Arbejdernes Byggeforening (lit. "The Workers' Building Society") was a Danish building society founded in Copenhagen in 1865 to provide healthy homes for the city's workers, especially those from the Burmeister & Wain factory. At the time of its foundation, the society had just 200 members but it grew fast, reaching 16,000 in 1890, and peaking at 26,342 members in 1955.
The society built a total of almost 1,500 terraced houses at various sites around the city, including Kartoffelrækkerne in Østerbro and Humleby in Vesterbro, before it was dissolved in 1972.
The idea of providing good and healthy homes for the poorest part of the city's workforce originated among local politicians and medical doctors during the 1853 Copenhagen cholera outbreak which killed approximately 5,000 citizens. A major reason for the outbreak was the dismal conditions in the poorest parts of the city which suffered from overpopulation and lack of proper sanitary facilities. [1]
The Danish Medical Society was the first to take action with the construction of Brumleby, built between 1853 and 1872.
The Worker's Building Society was founded in 1865 on the initiative of the medical doctors Emil Hornemann (1810–90) and Frederik Ferdinand Ulrik (1818–1917) who had witnessed first hand how far conditions could deteriorate, but it also drew on possible reforms in health care and housing.
Ulrik had his clinic at Christianshavn and arranged some meetings for the workers at the nearby Burmeister & Wain plant, one of the largest work places in the city, and it was with them that the new building society was founded on 20 November 1865, with foundry worker N. B. Hallin as its first chairman and Ulrik as its deputy chairman. [1]
The first terraces were built on Amager from 1867 to 1871. They were designed by Henrik Steffens Sibbern who also planned the next developments, 12 houses at Gammel Kongevej (1868–69) and 45 houses at Nyboder (1870–72).
The third development, 45 houses at Nyboder built from 1870 to 1872, was designed by Frederik Bøttger and from 1874 he became the society's new resident architect, a position he held until 1903. During this 30-year period, the society built up the areas which are now known as Kartoffelrækkerne, Humleby and Strandvejskvarteret.
Bøttger was succeeded by Christen Larsen and it was to his design that the society built its last two developments, the so-called Lyngbyvejskvarteret with 324 houses, from 1906 to 1929, and another 105 houses on Amager between 1930 and 1938.
Gradually the price of land and the costs of construction became too high, making the houses inaffordable for ordinary workers. It was said that "...the Worker's Building Society was not for workers but for people of means" which undermined the original philosophy behind it. [2] In 1972 it was dissolved.
The Building Society members paid 35 øre a week. When they had saved up DKK 20, they could participate in the annual drawing for a house. After 10 years of repayments, they received the deed to the house, and after 24 years were the homeowners. For those who did not receive a house, the society worked as a savings bank. After a number of years they could withdraw their savings.
Frederik Bøttger's houses are built in yellow brick with slate roofs.
Christen Larsen's houses, in red brick and with red tile roofs, are built to an asymmetric National Romantic design. Considerably younger, they also demonstrate the general improvements in housing standards, with more practical floor plans and fittings, such as built-in China cabinets.
Burmeister & Wain was a large established Danish shipyard and leading diesel engine producer headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded by two Danes and an Englishman, its earliest roots stretch back to 1846. Over its 150-year history, it grew successfully into a strong company through the end of the 1960s. In the 1970s, global competitive pressures, particularly from the far east, began to take their toll. In 1980, B&W became MAN B&W Diesel A/S, part of MAN B&W Diesel Group, a subsidiary of the German corporation MAN AG, with operations worldwide. The company still maintains operations at three main sites in Denmark for manufacturing, servicing, and licensing of its two-stroke engines and complete propulsion systems.
Kastellet is a citadel located in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is one of the best preserved fortresses in Northern Europe. It is constructed in the form of a pentagon with bastions at its corners. Kastellet was continuous with the ring of bastioned ramparts which used to encircle Copenhagen but of which only the ramparts of Christianshavn remain today.
Knippelsbro is a bascule bridge across the Inner Harbour of Copenhagen, Denmark, connecting Børsgade on Zealand-side Slotsholmen to Torvegade on Christianshavn. It is one of only two bridges to carry motor vehicles across the harbour in central Copenhagen, the other being Langebro.
The fortifications of Copenhagen underwent a comprehensive modernization and expansion in the 17th century. The project was commenced and was largely the masterplan of Christian IV in the early 17th century but was continued and completed by his successors. The new fortifications relied on the existing, medieval fortifications of the city but the fortified area was extended and a defensive ring around the city completed particularly with new edifices facing the sea. The ring fortification consisted of four bastioned ramparts and an annexed citadel as well as various outworks.
Gammelholm is a predominantly residential neighbourhood in the city centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is bounded by the Nyhavn canal, Kongens Nytorv, Holmens Kanal, Niels Juels Gade and the waterfront along Havnegade. For centuries, the area was the site of the Royal Naval Shipyard, known as Bremerholm, but after the naval activities relocated to Nyholm, it came under residential redevelopment in the 1860s and 1870s. The new neighbourhood was planned by Ferdinand Meldahl and has also been referred to as "Meldahl's Nine Streets". Apart from the buildings which face Kongens Nytorv, which include the Royal Danish Theatre and Charlottenborg Palace, the area is characterized by homogeneous Historicist architecture consisting of perimeter blocks with richly decorated house fronts.
