Buildings which burned are shown in yellow on this map of Copenhagen in 1728 by Joachim Hassing.

The Copenhagen Fire of 1728 was the largest fire in the history of Copenhagen. It began on the evening of October 20, 1728, and continued to burn until the morning of October 23. It destroyed approximately 28% of the city (measured in cadastre)—including nearly half the section of the city which dated back to the Middle Ages—and left up to 20% of the population homeless. The fire is mainly to blame for the lack of traces of medieval Copenhagen in the modern city. An expert is someone widely recognized as a reliable source of knowledge, technique, or skill whose judgment is accorded authority and status by the public or their peers. ... It has been suggested that flame be merged into this article or section. ... Copenhagen (Danish: København) is the capital of Denmark, and the name of the municipality (Danish, kommune) in which it resides. ... October 20 is the 293rd day of the year (294th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 72 days remaining. ... Events Astronomical aberration discovered by the astronomer James Bradley Swedish academy of sciences founded at Uppsala The founding of the University of Havana (Universidad de la Habana), Cubas most well-established university. ... October 23 is the 296th day of the year (297th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 69 days remaining. ... Cadastre (a French word from the Late Latin capitastrum, a register of the poll-tax) is a register of the real property of a country, with details of the area, the owners and the value. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

Timeline of the Fire

Wednesday, October 20

Map of Vester Kvarter where the fire started. The cadastre numbers from 1699 are shown and the numbers of the burned cadastres are underlined in red.

The exact time the fire started is unclear; various sources give times between 6:00 and 8:30 pm. However, the exact site is known: almost outside of Vesterport (the West Gate) was Lille Sankt Clemens Stræde (Little Saint Clemens Street). On the corner facing Vestervold, the western defense wall, there was a small house in the cadastre Vester Kvarter (West Quarter) 146 (cadastre from 1699). Today Frederiksberg Street joins the City Hall Plaza close to the same spot. In 1728, the house was owned by Signe, widow of Boye Hansen. Among the house's tenants were Peder Rasmussen and his wife, Anne Iversdatter. The fire started on the ceiling. Vesterbro is one of the 15 administrative, statistical, and tax city districts (bydele) comprising the municipality of Copenhagen, Denmark. ... Cadastre (a French word from the Late Latin capitastrum, a register of the poll-tax) is a register of the real property of a country, with details of the area, the owners and the value. ... Cadastre (a French word from the Late Latin capitastrum, a register of the poll-tax) is a register of the real property of a country, with details of the area, the owners and the value. ... Events January 26 - Treaty of Karlowitz signed March 30 - the tenth Sikh Master, Guru Gobind Singh created the Khalsa. ... A widow is a woman whose spouse has died. ...

The alarm was sent, but the fire department's relatively primitive equipment and a series of unlucky events made the fight next to hopeless. The wind blew from the southwest that evening, carrying the fire along Lille Sankt Clemens Stræde, Store (Big) Sankt Clemens Stræde, Vombadstuestræde, Antiquitetsstræde (Antiquities Street) and Hellig-Kors Stræde (Holy Cross Street), and both sides of Vestergade (Western Street) started burning around 9 pm. Afterward, the fire reached Lars Bjørn's Street, Little Lars Bjørn's Street and Studiestræde (Study Street). A fire station is a building or other area set aside for storage of firefighting apparatus i. ...

Later that evening, the fire reached Sankt Peders Stræde (Saint Peter's Street), where the Valkendorfs Kollegium dormitory (Nørre Kvarter 122/North Quarter 122) was engulfed in flames. Professor Peder Nielsen Horrebow, who lived at the dormitory, lost most of his property. Around the same time, the fire also reached Professor Hans Steenbuch's room on Studiestræde (Study Street) (Nørre Kvarter 60/North Quarter 60). Around midnight, the fire reached the Courtyard of Sankt Petri Kirke (Saint Peter's Church). Valkendorfs Kollegium is the oldest dormitory in Denmark and was founded on 26 February 1589 by the nobleman Christopher Valkendorf. ...

