FREDRIKSTAD

(previously ''Frederiksstad'') (literally ''Fredrik's Town'') is a city and municipality in the county of Østfold, Norway.
The city of Fredrikstad was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The rural municipality of Glemmen was merged with Fredrikstad January 1, 1964 - and the rural municipalities of Borge, Onsøy, Kråkerøy and Rolvsøy were merged with Fredrikstad January 1, 1994.
The city straddles the river Glomma where it meets the sea. With Sarpsborg, Fredrikstad forms the fifth largest urban area in Norway. As of April 1st 2006, according to Statistics Norway these two municipalities have a total population of 121,097 - 70,962 in Fredrikstad and 50,135 in Sarpsborg.
Fredrikstad was built at the mouth of Glomma as a replacement, after Sarpsborg (15 km upstream) was burned down by the Swedes. It was founded in 1567 by king Frederik II. Almost half the population of Sarpsborg stayed behind, and rebuilt their old town at its original site.
The city centre is on the west bank of the Glomma, while the old town on the east bank is Northern Europe's best preserved fortified town.
Fredrikstad used to have a large sawmill industry and was an important harbour for timber export, then later on shipbuilding, until the main yard was closed in the 1980s. The main industries are currently various chemical plants and other light industry.
In 2005, Fredrikstad was a host port for the Tall Ships' Race.

Contents

The name

History

Coat-of-arms

Well known people from Fredrikstad

References

The name

The city was named after the Danish-Norwegian king Frederik II in 1569. The last element ''stad'' means 'city'.
Until 1877 the name was written ''Frederiksstad'', in the period 1877-1888 ''Fredriksstad'', from 1889 on ''Fredrikstad''.

History

After Sarpsborg was burned to the ground during the Northern Seven Years' War, the ruling king,
Frederick II of Denmark, decided by a royal decree to rebuild the city 15 km south of the original
location. This new location's vicinity to the sea and with large accessible surrounding areas,
made it more ideal than the old location. The name Fredrikstad was first used in a letter from the King
dated february 6th 1569. The temporary fortification built during the Hannibal War (1644-1645)
between Sweden and Denmark/Norway, became permanent in the 1660s. The work on the fortifications was
first led by William de Coucheron and later Johan Caspar von Cicignon. During the next 60 years several
fortifications around Fredrikstad were built, including Isegran, Kongsten and Cicignon. In 1735 a
suburb on the western side of Glomma, Vestsiden, was founded. This part later grew faster than
the old city, and became the dominant city centre. Most of the buildings in the old city burnt
down during a fire in 1764.
In the 1840s timber exporting from Fredrikstad started to gain momentum. In the 1860s several steam
powered saws were built along the river, and in 1879 the railway reached Fredrikstad, leading to
further growth. With the decline of the timber exports as a result of the modernisation of
wood-processing industries in the early 1900s, Fredrikstad's production changed to other types
of products. It later became one of Norway's most important industrial centres, famous for
its large shipyard, Fredrikstad Mekaniske Verksted.

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times (1967), but it is based upon a seal from 1610. It shows a bear guarding a castle.

Well known people from Fredrikstad

★ Roald Amundsen, explorer of polar regions.

★ Petronella Barker, Norwegian actress

★ Rebecca Birget Certa, International Academic and Member of U.S. Congress

★ Jørn Christensen, Norwegian artist and producer.

★ Johan Caspar von Cicignon, General, engineer and city planner

★ Johan Oscar Smith, Norweigian Christian leader and founder of Smith's Friends

★ Ragnvald Marensius Gundersen, member of Parliament and mayor of Fredrikstad 1945-1965

★ Hans Nielsen Hauge, revivalist Norwegian preacher

★ Katti Anker Møller, feminist and advocate for reproductive rights

★ Egil «Drillo» Olsen, successful manager of Norwegian national football team.

★ Ole Peter Petersen, founder of Methodism in Norway

★ Dennis Storhøi, Norwegian actor

★ Harald Zwart, Norwegian film director

★ Morten Grårud, Norwegain Teacher on Gressvik Ungdomskole

★ Andy LaPlegua, Industrial Artist, Combichrist, Icon Of Coil, Panzer AG, DJ Scandy

References

★ Aschehougs Konversasjonsleksikon, Bind 7. H. Aschehoug & Co, Oslo, 1969.