Christianshavns Vold is a former rampart which was part of the bastioned fortification ring which used to surround Copenhagen, Denmark. Running along the full south-eastern perimeter of Christianshavn and Holmen, it used to form a protective barrier towards the island of Amager. It consists of earthworks with 12 bastions and in front of it ran a moat, Stadsgraven, now forming a broad canal which separates Christianshavn from the rest of Amager. On the other side of Stadsgraven. on Amager, was a lower system of outworks called Christianshavns Enveloppe of which only the northern half survives. Along with Kastellet on the other side of the harbour, it is the only intact part of the fortification system.
Amagertorv, today part of the Strøget pedestrian zone, is often described as the most central square in central Copenhagen, Denmark. Second only to Gammeltorv, it is also one of the oldest, taking its name from the Amager farmers who in the Middle Ages came into town to sell their produce at the site.
Humleby is an enclave of terraced houses situated next to the Carlsberg area in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. They were built between 1885 and 1891 by the Worker's Building Society to provide healthy housing for the workers at Burmeister & Wain.
Brumleby is an enclave of terraced houses in Copenhagen, Denmark, located between Øster Allé and Østerbrogade, just south of Parken Stadium and St. James' Church. Built for indigent workers by the Danish Medical Association from 1854 to 1872, it is one of the earliest examples of social housing in Denmark and became a model for later projects.
Østerbrogade is the principal shopping street and thoroughfare in the Østerbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It extends from Lille Triangel at the north-eastern tip of The Lakes, passes Trianglen, and continues to Svanemøllen station from where it becomes Strandvejen.
St. Paul's Church is a Lutheran church in central Copenhagen, Denmark, also colloquially known as Nyboder's Church due to its location in the middle of the Nyboder area. It was designed by Johannes Emil Gnudtzmann and constructed from 1872 to 1877.
Kronprinsessegade is a street in central Copenhagen, Denmark. Noted for its fine Neoclassical houses, it extends from Gothersgade and runs along the southern boundary of Rosenborg Castle Garden, passing Sølvgade and the Nyboder district of old naval barracks before finally joining Øster Voldgade close to Østerport Station. The David Collection, a museum which displays a large collection of Islamic art as well as Danish and European fine and applied arts, is based at No. 30.
The 1853 Copenhagen cholera outbreak was a severe outbreak of cholera which occurred in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1853 as part of the third cholera pandemic. It killed about 4,800 people.
Applebyes Plads is a triangular area located between Langebro Bridge and the southernmost portion of Christianshavn Canal at the southern tip of the Christianshavn neighbourhood in Copenhagen, Denmark. The area takes its name from Peter Applebye, Christian VI's rope maker, who ran his manufactury from the site in the late 18th century, although no buildings remain from that time. The Danish Sugar Factories' building along the waterfront dates from 1912 while the rest of the grounds have undergone residential redevelopment in later years.
Lauritz Peter Holmblad, often referred to as L. P. Holmblad, was a Danish industrialist and philanthropist. His company, which was simply known as L. P. Holmblad, had activities in dyes, soap, glue and plating cards. Holmblad was also part of the circle around Carl Frederik Tietgen, co-founding several of his companies.
Vester, Nørre and Øster Farimagsgade is a succession of streets which together connect the south-western Vesterbro to the northern Østerbro along the periphery of the city centre in Copenhagen, Denmark. A continuation of Reventlowsgade, Vester Farimagsgade extends from Vesterbrogade at Vesterport Station and initially runs along the sunken railway tracks on the left before soon reaching H. C. Andersens Boulevard. It then turns into Nørre Farimagsgade and continues behind Ørsted Park to Gothersgade where it becomes Øster Farimagsgade and proceeds along another green space, the Copenhagen Botanical Garden, passes Sølvtorvet and the neighbourhood of terraced houses known as Kartoffelrækkerne before terminating at Lille Triangel where Østerbrogade begins.
Sankt Pauls Gade is a street in the Nyboder Quarters of central Copenhagen, Denmark. The street passes St. Paul's Church from which it takes its name. The space in front of the church is called Sankt Pauls Plads.
Gernersgade is a street in the Nyboder Quarter of central Copenhagen, Denmark. It runs from Store Kongensgade in the southeast to Rigensgade in the northwest and is closed to through traffic at Sankt Pauls Plads.
The Composers' Quarter or Strandvej Quarter, confusingly also known as the Kildevæld Quarter, or the Svanemølle Quarter, is an enclave of terraced houses located just west of Svanemøllen Station, between Østerbrogade and Kildevækd Park, in the Østerbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. Most of the streets in the area are named after Danish or Nordic composers. The 393 townhouses were originally built by the Workers' Building Society to provide affordable and healthy housing for working-class families, though latterly they have become very desirable middle-class homes.
Ny Carlsberg Vej is a street in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It runs from Sønder Boulevard in the east to the point where Pile Allé turns into Valby Langgade at the southeastern corner of the park Søndermarken in the west. The last cobbled part of the street passes through the Carlsberg neighbourhood. This section of the street is spanned by the Dipylon Building and the Elephant Tower, both of which were designed by [[Vilhelm Dahlerup in the ornate Historicist style andare among the most iconic buildings of the former Carlsberg brewery site.