On Nørregade (North Street), another fire started Wednesday evening, possibly between 10 pm and 11 pm. Shortly before, the flames of the first fire had reached Gammeltorv (the Old Square), where people were fighting to keep the fire back; because of this, they could not deal with the new fire. When around midnight the wind shifted to the west, the situation worsened. The fire was driven on a wide front toward the street. The people sought to hold the fire back on the western side of Nørregade, but later in the night it spread to the eastern side. At the same time the fire moved from the present Nørre Voldgade (Northern Defense Wall Street) against Nørreport (North Gate).

Thursday

On Gammeltorv (Old Square) in the early hours, there was a last and desperate attempt to hold back the flames, keeping them from spreading any further, by shooting some of the already-burning houses with cannons. When that did not work, the order was given to blow up the houses with gunpowder. Vinkælderen Blasen (Wine Cellar Blasen) on the corner of Vestergade and Nørregade should have been the first victim, but this dangerous undertaking failed when the gunpowder blew up while men were still placing gunpowder kegs inside the building. Vinkælderen Blasen did blow up, but killed and wounded men in the process. Worse yet, the explosion set other buildings in the neighborhood afire, such as Vor Frue Kirke (The Church of Our Lady). Around 9:15 - 9:30 am the church spire fell onto the street and soon after the whole church was engulfed in flames. A small Civil War-era cannon on a carriage A cannon is any large tubular firearm designed to fire a heavy projectile over a considerable distance. ... Smokeless powder Gunpowder, whether black powder or smokeless powder, is a substance that burns very rapidly, releasing gases that act as a propellant in firearms. ...

Around 8 am on Nørregade, the fire reached Sankt Petri Kirke (Saint Peter's Church). Later, around 9 am, the flames reached Bispegården (The Bishop's Palace) (Nørre Kvarter 112/Northern Quarter 112), which burned to the ground along with everything inside. All that Zealand's bishop, Christen Worm, could save were the clothes on his back and three books. A bishop is an ordained member of the Christian clergy who, in certain Christian churches, holds a position of authority. ...

At Nytorv (New Square), the flames had consumed Det Kongelige Vajsenhus (The Royal Orphanage) building; the current Copenhagen District Court is built on the spot where the orphanage was. The City Hall of Copenhagen between Nytorv (New Square) and Gammeltorv was now in peril. Around 10 am, the flames had taken hold of the building and it was soon added to the list of buildings lost. From Gammeltorv the inferno made its way down the Klædeboderne (the cloth/tailor shop district), Skindergade (Skin/Pelt Street), Skoubogade and Vimmelskaftet, heading towards Amagertorv, while from Nytorv the fire found fuel on City Hall Street towards Federiksholms Canal and Slotsholmem.

A new fire broke out on Thursday. Count Adam Christoffer Knuth's house in Putervig, a cellar in Købmagergade (Market Street) and a haystack at Nørreport (Northern Gate) all broke out in flames; the last likely caught fire because of embers carried by the wind. Look up Count in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Countess redirects here. ...

The fire damaged University of Copenhagen when it consumed Vor Frue Kirke (The Church of Our Lady). The Community Building (Kommunitetsbygningen), which was used to help support students by giving them free meals; the University's head building (Studiegården/The Study Courtyard), at the same location as the current head building; and the Anatomy building (Domus Anatomica) and Anatomy Theater (Theatrum Anatomicum) were consumed by the fire one by one. When his home went up in flames, Professor Hans Steenbuch had escaped to Professor Hans Gram's home, where both he and his possessions found temporary safety. Eventually the fire reached Gram's home next to Vor Frue Kirke (The Church of Our Lady, Klædebo Kvarter 245), and there wasn't enough time to save Steenbuch's possessions, but Gram saved most of his own from destruction. Along Kannikestræde, one by one the professors' homes fell prey to the flames. University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen (Danish: Københavns Universitet) is the oldest and largest university and research institution in Copenhagen, Denmark. ...

The next noticeable victim of the fire was Trinitatis Kirke (Trinitatis Church), which houses the Univeristy Library in its attic. The fire reached the church around 5 pm and, after several hours, had breached the inside of the church. The roof was breached by the flames around 10 pm. The attic exploded in a sea of flames, claiming the university library. Rundetårn was left for the most part untouched, but the observatory at the top burned. RundetÃ¥rn. ...

