Odense - City of Denmark

The city of Odense is the third largest city in Denmark. The name Odense comes from the Norse god Odin.

Odense city has 158,163 inhabitants, as of January, 2008 and is the main city of the island of Funen. Odense , is one of the oldest cities of Denmark and had its 1000th anniversary in 1988. To celebrate this, a forest named "the Thousand Year Forest" was cultivated. The shrine of Saint Canute in Saint Canute's Cathedral held great attraction for pilgrims throughout the Middle Ages.

Odense's most famous landmark was Odinstårnet constructed in 1935, as the second-tallest tower in Europe, only surpassed by the Eiffel Tower. Odinstårnet was blown up by a Danish Nazi group in 1944 and has never been rebuilt. However, a miniature model of it now stands in the residential area Odinsparken in the area where the original tower was.

Until the beginning of the Danish industrial revolution, Odense was also the 2nd largest city in modern Denmark, but has in recent times been overtaken by Aarhus.

The University of Southern Denmark was formed in 1998 by the merger between Odense University , Southern Denmark School of Business and Engineering and South Jutland University Centre. In 2006 it was decided to incorporate the Business School Centre in Slagelse and the National Institute of Public Health into the University of Southern Denmark per January 1., 2007. The University therefore now has six campuses, mainly located in the southern part of Denmark: campus Odense on the island of Funen, campus Slagelse and campus Copenhagen on the island of Zealand, as well as campus Kolding, campus Esbjerg and campus Sønderborg on the Jutland peninsula.

Saint Canute's Cathedral was formerly connected with the great Benedictine monastery of the same name, and is one of the largest and finest buildings of its kind in Denmark. It is constructed of brick in a pure Gothic style. Originally dating from 1081–1093, it was rebuilt in the 13th century. Under the altar lies Canute , the patron saint of Denmark, who had planned to conquer England from William of Normandy. He was slain in an insurrection at Odense in 1086. Odense is also the see of the bishop of Funen. * The cathedral has the skeletons of both the Saint/King and his brother on public display, it also boasts of one of Denmark's finest altarpieces, a magnificent triptych by Claus Berg. A large fragment of Byzantine cloth is displayed next to the two skeletons.

There is a theatre as well as a symphony orchestra, a zoo, and the Funen Village (Den Fynske Landsby) which is an open air museum with old houses typical for Funen.

The City Hall has a small scar from a battle between Germans and members of the Danish Resistance on 5 May 1945. The city's coat of arms - located above the main entrance to City Hall - is damaged. On close inspection, the kneecap of Saint Canute is penetrated by a bullet.