Stevns Municipality

Stevns Municipality
Stevns Kommune
Municipality

Coat of arms
Country Denmark
Region Region Zealand
Seat Store Heddinge
Government
 • Mayor Mogens Haugaard Nielsen (V)
Area
 • Total 249.92 km2 (96.49 sq mi)
Population (1 July 2014)
 • Total 21,920
 • Density 88/km2 (230/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Municipal code 336
Website www.stevns.dk
Holtug Church

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 250 square kilometres (97 sq mi), and has a population of 21,920 (1 July 2014). From 1 January 2014, its mayor is Mogens Haugaard Nielsen. He is a member of the Venstre (Liberal Party) political party. The 1st deputy mayor is Varly Jensen. He is from the Danish People's Party. The 2nd deputy mayor is Steen S. Hansen. He is from the Social Democrats. The 19-member municipal council was elected 19 November 2013 for the four-year term 2014-17. The municipality covers most of Stevns Peninsula.

The third largest 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.

Urban areas

The ten largest urban areas in the municipality are:

# Locality Population
1 Strøby Egede 3,907
2 Store Heddinge 3,327
3 Hårlev 2.516
4 Rødvig 1.643
5 Valløby 756
6 Strøby 669
7 Hellested 613
8 Klippinge 517
9 Magleby 322
10 Lyderslev 317

The town of Store Heddinge

Main article: Store Heddinge

The town of Store Heddinge came into existence during the 13th century, 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.

Attractions

Stevns Klint

The area is known for its white chalk cliffs, which are quite rare in Denmark. Stevns Klint (Stevns' Cliffs), a popular tourist attraction, is one of these. The old town church by the small village of Højerup collapsed partially over the cliffs in 1928 due to erosion.

The cliffs at Højerup are also the place where the father-and-son team of scientists Luis and Walter Alvarez measured[1] the highest level of iridium in the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary layer, which led them to propose their hypothesis that the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event was caused by an impact of a large asteroid 66 million years ago.

In 2008 the 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 kilometres (0.99 mi) of tunnels, living quarters, command centers, hospital and even a chapel. And in addition two ammunition depots for its two 15 centimetres (5.9 in) cannons. The tunnels are 18–20 metres (59–66 ft) below surface excavated in the chalk of Stevns. This top secret fortress was built in 1953 and remained operational until 2000.

Stevns is also home to Elverhøj (Elves' Hill), while not much of an attraction, it is famous for the fairy tale The Elf Mound by H.C. Andersen and the Danish national play Elves' Hill, both of which in Danish share the name Elverhøj.

References

  1. ↑ Alvarez, Luis W.; Alvarez, Walter; Asaro, Frank; Michel, Helen V. (June 6, 1980). "Extraterrestrial cause for the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction". Science. 208 (4448): 1095–1108. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.126.8496Freely accessible. doi:10.1126/science.208.4448.1095. PMID 17783054.
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Coordinates: 55°20′N 12°19′E / 55.333°N 12.317°E / 55.333; 12.317

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