Horsens

Place in Mid Jutland, Denmark

Horsens

Street in the old town

Seal

Coat of arms

Horsens

Location in Denmark

Show map of Denmark

Horsens

Horsens (Denmark Central Denmark Region)

Show map of Denmark Central Denmark Region

Coordinates: 55°51′30″N 09°51′00″E﻿ / ﻿55.85833°N 9.85000°E﻿ / 55.85833; 9.85000
Country|  Denmark
Region| Mid Jutland (Midtjylland)
Municipality| Horsens
Founded| 12th century
Area

• Urban

| 29.8 km2 (11.5 sq mi)
Elevation

| 5 m (16 ft)
Population

(1 January 2025)[1]

• Urban

| 64,418
• Urban density| 2,200/km2 (5,600/sq mi)
• Gender [2]

| 32,312 males and 32,106 females
Demonym| Horsensianer
Postal code|

DK-8700 Horsens

Area code| (+45) 7
Website| www.horsens.dk

Horsens (Danish pronunciation: [ˈhɒːsn̩s]) is a city on the east coast of the Jutland region of Denmark. It is the seat of the Horsens municipality. The city's population is 64,418 (1 January 2025) and the municipality's population is 97,921 (as of 1 January 2025[update]), making it the 7th largest city in Denmark.[1]

Horsens is best known for its culture and entertainment events. Horsens New Theatre is a cultural centre which holds over 200 events annually. It has managed to draw major names such as Madonna, One Direction, Paul McCartney and The Rolling Stones.[3]

## Etymology

[edit]

It is believed the name Horsens derives from the old Danish words hors (horse) and næs (naze, headland). The name Horsens has been in use since the 12th century.

## History

[edit]

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The earliest traces of a city are remains of a pagan burial site and houses dating back to the 9th century. In the 12th century, the kings Sweyn III and Valdemar I issued coins in the city. In the 13th century the city got its own legal code.

Excavations have shown that the city was expanded around 1300, with a moat going around the city and its harbour. Industrialization started from the middle of the 19th century. The population rose dramatically when people from the countryside moved to the city to work in the factories. The first Danish iron foundry outside of Copenhagen was opened as well as tobacco and textile factories.

In 1992, Horsens celebrated its 550th anniversary as a market town.[4]

## Geography

[edit]

Horsens lies at the end of Horsens Fjord in eastern Jutland. The city is surrounded by typical moraine landscape with low hills and valleys created by glaciers during the last ice ages. Horsens is 50 km (31 mi) south of Aarhus and 30 km (19 mi) north of Vejle, and approximately 200 km (120 mi) from Copenhagen.

## Economy

[edit]

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The city is currently undergoing a positive development with new industry moving to Horsens, or expanding their activities already in Horsens. A lot of electronics and graphical companies are based there. Horsens also has the only Industrial Museum in Denmark. The city is also home to VIA University College which brings a lot of international students to move to this town.

## Culture

[edit]

A pedestrian zone

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In recent years, much effort has been made to expand and improve cultural events. Several internationally known artists, such as Madonna, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Joe Cocker, Elton John, The Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, Tom Jones, Bryan Adams, David Bowie, José Carreras, Helmut Lotti, Westlife, R.E.M., Paul McCartney, Robbie Williams, The Rolling Stones, Dolly Parton, AC/DC, U2, Rammstein and Snow Patrol have performed, or have performances planned in Horsens.

Metallica has performed several times in Horsens.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band Pretty Maids is from Horsens.

One of the largest cultural events in Denmark is the annual European Medieval Festival on the last Friday and Saturday in August. The town centre of Horsens is transformed into the largest medieval market town in Northern Europe with activities and entertainment for families and children of all ages.

European Medieval Festival

Every March, Horsens hosts a Crime Fiction Festival. The Crime Festival – in Danish called Krimimessen – is an event for literary crime, mysteries and thrillers. The Crime Festival is organized by Horsens Public Library. Every year, many well-known crime writers visit Horsens.

The city is home to Horsens Industrimuseum, a museum showing the history of the industrial society. The museum shows technological development and developments in living conditions for workers.

