Stevns

Stevns is a municipality (Danish, "kommune") in Region Sjælland on the southeast coast of the island of Zealand ("Sjælland") in south Denmark. The municipality covers an area of 247 km², and has a total population of 21,892 (2008). Its mayor is Paul Arne Sørensen, a member of the Venstre (Liberal Party) political party. The municipality covers most of Stevns Peninsula.

The main town and the site of its municipal council is the town of Hårlev.

On January 1, 2007 Stevns municipality, as the result of "Kommunalreformen" ("The Municipal Reform" of 2007), merged with Vallø municipality to form an enlarged Stevns municipality.

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.

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. In 2008 Cold War Museum Stevns Fortress opened to the public. It features a large exhibition of military equipment and a 1,5 hour guided tour in the large underground system of the fortress. The underground system of the fortress features 1,6 Km tunnels, living quarters, command centers, hospital and even a chapel. Also two ammunition deposits for its two 15 cm cannons. The tunnels are 18-20 meters below surface excavated in the chalk of Stevns. This top secret fortress was build in 1953 and remained operational until year 2000.

External links

* [http://www.stevns.dk Municipality's official website]
* [http://www.turismesyd.dk/ East Denmark tourism information]
* [http://www.stevnsfortet.dk/ Cold War Museum Stevns Fortress]

References

* Municipal statistics: [http://www2.netborger.dk/Kommunefakta/ NetBorger Kommunefakta] , delivered from [http://www.kmd.dk/ KMD aka Kommunedata (Municipal Data)]
* Municipal mergers and neighbors: [http://kommune.eniro.dk/danmarkskort/ Eniro new municipalities map]