (probably in Skagsogn or Råbjerg), which they by complaining
to the king got closed, just as they also in 1580 sought to have the
then newly built town Aalbæk closed.
A not insignificant
source of income for Skagen in earlier times was the strandings,
just as they brought it a lot of wreck timber for building use. Even
in the second half of the 19th century, the mountain salary in
Skagen's jurisdiction was assumed to be on average 9,000 rigsdaler
per year, but the recent many excellent measures to prevent
strandings have meant that these have since become one of the
rarities.
Skagen's Lighthouse, together with Anholt's Lighthouse and Kullens Lighthouse, were arranged in Frederik II's time at the request of the foreign skippers, who passed the Danish waters, and who in turn undertook to pay "Fyrgelt" together with the Øresund toll or the Belt toll. The king's letter on this was issued on July 8, 1560, and the following year the order was repeated, adding that the "lighthouse lamps" should be as wide as a barrel and hung 20 cubits high in a timber structure to be built like a "parrot" (presumably an oblique spears attached to the mast by a strap and to which the parrot's sail was placed). Skagen's "Fyrlampe" was first lit with firewood, which, as the forests in Vendsyssel did not contain sufficient or required for difficult transport, was fetched at sea from the Limfjord region and Norway. However, they quickly switched to using cod liver oil, which illuminated the waters from the top of a tower. The tower was washed away in 1584 during a storm, but was rebuilt and passed in 1606, when lighting was introduced with 6 (from 1610 8) large tallow candles, of an open foot of timber, on top of which was a room with beds for the "Flares" "(the lighthouses), and on top of this again a room with windows to all sides, in which the lights burned. The lighthouse was now called a "Lantern." 1626-27, the upper part of the tower was converted to coal firing, but shortly after it was apparently burnt down, because next year the first Danish rocking furnace for coal burning was erected on Skagen by the then citizen of Elsinore, later customs officer on Skagen and firing manager in Denmark Jens Pedersen (Grove ). The tilting lighthouses were called "Firings", and Skagen's tilting lighthouse consisted, according to Olavius' account, until in 1745 it was again replaced by a tower lighthouse, "of a very tall and thick tree that looked like a mill stump and was surrounded by struts; on top of the stump stood a large An iron fork, which was to be turned around on the stump, so that the fire-pan could always hang on the wind-side.The tilting rod, as heavy as a mast tree, went down into the fork, and at one end of the tilting rod the pan hung; which was to rage up and down with a tallie, went about 6 bushels of coal in the corridor ". The tilting lighthouse stood on Fyrbakken, but when this had been undermined by the sea, the tower in question was built somewhat further north in 1745, which at first was only 54 feet high and a forehead lighthouse; later it was turned into a lamplight.
During the sandstorm in 1775, the sand lay
completely in front of the church door of St. Laurentii Church, and
in the following years, access could only be kept free by regular
use of the spade. Finally, by the efforts of the parish priest
Laulund and town bailiff Petersen and by rescript of June 5, 1795,
due to sand escape and decay, it was laid down, sold, and demolished
on the massive tower near, which was left to the lighthouse, which
maintained it as a beacon; it has stair gables and cross vault with
star ribs. In the inner wall, a spiral staircase leads up over the
vaults. Materials from the church have been detected in several of
Skagen's buildings. The chapels in Vesterby and Højen are mentioned
in 1787 by Olavius as "so dilapidated and dilapidated that people
during the service could hardly be in there without loss of health,
and are nothing more certain than that they will soon fall down".
The chapel in Vesterby was, however, somewhat improved, used by the
parishioners until 1841, when a new church had been built,
approximately in the place of the chapel. The chapel in Højen was
demolished in 1839, but the cemetery remained in use.
A
modern rescue service with its stations with sink-free boats and
rocket launchers was started around the middle of the 19th century,
especially at the instigation of Claudi, and the rescue service was
organized by law of August 26, 1852; Around the turn of the century,
there were a total of about 60 stations that were subordinate to the
manager of the North Jutland rescue service.
In 1781 there
were only 650 inhabitants left in Skagen
The population of Skagen increased in the late 1800s and early 1900s: 1,400 in 1850, 1,451 in 1855, 1,532 in 1860, 1,615 in 1870, 1,954 in 1880, 2,323 in 1890, 2,438 in 1901, 2,936 in 1906 and 3,137 in 1911.