Peter Sørensen from the Social Democrats is mayor of Horsens.

Vitus Bering, the famous Russian Navy captain, was born here.

Horsens also has a wide variety of street art, including Sculpture Alley, murals, and gable paintings.[5][6]

## Education

[edit]

VIA University College

The largest educational institution in Horsens is VIA University College, which offers a wide range of engineering, technical and business programmes for Danish and International students. In the summer of 2020, VIA University College accepted 1066 new students. That was 2.1% more than the number of students that were accepted to the university the year before.[7]

## Sport

[edit]

Horsens is the home to professional football club AC Horsens who play in the Danish Superliga. Their home ground is the 10,400 capacity CASA Arena Horsens.

From 2015 to 2018, the CASA Arena hosted motorcycle speedway, when it held the Speedway Grand Prix of Denmark, taking over as host from the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, which had held the Speedway Grand Prix event from 2003 to 2014. Frederikslyst Speedway was another speedway venue located approximately 8 kilometres south west of the town, off the Frederikslystvej in the forest (55°48′47″N 9°43′23″E﻿ / ﻿55.81306°N 9.72306°E﻿ / 55.81306; 9.72306).[8] It held the final of the Danish Individual Speedway Championship in 1995.[9]

Horsens is also home to professional basketball team Horsens IC who play in Basketligaen. The team plays at Forum Horsens which has a capacity of 3,300. The team has won the league 6 times most recently in 2014–15 and 2015–16 as well as winning the Danish Men's Basketball Cup 3 times most recently in the 2014–15 season.

## Transportation

[edit]

### Rail

[edit]

Front facade of Horsens railway station.

Horsens is served by Horsens railway station. It is located on the Fredericia–Aarhus railway line and offers direct InterCity services to Copenhagen, Hamburg, Aarhus and Aalborg as well as regional train services to Fredericia and Aarhus.[10]

### Road

[edit]

European route E45 runs by the city of Horsens.

## Prison

[edit]

From 1853 to 2006, the city housed the Horsens Statsfængsel prison, which held prisoners serving longer sentences.[11] A notable prisoner was former minister of justice Peter Adler Alberti.

The last execution in peacetime in Denmark happened in the prison in 1892 when Jens Nielsen was decapitated in the courtyard.[citation needed]

Carl August Lorentzen was a safe cracker who became famous for his escape from the prison in 1949 when he dug a tunnel from his cell and out to freedom. When the guards discovered he was missing, they found a note from him with the words "Where there is a will there is a way". Lorentzen was captured a few days later on a nearby farm.[citation needed]

The old run-down buildings were not fit for a modern prison. In 2006 the prison was closed and the newly built State Prison of East Jutland was opened. The new prison, which is placed near Horsens, held the mass murderer Peter Lundin for a period.[12]

Since its closure as a prison, Horsens Statsfængsel has housed a crime and prison museum, and conference and business facilities. The prison grounds have been used for concerts.[13] It was considered as the venue of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, along with two other cities in Denmark.

VisitHorsens (the local tourist office) moved to the Prison in 2013 and in 2015 a hotel called SleepIn has opened in the Prison.[citation needed]

## Notable people

[edit]

Hans Svane Vitus Bering

### Public thinking and politics

[edit]

