Stevns

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Map of the future municipality

A view of Stevns' Cliffs (Stevns klint), Denmark. Photographer: Dan Simon.

Stevns was a municipality (Danish, kommune) in Storstrøm County on the southeast coast of the island of Zealand (Sjælland) in south Denmark. The municipality covered an area of 166 km², and had a total population of 11,439 (2005). Its last mayor was Lars Asserhøj, a member of the Venstre (Liberal Party) political party.

The main town and the site of its municipal council was the town of Store-Heddinge.

Neighboring municipalities were Vallø to the northwest, and Fakse to the southwest. Because the municipality formed a headland between two large bays, it was surrounded by water on three sides. To the north was Køge Bay (Køge Bugt), to the east the Baltic Sea, and to the south Fakse Bay (Fakse Bugt).

On January 1, 2007 Stevns municipality, as the result of Kommunalreformen ("The Municipality Reform" of 2007), merged with Vallø municipality to form the new Stevns municipality. This created a municipality with an area of 247 km² and a total population of 21,776 (2005). The new municipality belongs to the new Region Sjælland ("Zealand Region").

1 The town of Store-Heddinge
2 Attractions
3 External links
4 References

[edit] The town of Store-Heddinge

The town of Store-Heddinge came into existence during the 1200s, and Saint Katharina Church (Sct. Katharina kirke) is also from that time. The town received privileged status as a merchant town in 1441. A Latin preparatory school was founded in the town in 1620, but was closed down in 1739.

The assembly house (Danish, tinghuset) in Store-Heddinge was built around 1838 on the newly built Nytorv plaza as a combination town hall, assembly hall, and jail. It was built by architect Jørgen Hansen Koch, who was Director for the Royal Danish Academy of Art (Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi).

The water tower is from 1911 and is made from both limestone from nearby Stevns Klint and red brick.

[edit] Attractions

The area is known for its white chalk cliffs, which are quite rare in Denmark. Stevns Klint (Stevns' Cliffs) is one of these, and it is a popular attraction. The old town church by the small village of Højerup collapsed partially over the cliffs in 1928 due to erosion.