By industry, the population in 1890 was divided into the
following groups, comprising both breadwinners and dependents: 147
lived by intangible business, 289 by industry, 110 by trade, 44 by
shipping, 1,296 by fishing, 130 by agriculture, 7 by horticulture,
227 by various day care activities, 43 of their funds, 29 enjoyed
alms, and 1 was in prison. According to a 1906 census, the
population was 2,936, of which 142 subsisted on intangible
activities, 153 on agriculture, forestry and dairy farming, 1,221 on
fishing, 815 on crafts and industry, 275 on trade and more, 188 on
transport, 79 were retired, 51 lived by public support and 12 by
other or unspecified business. Crafts were on the same level as in
the countryside, there could not be much trade, as the town almost
completely lacked hinterland. On the other hand, Skagen was the
country's second largest fishing town (after Esbjerg). It was mainly
plaice and haddock and cod that were fished. A large part was
exported as salted fish, but a quantity of fresh fish was also sold,
including to Swedish boats, especially from Gothenburg. According to
the Fisheries Report, 171,500 dozen plaice and 182,200 pounds of
haddock and cod were fished in 1897, and the entire catch had a
value of around DKK 277,000. The annual income from fishing was set
at an average of DKK 490,000. The price of fish increased greatly,
especially after the Skagen line opened. . In 1899, the number of
fishermen in Skagen is stated to be 420, in Højen to 56; in Skagen
there were 156 fishing boats, of which 16 large and 140 dinghies; in
Højen there were 23, of which 8 large and 15 dinghies. The city had
no port, the boats were towed ashore. However, there had been
several calls for the construction of a port, among other things
when it was under consideration to provide an emergency and refuge
port in the northern Kattegat.
The fishing industry made a
great progress with the construction of the harbor in 1907, the
boats got bigger and bigger and gradually got engines for both games
and propulsion.
Skagen's isolated location, the beauty of
nature and the characteristic population attracted artists,
especially painters who at this time broke with the Art Academy's
attitude and sought the outdoor painting for which they found motifs
in Skagen. A colony of artists was formed which in turn attracted
curious tourists, which made Skagen one of the most fashionable
tourist destinations in Denmark.
Skagen is the place in Denmark where the most species of birds have
been seen.
Skagen's list counts almost 400 out of approx. 500
bird species seen in Denmark. Each year sees approx. 280-285 species in
Skagen, a number not seen anywhere else in the country, and perhaps only
reached in one other place in Europe: Ved Ottenby in Sweden.
The
Skagen area with Grenen at the head is visited all year round by
hundreds of ornithologists (birders) from all over Denmark, especially
in April-May and the beginning of June, and to a much lesser extent in
autumn in August-November. There are also birders from Sweden, Norway
and Germany in particular.
Other well-visited places for birders
in Skagen are Ellekrattet at Grenen's parking lot, Nordstrand at
Batterivej, Skagen Harbour, Flagbakken southwest of the city, as well as
horse fields and thickets at Fyrvej, Bøjlevej, Batterivej and Buttervej.
Every day of the year, the Grenen Bird Station follows the bird
migration from Verdens Ende, Grenen's highest dune, as the only place in
Denmark. You will find it near the southern coast, midway between the
parking lot and the tip.
In addition to birds, as many as 4
species of seals and countless species of whales have been seen at
Skagen. Thus, Grenen Bird Station's daily counts in 2021 yielded as many
as 14 finds and in 2022 as many as 7 finds of killer whales
The
nature at Skagen attracts many visitors every year, and in June 2015 an
extensive trail system with over 20 km of hiking trails was inaugurated
on Grenen. There are four different trails at different distances from 3
to 10 km.
The only road to Skagen is primary route 40, which is the country's
northernmost country road.
Skagen Station is located in the
middle of the city and is the terminus of the Skagen Railway between
Skagen and Frederikshavn. The western part of Skagen is also served by
Frederikshavnsvej Trinbræt.
The nearest airfield is Sindal
Airport, which, however, is only served by small light aircraft and
private flights. From Aalborg Airport there are i.a. around 30 daily
(2019) flights to Copenhagen.
Skagen Harbor is visited annually by approximately 1,000 fishing
vessels and 550 merchant ships, as well as a growing number of cruise
ship calls. Among the city's largest businesses are FF Skagen and
Karstensens Shipyard A/S. The latter has existed since 1917, and is one
of the few Danish yards that build new buildings. In 2008, Karstensen's
Shipyard employed approx. 200 employees and approx. 300 letting people.
Today, 50% of the town's income comes from fishing and 25% from
tourism.
In 2018, the port set a record with 40 calls from cruise
ships.
The harbor has recently been expanded in 3 stages. Stage 1
was carried out in the period 2006 – 2007. The expansion led to a land
expansion of 110,000 m2. Stage 2 was carried out in the period August
2013 – early summer 2015. The port expansion resulted in a wider
entrance of +250 metres, increasing the water depth to a minimum of 11
meters at the quay, 600 meters of new quay and the creation of a new
quay basin. Stage 3 was carried out in 2020-2021. 190,000m2 of new land
– here of 155,000m2 for rent. 1050 meters of new quay.
Skagen has one primary school, the combined Hedebo School and
Ankermedets School have been named Skagen School. Previously, there was
also the Kappelborg School, but this was closed in 2005 and is now a
cultural center instead. In addition, the town also has a private
school, Brovandeskolen.
Continuing education opportunities in the
city are few, as it only offers skipper training at Skagen Skipperskole
now Martec.
Anna Ancher, Skagen painter
Mariann Gajhede Knudsen, soccer player
Sanne Munk Jensen, author
Kamilla Rytter Juhl, badminton player
Marianne Mortensen, actress
David Nielsen, soccer player
Eddie
Thomas Petersen, director and author
Jacob Brønnum Scavenius,
landowner
Hanne Marie Svendsen, author
Nicolaj Thomsen, soccer
player
Kasper Sørensen, Football player
Nicolas Strauss
Christensen, Football player