* Peder Skram (ca.1500-1581) a Danish Admiral and naval hero.[14]
* Jens Bang (ca.1575–1644) a wealthy Danish merchant, built Jens Bang's House in Aalborg
* Hans Svane (1606–1668) a Danish statesman and ecclesiastic.[15]
* Vitus Bering (1681–1741), naval officer and explorer, the Bering Strait was named after him.[16]
* Poul Vendelbo Løvenørn (1686–1740) a Danish military officer, diplomat and landowner
* Ove Høegh-Guldberg (1731–1808) statesman and de facto Prime Minister of Denmark
* Catherine Antonovna of Brunswick (1741–1807) & Elizabeth Antonovna of Brunswick (1743–1782) daughters of Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick lived under house arrest in Horsens
* Adelbert Heinrich Graf von Baudissin (1820-1871), writer
* Hedevig Rosing (1827–1913), author, educator, school founder; first woman to teach in Copenhagen's public schools
* Andreas Bang-Haas (1846–1925) a Danish entomologist and insect dealer
* Hans G. Jensen (1856–1922) a Norwegian trade unionist, politician and tailor
* Ellen Broe (1900–1994) a Danish nurse who established educational and training initiatives
* Lilli Gyldenkilde (1936–2003) a Danish politician, a member of the Folketing and an MEP
* Lars Hedegaard (born 1942) a Danish historian, journalist and author
* Peter Landrock (born 1948) a Danish cryptographer and mathematician
* Jens Kehlet Nørskov (born 1952), professor
* Jan Trøjborg (1955–2012), politician, Mayor of Horsens 2005–2012, served in the Folketing 1987–2005, was Govt. Minister
* Jens Nielsen (born 1962), professor
* Anders Samuelsen (born 1967) a Danish politician and Minister of Foreign Affairs (Denmark)
* Peter Fibiger Bang (born 1973) a Danish comparative historian

### The arts

[edit]

Ludovica Thornam, 1885 Anna Bloch, 1904

* Anton Dorph (1831–1914) a Danish painter who painted altarpieces and fishermen
* Frederikke Federspiel (1839–1913) first female pro photographer, ran a photo. studio in Aalborg
* Ludovica Thornam (1853–1896) a Danish portrait and genre painter
* Alfred Schmidt (1858–1938) a Danish illustrator, caricaturist and painter
* Anton Rosen (1859–1928) a Danish architect, furniture designer and decorative artist
* Albert Edvard Wang (1864-1930) a Danish landscape painter
* Anna Bloch (1868–1953) a Danish actress
* Emanuel Gregers (1881–1957) a Danish actor, screenwriter and film director[17]
* Christian Arhoff (1893–1973) a Danish stage and film actor and member of National Socialist Workers' Party of Denmark[18]
* Knud Holmboe (1902–1931) a Danish journalist, author and explorer
* Vagn Holmboe (1909–1996), a Danish composer and teacher who wrote in a neo-classical style
* Poul Borum (1934–1996) writer, poet and critic, was raised in Horsens
* Manon Rasmussen (born 1951) a Danish costume designer[19]
* Kristian Halken (born 1955), film actor[20]
* Søren Sætter-Lassen (born 1955) a Danish stage, film and television actor[21]
* Michael Kvium (born 1955) a Danish multifaceted artist
* Anne Louise Hassing (born 1967), actress[22]
* Emmy Thornam (1852–1935), flower painter and writer
* Ludovica Thornam (1853–1896), portrait and genre painter
* Barbara Zatler (1980-2019) an actress, TV personality, model and comedian[23]
* Pretty Maids (formed 1981) a Danish hard rock/heavy metal band from Horsens
* Peter Bjørnskov (born 1981) a Danish singer, songwriter and record producer

### Sport

[edit]

Bent Schmidt Hansen, 1969

* Ernst Schultz (1879 – drowned, 1906) sprinter, bronze medallist at the 1900 Summer Olympics
* Thyge Petersen (1902–1964) an amateur boxer, silver medallist at the 1924 Summer Olympics
* Helge Muxoll Schrøder (1924–2012) rower, team silver medallist at the 1948 Summer Olympics
* Bent Schmidt-Hansen (1946–2013) a footballer, over 350 club caps and 8 for Denmark
* Anja Hansen (born 1973) handball player, team gold medallist at the 1996 Summer Olympics
* Anne Dot Eggers Nielsen (born 1975) a former footballer, won 118 caps for the Danish national women's team
* Søren Jochumsen (born 1976) a retired football goalkeeper, 521 caps with AC Horsens
* Brian Priske (born 1977) retired footballer, 468 club caps and 24 for Denmark
* Karen Brødsgaard (born 1978) a Danish former handball player, twice team gold medallist at the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics
* Simon Kjær (born 1989), footballer over 390 club caps and captain of Denmark with 95 caps
* Anne-Marie Rindom (born 1991) a Danish sailor, gold medallist at the 2020 Summer Olympics
* Alexandra Bøje (born 1999) a Danish badminton player
* Jeppe Kjær (born 2004) a Danish footballer who plays for Bodø/Glimt

