Sankt Annæ Plads (English: St. Ann's Square) is a public square which marks the border between the Nyhavn area and the Frederiksstaden district in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is a long narrow rectangle which extends inland from the waterfront, at a point just north of the Royal Danish Playhouse at the base of the Kvæsthusbroen pier, until it meets Bredgade. The unusual shape is due to the square's past as a canal similar to nearby Nyhavn. Amaliegade, one of the two axes on which Frederiksstaden is centered, extends from the square.
The square has a central garden complex along its length with an equestrian statue of Christian X of Denmark facing Bredgade.
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Sankt Annæ Plads was originally the site of a canal which continued along present-day Bredgade and Esplanaden, surrounding Sophie Amalienborg.[1] The Royal Naval Hospital, the oldest building today located on the square, was built in 1686 to the design of Hans van Steenwinckel the Youngest.
The square was created when the canal was filled in the 1750s in connection with the foundation of the ambitious new Frederiksstaden district.[2] The central garden complex was established in 1852. It was the result of one of the first successful initiatives of the recently founded Society for the Beautification of Copenhagen.[2]
From 1871 DFDS was headquartered in the former Royal Naval Hospital and for the next one hundred years they woyld dominate the square with hectic activity around the clock, both with passengers and goods.[1]
The equestrian statue of Christian X was added to the garden complex in 1954. It was designed by Einar Utzon-Frank.
Eventually first cargo ships and later also passenger boats disappeared from the area. In 2003 the Royal Naval Hospital building was aqyured by the Danish Nurses' Organization which has since been headquartered in it. The neighbouring building, originally built by DFDS in 1890, has since 1871 housed the JL Foundation which owns the J. Lauritzen shipping company as well as 56 % of DFDS.[1]