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Denmark |
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Copenhagen City Research
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 | Background |
| Strategies |
| Church Records |
| Census Records |
| Probates & Wills |
Finding Resources:
| Copenhagen Parishes 1686-1804 |
| Copenhagen Parishes 1850 |
| Copenhagen Parishes 1900 |
| Copenhagen Parishes 1942 |
| Street Index - Parishes |
| Parish Chart |
Sources referred to in this publication that are found at the Family History Library are referred to by their call number in parenthesis and preceded by the abbreviation FHL.
| Established 1167. Originally a village called Havn (The Harbor), later Kiøbmændeneshavn (The Merchants' Harbor), and now København. Was donated 1140s by King Valdemar the Great to Bishop Absalon of Roskilde. He built a castle fortification there in 1167 for which he is credited as the founder of the city of Copenhagen. |
| Fires, Plagues, Wars. Several times between 1249-1536 the town was besieged, sacked, and burned. Population decimated by the plague mid-16th century. Another plague in 1711. Fires in 1728 and 1795. City bombed in 1807. |
| Industrialization - Period of flux, began in earnest in 1870s. |
| International community. International center & principal crossroads of Northern Europe (by sea, air, and land). There were many Germans, Swedes, French, Dutch, and English living here through its history. |
| International Genealogical Index (IGI).
Most church marriage records for Copenhagen before about 1890
have been extracted and can be found in the IGI. This is a way to see at which church and address a family
was living. |
| Marriage Tax (with Index) 1720-1863 (FHL film 0048119-0048124). Each couple had to pay a marriage
tax. If you know the groom's name and approximately when he was married, using this source will be faster
than searching each parish separately. The marriage tax record will identify which church and when the
couple was married. It includes an index as well as the original record
(#0048119 index 1735-1800; #0048120 index 1801-1858; #0048121 index
1851-1863; #0048122 list 1720-1724, 1735-1783; #0048123 list 1784-1843;
#0048124 list 1843-1863). |
| Death Card Index 1893-1923 (FHL film 0373882-00374029). These death cards were completed from the
city police records and list the various addresses where a person lived since 1893 in the city at various times.
It is a wonderful source for identifying the street addresses at which a person lived at various times in the
city, and if any member of the family may have died during this period in the city. |
| Directories. Directories list names of residents in a city and their occupation and address. Following are
directories available for Copenhagen: |
| 1779 Government Officials (FHL fiche 6030485 no. 1-2). |
| 1787, 1790, 1801 surnames of most heads of households and their occupations (FHL fiche 6030485 no.
3-12). |
| 1813, 1827, 1834, 1840, 1845, 1850, 1855 surnames, initials, and occupations of heads of each
household (FHL fiche 6030485 no. 13-48). |
| 1859, 1861 similar (FHL book 948.911/K1 E4v or film 14400075, item 6-7). |
Additional yearly directories for the late 1800s and 1900s are available at the National Library, National Archive, and Provincial Archive in Copenhagen. The Provincial Archives has original directories from 1787 and complete sets for the years 1866-1878, 1880-1885, and 1887-1993.
| 1801 Census Index (FHL #1145520 items 1-15, 1440295 item 30; comp. no. 0726977). Although 16
indexes for the various districts have to be searched, it does not take long as most are on a single film and
each index is typed and alphabetical. There is a complete index in four large books that is better than this
index, which is found in the city archive in Copenhagen and in the Provincial Archive for Sjælland. |
| Police Census Index 1869-1882 (FHL #0322451-0323358). These indexes are divided by year and then by
Kreds (Districts). Within each of the six districts is a listing of each surname by the first letter of the
surname, street by street. For example, each of the surnames starting with "A" within District 1 (Kreds 1)
will be listed street by street (streets listed alphabetically under each letter of the surname), then the surnames
starting with "B", etc. Although it takes some effort to search these indexes, it is much faster than searching
the entire census and helps identify the street and district where the family was living at a particular time.
