Fredrikstad encyclopedia topics

Fredrikstad, city (1995 pop. 65,148), Østfold co., SE Norway, a port on the Oslofjord (an arm of the Skagerrak) at the mouth of the Glåma River. Manufactures include forest products, processed food, and chemicals. Founded by Frederick II in 1567, it was fortified in the 17th cent. Its 17th-century fortress, once the strongest in Norway and the main depot for the fleet and army, was decommissioned in 1903.

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Wikipedia

(previously Frederiksstad) (literally Fredrik's Town) is a city and municipality in the county of Østfold, Norway.

The city of Fredrikstad was founded in 1567 by King Frederik II, and established as a municipality on January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The rural municipality of Glemmen was merged with Fredrikstad January 1, 1964 - and the rural municipalities of Borge, Onsøy, Kråkerøy and Rolvsøy were merged with Fredrikstad January 1, 1994.

The city straddles the river Glomma where it meets the North Sea. With neighboring Sarpsborg, Fredrikstad forms the fifth largest city in Norway. As of January 1 2008, according to Statistics Norway, these two municipalities have a total population of 123,029 - 71,976 in Fredrikstad and 51,053 in Sarpsborg.

Fredrikstad was built at the mouth of Glomma as a replacement after Sarpsborg (15 km upstream) was burned down by the Swedes. Almost half the population of Sarpsborg stayed behind, and rebuilt their old town at its original site.

The city centre is on the west bank of the Glomma, while the old town on the east bank is Northern Europe's best preserved fortified town.

Fredrikstad used to have a large sawmill industry and was an important harbour for timber export, then later on shipbuilding, until the main yard was closed in the 1980s. The main industries are currently various chemical plants and other light industry. In 2005, Fredrikstad was the final host port for the Tall Ships' Race, attracting thousands to the city.

Name

The city was named after the Danish king Frederik II in 1569. The last element stad means "city".

Until 1877 the name was written Frederiksstad, in the period 1877-1888 Fredriksstad, from 1889 on Fredrikstad.

History

After Sarpsborg was burned to the ground during the Northern Seven Years' War, the ruling king, Frederick II of Denmark, decided by royal decree to rebuild the city 15 km south of the original location. This new site's proximity to the sea and the accessible open land surrounding it made it a better location than the old one. The name Fredrikstad was first used in a letter from the King dated february 6th 1569. The temporary fortification built during the Hannibal War (1644-1645) between Sweden and Denmark/Norway, became permanent in the 1660s. The work on the fortifications was first led by William de Coucheron and later Johan Caspar von Cicignon. During the next 60 years several fortifications around Fredrikstad were built, including Isegran, Kongsten and Cicignon. In 1735 a suburb on the western side of Glomma, Vestsiden, was founded. This part later grew faster than the old city, and became the dominant city centre. Most of the buildings in the old city burnt down during a fire in 1764.

In the 1840s timber exporting from Fredrikstad started to gain momentum. In the 1860s several steam powered saws were built along the river, and in 1879 the railway reached Fredrikstad, leading to further growth. With the decline of the timber exports as a result of the modernisation of wood-processing industries in the early 1900s, Fredrikstad's production changed to other types of products. It later became one of Norway's most important industrial centres, famous for its large shipyard, Fredrikstad Mekaniske Verksted.