Landskrona

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Landskrona


image_caption = The old water tower in Landskrona is a landmark that can be seen from far away
pushpin_

subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = Sweden
subdivision_type1 = Municipality
subdivision_name1 = Landskrona Municipality
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Skåne County
subdivision_type3 = Province
subdivision_name3 = Skåne
established_title3 = Charter
established_date3 = 15th century
area_footnotes = cite web |title=Tätorternas landareal, folkmängd och invånare per km² 2000 och 2005 |publisher=Statistics Sweden |url=http://www.scb.se/statistik/MI/MI0810/2005A01B/T%E4torternami0810tab1.xls |format=xls |language=Swedish |accessdate=2008-05-15]
area_total_km2 = 12.18
population_as_of = 2005-12-31
population_footnotes =
population_total = 28,670
population_density_km2 = 2354
timezone = CET
utc_offset = +1
timezone_DST = CEST
utc_offset_DST = +2
latd=55 |latm=52 |lats= |latNS=N
longd=12 |longm=50 |longs= |longEW=E
website =

Landskrona is a city in the province Scania in southernmost Sweden. It is the seat of Landskrona Municipality, Skåne County and has a population of about 29,000 out of a municipal total of 40,000.

History

The city of Landskrona was founded at the location of Scania's (at that time a part of Denmark) best natural harbour, as a means of King Eric of Pomerania's anti-Hanseatic policy, intended to compete with Danish towns under Hanseatic control. A Carmelite monastery was founded in 1410, English merchants were granted the privileges in a royal charter in 1412, and the town itself was chartered in 1413. Landskrona was burned by the Hanseatic League in 1428.

The town supported the deposed king Christian II of Denmark (1525), and opposed the Reformation in Denmark (1535), and in both cases found itself among the defeated. The Reformist King Christian III of Denmark abstained however from retaliation, and instead founded a castle to protect the harbour. The castle, built where the monastery had been situated until the Reformation, was completed by 1560.

When Scania had been ceded to Sweden in 1658, the good harbour and the strong fort were reasons for plans to make Landskrona a commercial center of the acquired territory with extraordinary privileges for foreign trade. The castle was reinforced by bastions, the area inside the moats extended to 400x400 meters, the castle was considered the strongest and most modern in Scandinavia, but was temporarily lost to the Danes after a comparably short siege July 8-August 2 1676. The commandant Colonel Hieronymus Lindeberg was consequently sentenced to death for high treason.

Any further plans for Landskrona were however not realized, for various reasons. The continued Swedish-Danish wars favoured Karlskrona, located at a safer distance from Denmark, replacing Landskrona as a naval base, the fortifications were discontinued, and Malmö remained the most important commercial town - despite Malmö lacking a harbour until the late 18th century. The fortifications at Landskrona were expanded considerably between 1747 and 1788, but were condemned in 1822, whereafter the garrison was abolished in 1869. The walls and moats of the fortifications are today a beautiful recreational area, commonly known as the "Landskrona Citadel."

Transport

Since January 2001 Landskrona has a new railway station on the main line between Malmö and Gothenburg along the Swedish west coast. The connection between the new station and the city centre, "The Station Shuttle", is operated with trolleybuses from 27 August 2003. Landskrona is now the only city in Sweden operating trolleybuses.

See also

* List of Swedish wars
* Ven
* List of cities with trolleybuses

References

External links

* [http://www.landskrona.se/ Landskrona Municipality] - Official site
* [http://www.pege.nu/Lk-tradbuss.htm Landskrona Trolleybus] - Pictures from the construction of the trolleybus line (in Swedish)
* [http://hd.se/landskrona Landskrona Posten] - Local Newspaper