This census was taken twice a year in May and November. |
| 1845 Census and other Indexes in Copenahgen. A card index to the 1845 census is available at the City Archive in Copenhagen, but has not been microfilmed. The Danish National Archive also has indexes to the tax lists of all of the population of Copenhagen (Skattemandtal) for 1743 and 1762. In the city archive of Copenhagen there are burial records 1805-1974 that were kept with information concerning the parish where a death took place. The city archives also has citizenship records from 1683-1932, which often tells the town of origin of a new citizen. |
The primary source for research in Europe is the church records. All of the early original church records of Copenhagen have been microfilmed and are available on microfilm. To use church records in Copenhagen you may have to check several parishes. If you are searching prior to 1860 and have a specific date, you can try searching the five or six most likely parishes to find the family.
In the later 1800s and early 1900s the number of parishes you will need to search increases dramatically making it difficult to search them all. You will need to find a street address first. Check directories and above mentioned indexes.The following information can give you move help in finding your family in Copenhagen church records:
| Main parishes (churches) in Copenhagen. Before 1861 the primary churches to concentrate on: Vor Frue,
Skt. Nikolaj (before 1805), Helligånds, Holmen, Vor Frelser, Trinitatis, and Garnison. Between 1861-1890
check also: Skt. Johannes, Skt. Stefan, Skt. Paul, and Skt. Jakob. The accompanying map and table shows the
history of the parishes of Copenhagen and the main parishes boundaries before 1805, in 1850, in 1900, and
in 1942. |
| Individual Church Record Indexes. Indexes to the church records of Copenhagen have been prepared by the Provincial Archive for Sjælland on microfiche. These include indexes to births, marriages, and deaths for most of the minor parishes (hospitals, orphanage, jail, etc). These indexes are listed in the Family History Library Catalog under Copenhagen and the topic Church Records - Indexes. The author is listed as Landsarkivet for Sjælland. They also prepared marriage indexes for the larger parishes of Copenhagen: |
Parish Index Dates FHL fiche
Vor Frue 1814-1891 6060204
Helligånds 1813-1891 6060203
Holmen 1813-1891 6060200
Vor Frelser 1813-1891 6060202
Trinitatis 1813-1907 6060198
Garnison 1799-1921 6060199
Frederiksberg 1805-1921 6060201
| Duplicates. Duplicates of the church records were kept after 1812. Sometimes the copy of a marriage or other record at the Family History Library gives only limited information. Occasionally searching the duplicate book in the Danish archive will list additional information such as an ancestor's address, birth dates and birthplaces, and parents names. If it is a key document and does not list all the information, you may wish to eventually check the duplicate volume in Denmark. |
Remember that by the period 1850-1900 parents often waited six months to a year before christening a child. Some parishes list children born chronologically by birth date, others by christening date. Registers for boys and girls are kept separately.
For the location of churches in Copenhagen, refer to the Parish Boundary Maps and Chart section at the end of this guide. It also lists the records that are in the holdings of the Family History Library. For a complete list of all of the available church records from Copenhagen in the Danish archives, see:
Københavnske Kirkebøger. København: Landsarkivet for Sjælland, 1974. (FHL book 948.911/K1 K23s.)
| 1659. A list of the inhabitants of Copenhagen in the year 1659 can be found by quarter and street in a
published book, Kjøbenhavns Borgere 1659 by E. Marquard, 1920 (FHL book 948.911/K1 X2m). This book
includes two lists from the chancery records. One list was dated January 10, 1659 of those who are eligible to
fight in the war with Sweden including citizens, farm hands, and boys. The other list was dated December
1659 and shows each household in Copenhagen according to their ability to board members of the army
units. This book includes a list of students and has a street and name index. |
| 1728. In October 1728 a fire burned down a third of the city. A record of the burned farms and houses was
made in April 1729 which included the name of the renters, owners, and mortgage holders for each property.