## Twin towns – sister cities

[edit]

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Denmark

Horsens is twinned with:

* Blönduós, Iceland
* Chengdu, China
* Karlstad, Sweden

* Moss, Norway
* Nokia, Finland

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## See also

[edit]

* Chronicle of the Expulsion of the Grayfriars#Chapter 15 Concerning the Friary at Horsens

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "BY3: Population 1. January by urban areas, area and population density". statbank.dk. Statistics Denmark. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
2. ^ BY1: Population 1. January by urban areas, age and sex The Mobile Statbank from Statistics Denmark
3. ^ "Disse verdenskendte kunstnere har optrådt i Horsens". VisitHorsens (in Danish). Retrieved 11 March 2021.
4. ^ "Vikings in Horsens". www.viking.no. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
5. ^ "Skulpturalléen | Boulevard of Sculptures in Horsens". Destination Kystlandet. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
6. ^ "Mural paintings in Horsens | Street art in the city centre". Destination Kystlandet. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
7. ^ "Fortsat fremgang: 1066 studerende optaget på VIA i Horsens". hsfo.dk (in Danish). 28 July 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
8. ^ "Frederikslyst Speedway". Speedway Life. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
9. ^ "Individual Speedway Norwegian Championship". Historia Sportu Zuzlowego. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
10. ^ "Horsens Station" (in Danish). DSB. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
11. ^ "Horsens Prison Museum". History Hit. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
12. ^ "Peter Lundin hemmeligt gift" (in Danish). TV 2. 29 September 2008. Retrieved 10 March 2009.
13. ^ "10 prison's now open to travelers". CNN. 13 March 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
14. ^ Bain, Robert Nisbet (1911). "Skram, Peder" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 25 (11th ed.). pp. 194–195.
15. ^ Bain, Robert Nisbet (1911). "Svane, Hans" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 26 (11th ed.). p. 175.
16. ^ "Bering, Vitus" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 03 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 775.
17. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 01 June 2020
18. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 01 June 2020
19. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 01 June 2020
20. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 01 June 2020
21. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 01 June 2020
22. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 01 June 2020
23. ^ IMDb Database retrieved 01 June 2020

## External links

[edit]

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Horsens.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Horsens.

* "Horsens" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 726.
* The Municipality of Horsens Archived 15 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine (In Danish and English)
* Horsens city official tourist website (In Danish/English)

* v
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Horsens Municipality

Towns & villages|

* Brædstrup
* Egebjerg
* Gedved
* Grædstrup
* Grumstrup
* Haldrup
* Hatting
* Horsens
* Hovedgård
* Lund
* Nim
* Sejet
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Municipal seats of Denmark

Capital Region|

* Albertslund
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* Glostrup
* Helsinge
* Helsingør
* Herlev
* Hillerød
* Holte
* Hørsholm
* Hvidovre
* Ishøj
* Kokkedal
* Kongens Lyngby
* Ølstykke
* Lillerød
* Rønne
* Rødovre
* Taastrup
* Tårnby
* Værløse
* Vallensbæk

Central Denmark Region|

* Aarhus
* Grenå
* Herning
* Hadsten, Hinnerup, Hammel and Hvorslev
* Hedensted
* Holstebro
* Horsens
* Ikast
* Lemvig
* Odder
* Randers
* Ringkøbing and Skjern
* Rønde
* Silkeborg
* Skanderborg
* Skive
* Struer
* Tranebjerg
* Viborg

North Denmark Region|

* Aabybro
* Aalborg
* Aars
* Brønderslev
* Byrum
* Frederikshavn
* Hjørring
* Hobro
* Nykøbing Mors
* Støvring
* Thisted

Region Zealand|

* Greve Strand
* Haslev
* Højby
* Holbæk
* Hvalsø
* Kalundborg
* Køge
* Maribo
* Næstved
* Nykøbing Falster
* Ringsted
* Roskilde
* Slagelse
* Solrød Strand
* Sorø
* Store Heddinge
* Vordingborg

