Kongsvinger

Infobox_Kommune
name=Kongsvinger
idnumber=0402
county=Hedmark
landscape=Glåmdal
capital=Kongsvinger
governor=Arve Bones (Ap)
governor_as_of=2003
arearank=102
area=1036
arealand=953
areapercent=0.32
population_as_of=2004
populationrank=57
population=17,380
populationpercent=0.38
populationdensity=18
populationincrease=0.6
language=Bokmål
lat_deg=60| lat_min=14| lat_sec=35| lon_deg=12| lon_min=13| lon_sec=32
utm_zone=33W| utm_northing=6681723 |utm_easting=0346429| geo_cat=adm2nd




munwebpage=www.kongsvinger.kommune.no

Kongsvinger is a city and municipality in the county of Hedmark, Norway.

A patch of land on both sides of the river Glomma with an area of approximately 5,2 square km was separated from Vinger as a town by royal charter in 1854.The municipalities of Vinger and Brandval were merged with Kongsvinger January 1, 1964. Kongsvinger briefly lost its status as a town after this amalgation, but was later reinstated with its town status.

Kongsvinger is situated on both sides of the river Glomma, where the south-going river takes a sharp north-westward turn. The Kongsvinger Fortress is the main landmark, situated on a hill west and north of the river. Kongsvinger is a regional center of the Glåmdal region, which is made up of the southern parts of Hedmark county. It is bordered to the West by Sør-Odal, to the North by Grue, and to the south by Eidskog. To the east it borders to Sweden. Kongsvinger is about 110 kilometres from Oslo and 70 kilometres from Oslo Airport Gardermoen.

The downtown area of Kongsvinger is currently being refurbished with a new public library being built, and the town square being given a face lift. There are also plans for a new hotel to be built in cojunction to the refurbishment of the down town area as well as for the construction of two new shopping centres. These plans are part of the overall strategy of the city council to make Kongsvinger more attractive to tourists and potential new residents.

The name

The first element "Kongs-" ('the King's') was added after the fortress was built in 1690. It was first applied only to the fortress (written as "Königs Winger" in old documents), then to the city that grew up around it and finally the modern municipality. The second element Vinger (Norse "Vingr") is an old district name which is still in use.

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from 1926. It shows Kongsvinger Fortress - and the white line is meant to represent the river Glomma.

History

Kongsvinger already existed as a trading center by the Middle Ages, due to the accessibility by natural waterways. Viking chieftains reached Sweden by boat from Kongsvinger. Kongsvinger fortress was founded in 1669, and a star-shaped plan was laid out for the fortress. Work began in 1682 and it was finished in 1690 as part of a general upgrade to Norwegian fortresses. Today, Øvrebyen, the old uptown area around the fortress is dominated by wooden buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries, laid out in the typical right angle square plan - by architect Cicignon - popular in this period.

The eastern parts of Kongsvinger and its neighboring municipalities to the north and south were populated at the end of the 17th century by Finnish emigrants who came across the Swedish border. The area is called Finnskogen, "The Finnish forest".

Kongsvinger played an important part in the Norwegian resistance force against the Nazis being a gateway to Sweden. Norway's highest decorated citizen, Gunnar Sønsteby frequently passed through Kongsvinger in his work to sabotage the Nazis' installations in Norway. Some of the most trafficated escape routes for refugees also went through Kongsvinger to Sweden.

In 1964 Kongsvinger and the surrounding municipalities Vinger and Brandval were united into the present Kongsvinger Municipality. Kongsvinger has city status (from 1854), and is thereby both city and township, governed by a town council under a mayor, elected by popular vote. There are also appointed executive officials, such as town commissioner or town director (rådmann), who is chief executive of the city/municipality, and its 700 plus workforce. There are 1,530 businesses including forestry and farming, and 245 of these are retail outlets. There are 25,000 square metres (300,000 square feet) of mall situated in the downtown area. As well as downtown shopping streets, there are also glass domed pedestrian shopping streets. The governmental regional hospital is also situated in Kongsvinger.

From 1983 to 1999 Kongsvinger's soccer team Kongsvinger IL held a position in the Norwegian Premier league. It made some notable merits participating in the UEFA Cup and winning a silver medal during the 1992 season.

