Svendborg

Funen

District: Fyns amt

Population: 39,000

Situation

The port of Svendborg lies in the southeast of the island of Funen, on the banks of Svendborg Sound. A ferry links the town with the island of Ærø to the south. Off the coast is a nature reserve.

History

The town's oldest charter dates from 1253. In the Middle Ages Svendborg had trade links with the Hanseatic towns and with the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. During the "Counts' Wars" (1534-6) Ørkid Castle in the east of the town was burned down. In the 17th C. Svendborg suffered great destruction as a result of the wars with Sweden. The 19th C. was a period of prosperity. In 1966 the bridge across Svendborg Sound was completed. Until 1970 Svendborg was a district headquarters; subsequently the two districts of Funen were amalgamated and the administrative offices were henceforth in Odense.

The German poet and dramatist Bertolt Brecht and his wife Helene Weigel lived from 1933 until 1939 as emigrants in Svendborg. During this time Brecht wrote, among other works, the "Svendborg Poems".

Economy

Important industries include shipbuilding, engineering, tobacco, wood-working and food-processing.