From Gammeltorv, the fire spread out to Ulfeldts Plad, present day Gråbrødretorv, around 4 pm. A few hours later, the fire closed in on Helligåndskirken (The Church of the Holy Spirit) and around 8 pm, the church bells came to life and played their own funeral hymn (Thomas Kingo's "Vreden din afvend, herre Gud, af Naade"). Thomas Kingo Thomas Hansen Kingo (December 15, 1634 - October 14, 1703 Odense) was a Danish bishop, poet and hymn-writer born at Slangerup, near Copenhagen. ...

From Trinitatis Church, the fire continued down Landemærket (Land Mark or border street) towards Gothersgade. Here, the fire met up with the other fire which ate its way down present day Nørre Voldgade (Northern Wall street). Around midnight, Reformert Kirke (The Reformed Church) broke out in flames. The only place in the city at that time where there was some control over the fire was around Vandkunsten.

Friday

The wind shifted to the north on Friday morning. There were attempts to organize the firefighting, with efforts to stop the fire in the quarter around Magstræde (Loo Street). This failed, though, when the fire took the soapery on Magstræde (Loo Street) around noon. The wind was now blowing northwest and the firefighting moved via Snaregade to Nybrogade (New Bridge Street), Naboløs and Gammel Strand (Old Beach), but failed to save Nybrogade. Soapmaking is the process of creating soap from raw ingredients such as fats, oils and lye. ...

Further east, the fire proceeded south to Klareboderne and Møntergade. Poul Fechtels Hospital on Møntergade was drowned in flames with some of the residents still inside. Close by, Professor Ludvig Holberg left his home on Købmagergade (Købmager Kvarter 18). Around midnight, the blaze was close to Silkegade (Silk Street) and Store Regnegade. This article is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

Saturday

Over the course of the night the wind settled and stopped the forward march of the fire, while 36 select homes were demolished to create a firebreak. The firebreak did stop the fire at the corner of Store Regnegade and Gothersgade. Further west, Amagertorv (Amager Square) and Sankt Nicolai Kirke (The Church of Saint Nicolai) had been threatened, but the blaze was stopped close to Amagertorv, where only the three houses furthest north (Frimands Kvarter/Freemans Quarter 8, 10 and 11) were lost.

The fire on Magstræde at the soapery was still a threat. The fire ate its way along Snaregade. At the end of Snaregade was the house of the vice mayor, Christian Berregaard, which the people tried to save. The houses around it were torn down, and the houses on the other side of the street were blown up with gunpowder. This attempt went no better than the earlier attempt at the wine cellar; the gunpowder went off, people had to run for their lives and the vice mayor's house was set afire and burned down. After the failed attempt to save the house, the fire was stopped from spreading further and among other things the house of sworn weigher Christoffer Valkendorf was saved. Smokeless powder Gunpowder, whether black powder or smokeless powder, is a substance that burns very rapidly, releasing gases that act as a propellant in firearms. ...

The slowdown of the fire during Saturday was in key with the christianity of the early 18th century considered to be the consequence of a divine intervention. To show gratitude to God the king introduced a new holiday in Copenhagen on October 23, where every church in the city held a service of thanksgiving. This holiday was abolished at the holiday reform of 1770. Christianity is a monotheistic religion centered on the life, teachings, and actions of Jesus of Nazareth, known by Christians as Jesus Christ, as recounted in the New Testament. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... According to many religions, a miracle, derived from the old Latin word miraculum meaning something wonderful, is a striking interposition of divine intervention by God in the universe by which the operations of the ordinary course of Nature are overruled, suspended, or modified. ... October 23 is the 296th day of the year (297th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 69 days remaining. ... 1770 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

The losses from the fire

Old statistics attached to the back of the map by Joachim Hassing. According to this 1640 houses burned and another 39 where "ruined". The number is probably a bit too high.

