Virum

Virum is a mostly residential, suburban neighbourhood in Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality, located on both sides of Lyngby Kongevej, approximately 15 km north of central Copenhagen, Denmark. The neighbourhood is bounded by Lake Furesø to the west, Holte in Rudersdal Municipality to the north, Brede to the east and Kongens Lyngby and Sorgenfri to the south. Virum station is located on the Hillerød radial of the S-train network and is served by the Btrains.

History

The place where the modern city of Virum now lies has been populated since long before the country of Denmark came to exist. Some of the oldest mounds in the area are believed to be made as far back as year zero. These mounds were supposedly used for dividing up agricultural land, and lay in an area now known as Geels skov.

The modern town of Virum first came about during the 12th century when the town was given, by the Pope, to Bishop Absalon. The first written account of the town is in 1186, where Pope Clement III writes a letter to the Bishop, stating which towns, including Virum, he would be given.

However, Virum did not stay with Absalon for long: he soon decided to give the town to the bishop of Roskilde as a friendly gesture. The Bishop of Roskilde then built a castle just outside Virum - the remains of which can still be seen today, though only as markings on the ground.

Frederiksdal Castle is located in Virum. Its main building was built from 1744-45 and was used as a summer residence for Foreign Affairs, Privy Councilor Johan Sigismund Schulin. The Schulin Family still owns the estate.

Transport

Virum station is located on the Hillerød radial of the S-train network and is served by the Btrains. Brede Station in the eastern outskirts of Virum is served by the Lokalbanen service on the Nærum Line between Jægersborg in the south and Nærum to the north.

Notable people

• Mikkel Beckmann (born 1983), footballer
• Stine Bosse (born 1960), businesswoman
• Jakob Levinsen (born 1960=, writer
• Kirsten Ortwed, (born 1948), sculptor
• Jan Popiel (born 1948), ice hockey player
• Henrik Sass Larsen (born 1966), politician
• Jan Sonnergaard (born 1963)
• Morten Wedendahl (born 1961), composer

Gallery

• 

  Frederiksdal Castle

• Hjortholm voldsted.jpg

  The remains of the ramparts of Hjortholm castle

• Virum.jpg

  Virum church

|}