In December 1728 a census was made of those houses which were not damaged in the fire. Between these
two lists, a fairly complete listing is found by quarter and street of all the adult male inhabitants, widows, and
servant people living in Copenhagen. This is found published in book form (FHL book Q 948.911/K1 H2k;
film 0874208, item 1) or in its original form on microfilm (FHL films
0410359-0410361).
Frode Ulvund has placed the 1728 census of Copenhagen on the Internet. |
| 1771. Census of married couples, widowers, widows, listing information such as ages, how many years
widowed, how many times married, and also how many surviving children for widows and widowers.
Organized by quarters and then by street. |
| 1787, 1801, 1834, 1840, 1845, 1850, 1855, 1860. These census list each person living in each household.
They are listed by quarter, then by street name alphabetically, and then by household. For the years 1771,
1787, 1801, and 1845, the catalog listing shows which streets are listed in each quarter. The other years only
list which quarters are on each film, however the quarters remained fairly consistent. Beginning in 1845,
birthplaces are listed for each person. |
| 1870, 1880, 1885, 1890, 1895, 1901, 1906, 1911. These census lists are organized alphabetically by street
name and then by house number. |
| 1866-1881, 1882-1899. Police census were taken twice a year in May and November for the entire city. Partial indexes are available for the period 1866-1881 as discussed above. The later census records indicate if the person moved from another address in the previous census. These records were a way of keeping track of the highly mobile population of Copenhagen at that time. Often differing information will be listed in these census records from one to another. For example it might list birthplace as Sweden in one record and as Landskrona (city in Sweden) in another record. The police census lists only those over 10 years old. |
Indexes. Some wonderful indexes have been prepared to these various records by the Land Archive for Sjælland and are found at the library on microfiche, the most extensive index being for the Forseglingsprotokoller:
| Forseglingsprotokoller 1720-1919 (FHL fiche 6030293-60401670). |
| Ordinære boer 1660-1771 (FHL fiche 6030251-6030255). |
| Konceptskifter [draft probates] 1660-1771 (FHL fiche 6030238-6030250). |
| Behandlingsprotokoller 1715-1771 (FHL fiche 6030233-6030237). |
| Samfrændskifter [relative probates]1771-1810 (FHL fiche 6030270-6030271). |
| Eksekutorboer [executor estate]1790-1919 (FHL fiche 6030256-6030269). |
Prior to 1670. After the probate law of 1683, probate records become much more common. Before that time, probate proceedings were generally taken care of without any official record being made. The exception would be where a dispute or questionable circumstance was involved. In such cases a record of the probate would be listed with the court records. Chancery court records can be found in the catalog under Denmark and the topic Public Records. There is an index to the chancery records from 1481-1650.
| Register over Person- og Stednavne i Danske Kancelli: Indlæg 1481-1650 (Index of persons and place names in the Danish Chancery: pleadings 1481-1650). FHL fiche 6060083. |
1670-1771. There were 13 different probate courts in Copenhagen. The four largest were the following:
| Magistrats skiftekommission, 1681-1781 (Magistrate's probate commission, also called Byretten or city
court). These records are for the commoners of the city. There is an index on FHL film 0045256 and
0044771, and these records are found on films 0044772-0045255. |
| Hofretten, 1679-1771 (Castle Court). This court was for high civil officials. Index, FHL film 0044596;
probates FHL films 0044597-0044688. |
| Borgretten, 1682-1771 (Citizen Court). This court was for the lower civil officials and employees.