It is possible to estimate the losses of property from the fire with relative certainty as detailed surveys were made immediately after. City surveyor Søren Balle finished the first on November 1 1728 and on April 13, 1729 the Magistrate of Copenhagen finished a second, made on a royal request of December 12 1728. The differences between the two surveys are relatively small, and the dispute only concerns the extent of the damages on 43 cadastres. It is therefore rather certain that 1227 cadastres containing about 1600 building were lost in flames. All of Copenhagen consisted of about 4500 cadastres, so about 28% of the cadastres were lost. If you only consider the medieval part of town the percentage increases to 47%. Surveying is concerned with the application of mathematics and physics in obtaining accurate measurements for the determination of the position of points on the Earths surface. ... November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 60 days remaining. ... 13 April is the 103rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (104th in leap years). ... Events July 30 - Baltimore, Maryland is founded. ... A magistrate is a judicial officer with limited authority to administer and enforce the law. ... December 12 is the 346th day (347th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 19 days remaining. ...

The magistrate also made a survey of the spared parts of town from which it appears that 8.749 former residents of the parts touched by fire had found lodgings in the spared parts. It is estimated that as many as 15.000 had become homeless. This is about 20% of the population of Copenhagen consisting of around 70.000. However the number of dead and wounded is unknown. It is possible to deduct some information from parish registers and other sources, but the number remains uncertain. It is probably low in comparison with the extent of the fire, though.

The loss of property and the human losses were high, but the cultural losses were far greater. The university library was without a doubt the greatest and the most frequently mentioned. 35.000 volumes and a large historical archive disappeared in the flames. Records from the historians Hans Svaning, Anders Sørensen Vedel, Niels Krag, and Arild Huitfeldt and the scientists Ole Worm, Ole Rømer, Tycho Brahe and the brothers Hans and Caspar Bartholin were lost. Atlas Danicus by Hansen Resens and the archive of Zealand Diocese went up in flames as well. The archive of the diocese had been moved to the university library the very same day the fire started. Anders Sørensen Vedel (9 November 1542 – 13 February 1616) was a priest and historian born in Vejle (from which the Vedel name comes), Denmark. ... Arild Huitfeldt (Arvid) (September 11, 1546 - December 16, 1609), was a Danish historian and state official, known for his Danish chronicle. ... Ole Worm Ole Worm (May 13, 1588 – August 31, 1654), (pronounced Olay Vorm) who often went by the Latinized form of his name Olaus Wormius, was a Danish physician and antiquary. ... Ole Rømer. ... Tycho Brahe (help· info) , born Tyge Ottesen Brahe (December 14, 1546 – October 24, 1601), was a Danish (Scanian) nobleman astronomer as well as an astrologer and alchemist. ... Caspar Bartholin the Younger (1655-1738), grandson of theologian and anatomist Caspar Bartholin the Elder, was a Danish anatomist who first described the Bartholins gland in the 17th century. ... Pope Pius XI blesses Bishop Stephen Alencastre as fifth Apostolic Vicar of the Hawaiian Islands in a Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace window. ...

Several other book collections were lost as well. Professor Mathias Anchersen made the mistake of bringing his possessions to safety in Trinitatis Church. Árni Magnússon lost all his books, notes and records but managed to rescue his valuable collection of Icelandic manuscripts. At Borchs Kollegium 3.150 volumes burned along with its Museum Rarirorum containing collections of zoological and botanical oddities. The burned out observatory in Rundetårn had contained instruments by Tycho Brahe and Ole Rømer. The professors Horrebow, Steenbuch and the two Bartholins lost practically everything. And on top of all that a large part of the city archive burnt along with city hall. Árni Magnússon was an 18th century scholar from Iceland. ...

In the library on top of Trinitatis Church were many things which the world no longer owns; the damage cannot be helped.
Árni Magnússon

Changes to Copenhagen

Map of Vester Kvarter after the fire with new cadastre numbers and streets. Compare it to the map above.

When the reconstruction of the capital was begun a number of changes were introduced. A commision was appointed to regulate the streets. After surveyings among the ruins this commision prepared a suggestion to create 12-15 wide main stretches with 10 meter wide side roads surrounded by houses whose walls consisted entirely of bricks. This plan wasn't carried through though. The city was changed in medieval Copenhagen though, where streets were moved or even ceased to exist.

References

This article is a translation of the Danish Wikipedia article.