Vestvolden, Avedøre - Dragørfortet

Vestvolden

Like a nearly 15-kilometer-long snake, Vestvolden winds its way from Avedøre in the south to Utterslev Mose in the north.
The rampart was constructed 120 years ago, where it was one of the most extensive engineering projects ever. Around 2,000 'rampart workers' toiled for four years to build the fortifications. For every meter of the 14,361-meter-long rampart, about 225 cubic meters of earth had to be moved by hand; with shovel, wheelbarrow, and tip carts. This amounts to 3.15 million cubic meters of earth.

Today, Vestvolden is still an impressive structure with a moat, storage facilities, and underground passages. But Vestvolden offers not only historical echoes. The old fortification is also a large recreational area filled with natural experiences.

Avedøre Airfield

The airfield along Gl. Køge Landevej was established during World War I in 1917, and here you can see the world's oldest wooden hangars for land-based aircraft. On a pillar at the site, a veteran plane of the type HL-1 from 1958 "hovers." The aircraft is six meters long and has a wingspan of 9 meters.

Kongelundsfortet

At the tip of Amager lies Kongelundsfort, which was built in 1914-16 during World War I. The fort was to work alongside, among others, Dragørfort to prevent enemy ships from penetrating into Copenhagen. The fort has a unique view over Køge Bay and provides an interesting insight into the defenses of the capital at that time. The fort has been restored for the benefit of you and the daily activity offerings for children and young people at the site.

Dragørfortet

Dragør Fort was established from 1910 to 1915 on an artificial island about 400 meters from the coast immediately south of Dragør. The fort covers an area of about 32,000 m2, of which just over 2,500 m2 is built upon. The fort was transferred to private ownership in 2002 and now contains a wide range of modern facilities after a comprehensive but gentle restoration.

The fort's tasks were to help prevent an enemy bombardment of Copenhagen, protect mine barrages in the Dogden trench, prevent an enemy landing on Amager's southern coast, and hinder enemy vessel operations in the Drogden and Flinter trenches.

Source: Copenhagen's Fortifications