Subdivisions

* Digerudlia
* Gjemselund
* Glåmlia
* Hexumløkka
* Holt
* Kurudlia
* Langeland
* Langerudberget
* Midtbyen
* Rasta
* Skriverskogen
* Stasjonssida
* Tråstad
* Vangen
* Vennersberg
* Øvrebyen

Infrastructure

* Several daily train services to Oslo
* Several daily train services to Stockholm
* Hourly bus services to Oslo and Oslo Airport Gardermoen
* Several daily bus services to Elverum and Hamar
* Several daily bus services to Charlottenberg in Sweden
* City buses running throughout the municipality of Kongsvinger
* Four lane highway between Kongsvinger and Oslo is under construction

Distances to Kongsvinger

From
* Oslo - 100km
* Oslo Airport Gardermoen - 60km
* Hamar - 100km
* Elverum - 100km
* Trondheim - 460km
* Nordkapp (North Cape) - 2,096km
* Charlottenberg (Sweden) - 35km
* Arvika (Sweden) - 86km
* Karlstad (Sweden) - 150km
* Stockholm (Sweden) - 460km

Major businesses and organisations based in Kongsvinger

* Dyno (plastic)
* Eidsiva Energi customer service unit (energy)
* Ibas (IT)
* Metso Minerals (conveyor belts)
* Polimoon (plastic)
* Schütz Nordic (plastic)
* Statistics Norway
* Telenor customer service unit (telecommunications)
* TI Automotive (fuel systems)
* Ø.M. Fjeld AS (construction)

Education institutions in Kongsvinger

In the city

* Politihøgskolen (Norwegian Police University College)
* Øvrebyen VGS (high school) [http://www.ovrebyen.vgs.no/]
* Sentrum VGS (high school)
* Norges Toppidrettsgymnas (high school)
* Holt Ungdomsskole (middle school)
* Tråstad Ungdomsskole (middle school)
* Vennersberg Barneskole (primary school)
* Marikollen Barneskole (primary school)
* Langeland Barneskole (primary school)

Elsewhere in the municipality

* Austmarka barne- og ungdomsskole (primary and middle school)
* Roverud barne- og ungdomsskole (primary and middle school)
* Brandval skole (primary school)
* Finnskogen Montessoriskole

Tourist attractions and activities in Kongsvinger

* Kongsvinger Fortress [http://www.nasjonalefestningsverk.no/kongsvinger/index_html]
* National Women's Museum [http://www.kvinnemuseet.no/index.php?pid=476&PHPSESSID=5abc261a408028e89378afda2fad9118]
* Øvrebyen (old town, historic precinct) [http://www.ovrebyen.no/]
* Skansgården art gallery [http://www.vingerhotell.no/kunst.html]
* Kongsvinger Golf Park (international standard 18 holes championship golf course, last nine holes will open in 2009) [http://www.kongsvinger-golfklubb.no]
* Cross country skiing
* Hunting
* Fishing
* Kayaking / canooing
* Forest excursions

Festivals and events

* Vinterfestivalen - winter festival (February)
* Rally Norway - car race (February)
* Liv i Leiren - historic fesitval in Øvrebyen (May)
* Kremmertorg - market day (May, June, August and September)
* Kongsvingermarken - funfair (May and September)
* Kongsvingerdagene - cultural days (June)
* Festival på Festningen - music festival (July)
* Kongsvinger marathon (August) [http://www.kongsvingermaraton.no]
* Julemarked - Christmas market (December)

Accommodation in Kongsvinger

* Vinger Hotell & Spa (3 star hotel) [http://www.vinger.no]
* Kongsvinger Gjestegård (motel) [http://www.kongsvinger-gjestegaard.com/]
* Sigernessjøen familiecamping (camp grounds) [http://www.golfcamping.no/eng/index.html]

Kongsvinger notabilities

* Håvard Gimse (1966–), pianist
* Levi Henriksen (1964–), writer
* Dagny Juel (1867–1901), poet
* Monica Kristensen Solås (1950–), polar adventurer
* Roy Lønhøiden 1964, composer and performing artist
* Åse Wisløff Nilssen (1945–), politician
* Even Pellerud (1953–), soccer player and coach
* Bjørge Stensbøl, former chief of top-level athletics Olympiatoppen
* Tove Strand (1946–), politician
* Sverre Strandli (1925–), hammer-thrower
* Erik Werenskiold (1855–1938), painter and illustrator
* Petter Nord (1980–), rikssynser

Sister cities

* Arvika, Sweden
* Skive, Denmark
* Ylöjärvi, Finland
* Ebel es Saqi, Lebanon

External links

* [http://www.byen-var.no Byen vår] (cultural organisation)
* [http://www.glomdalen.no Glåmdalen] (local newspaper)