South Denmark Region |

* Aabenraa
* Assens
* Bogense
* Esbjerg
* Fredericia
* Grindsted
* Haderslev
* Kerteminde
* Kolding
* Marstal
* Middelfart
* Nyborg
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* Ringe
* Rudkøbing
* Svendborg
* Sønderborg
* Tønder
* Varde
* Vejen
* Vejle

* v
* t
* e

30 most populous urban areas of Denmark

as of 1 January 2025, according to Statistics Denmark, see table BEF44 at statbank.dk.

| 1.| Copenhagen| 1,396,508

|
|

2.| Aarhus| 301,049
3.| Odense| 185,480
4.| Aalborg| 121,878
5.| Esbjerg| 71,554
6.| Randers| 64,511

|  7.| Horsens| 64,418

|
|

8.| Kolding| 63,645
9.| Vejle| 62,011
10.| Roskilde| 53,354
11.| Silkeborg| 52,571
12.| Herning| 51,782

| 13.| Hørsholm| 48,349

|
|

14.| Helsingør| 48,134
15.| Næstved| 45,199
16.| Viborg| 43,645
17.| Fredericia| 41,543
18.| Køge| 38,506

| 19.| Taastrup| 38,178

|
|

20.| Holstebro| 37,487
21.| Hillerød| 36,604
22.| Slagelse| 35,817
23.| Holbæk| 30,903
24.| Sønderborg| 28,333

| 25.| Svendborg| 27,616

|
|

26.| Hjørring| 25,908
27.| Nørresundby| 24,436
28.| Ringsted| 24,094
29.| Ølstykke-Stenløse| 23,382
30.| Frederikshavn| 22,548

Note: The population figure for metropolitan Copenhagen includes Frederiksberg, Albertslund, Brøndby, Gentofte, Gladsaxe, Glostrup, Herlev, Hvidovre, Lyngby-Taarbæk, Rødovre, Tårnby and Vallensbæk municipalities; parts of Ballerup, Rudersdal and Furesø; Ishøj and Greve Strand.

* v
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50 most populous urban areas in the Nordic countries

* Denmark
* Finland
* Iceland
* Norway
* Sweden

|  1.|  Stockholm|  1,605,030

|
|

2.|  Copenhagen|  1,330,993
3.|  Helsinki|  1,268,296
4.|  Oslo|  1,019,513
5.|  Gothenburg|  599,011
6.|  Malmö|  339,313
7.|  Tampere|  334,112
8.|  Aarhus|  280,534
9.|  Bergen|  259,958
10.|  Turku|  252,468

|  11.|  Stavanger/Sandnes|  237,369

|
|

12.|  Reykjavík|  228,231
13.|  Oulu|  208,939
14.|  Trondheim|  186,364
15.|  Odense|  180,302
16.|  Uppsala|  177,074
17.|  Upplands Väsby och Sollentuna|  149,461
18.|  Aalborg|  140,897
19.|  Västerås|  128,534
20.|  Örebro|  126,009

|  21.|  Lahti|  119,068

|
|

22.|  Jyväskylä|  117,974
23.|  Fredrikstad/Sarpsborg|  116,373
24.|  Linköping|  115,672
25.|  Helsingborg|  113,816
26.|  Kristiansand|  111,633
27.|  Drammen|  109,416
28.|  Jönköping|  100,259
29.|  Norrköping|  97,854
30.|  Lund|  94,393

|  31.|  Porsgrunn/Skien|  93,778

|
|

32.|  Umeå|  90,412
33.|  Kuopio|  88,520
34.|  Pori|  84,026
35.|  Gävle|  77,586
36.|  Södertälje|  75,773
37.|  Borås|  73,980
38.|  Esbjerg|  72,398
39.|  Halmstad|  71,316
40.|  Växjö|  71,009

|  41.|  Eskilstuna|  70,342

|
|

42.|  Joensuu|  67,811
43.|  Karlstad|  65,856
44.|  Vaasa|  65,414
45.|  Randers|  62,482
46.|  Kolding|  61,121
47.|  Horsens|  59,449
48.|  Sundsvall|  58,807
49.|  Vejle|  57,655
50.|  Lappeenranta|  55,743

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