Kongens Nytorv

Kongens Nytorv holds the center of Copenhagen as a vast, rectangular cobblestone square. King Christian the Fifth laid it out in sixteen seventy to mimic the grand royal plazas of Paris, hoping to extend the city beyond its medieval walls. While the surrounding buildings have changed through fires and centuries of fashion, the equestrian statue of the king remains at its heart. In its early days, the square served as a muddy marketplace, often filled with piles of manure, poultry, and unruly peddlers.