General index FHL film 0044689; probate records FHL films 0044690-0044770. |
| Underadmiralitetsretten, 1670-1779 (Lower Admirals Court). For navel non-commissioned (officers with rank lower than Captain). Records on FHL films 0048030-0048113. |
Other probate court records for this time period that have not been filmed include the following: Regimentsauditørerne (Military Court, for enlisted men in the army); Søetatens General-Auditør (Military Court, for navel none-commissioned officers); Universitets Skiftejurisdiktion (University Court, for students, many no longer exist); Den Gejstlige Skiftejurisdiktion (Ecclesiastical Court, for clergy and related personnel, most no longer exist); Vajsenhusets Skiftejurisdiktion (Orphan-house Court, for personnel of the orphan house, records no longer exist); Frederiks Hospitals Skiftejurisdiktion (Hospital Court, for personnel of the hospital, records no longer exist); Det Asiatiske og det Vestindisk-Guineiske Kompagnis (The Asiatic and West Indies-Guineas Company, for employees in Copenhagen and the colonies); and Jødernes Skiftejurisdiktion (Jewish Probate Jurisdiction, many jews listed in the Magistratens Skiftekommision listed above). Copies of most of these records can be found in the Danish National Archives in Copenhagen.
1771-1861. Most probate records in Copenhagen for this time period were handled by a single probate commission. For the period 1771-1803 they are listed under the Stadsretten (City Court; FHL films 0045257-0046190) and from 1804-1862 under the Landsretten (Land Court; FHL films 0046191-0048027). These records are divided in two ways: by record type (see above under indexes) and then by classification. Within each record type there are nine groupings as to the classification of those for whom a probate was held (the catalog does not show which groups are on which film, so you may wish to consult the book, Register of Danish estate probates: Copenhagen county, 1701-1820; FHL book 948.911 P23c; film 0599138, item 3):
| High civil officials and commissioned officers |
| Other civil officials, clerks, secretaries, bookkeepers, etc. |
| Clergy, professors, students, and workers at schools, hospitals, and the church. |
| Citizens of higher reputation and wealth |
| Artist, tradesmen, etc. |
| Persons of no great means |
| Servants |
| Enlisted men of the navy and merchant marine |
| Enlisted men of the army |
1861-1912. The nine classifications from the earlier period were regrouped into six. Class III was grouped with Class II. Classes VII-IX were combined to a new Class III. These later records were listed under the title Den kongelige Lands-over- samt Hof- og Stadsret i København (The royal provincial, as well as castle and city court in Copenhagen; FHL films 0520496-0521527, 0517662-0517794). The Reparitionsprotokol [restitution records] from 1863-1910 are filed separately (FHL film 0517795-0517840), as are a set of records called Børn og hospitalslemmer (Children and hospital inmates; FHL film 0517868-0517897).
Wills (Testamenter). Wills are not common in Denmark because the probate laws were considered fair, however in the cities and among the merchant and property holding classes, it was not uncommon to have a will. Wills were kept in the Chancery records and became much more common in those records after about 1760. These records are found in the catalog under Denmark and the topic Public Records. Copenhagen wills would be found with those of the Sjælland Chancery (on 861 films beginning with FHL films 0534460 and 0399133). Wills for all of Denmark, a large portion of them being from Copenhagen, for the period 1800-1848 and 1812-1848 can be found in two collections:
| FHL #0394868-0394952. Also includes other parts of the Danish kingdom. |
| FHL #0379853-0379887. Includes almost exclusively Copenhagen. |
| Copenhagen City Archive |
Københavns Stadsarchiv
Rådhuset
Rådhuspladsen
1599 København V.
Denmark
| Sjælland Land Archives |
Landsarkivet for Sjælland,
Lolland-Falster og Bornholm
Jagtvej 10
Postboks 661
2200 København N.
Denmark
Internet:
http://www.sa.dk/lak/engdefault.htm
| Denmark National Archives |
Rigsarkivet
Rigsdagsgården 9
1218 København K.
Denmark
Internet: http://www.sa.dk/ra/engelsk/default.htm
| Danish Royal Library |
Det Kongelige Bibliotek
Søren Kierkegaards Plads 1,
1214 København K.
Postal address for queries etc. is:
P.O. Box 2149
1016 København K
Internet: http://www.kb.dk/index-en.htm
Online
Catalog of the Royal Library
| Slægtshistorisk Forening for Storkøbenhavn = Genealogical Association of Greater Copenhagen. |
Publication: Slægt og Stavn
Internet:
http://www.genealogi-kbh.dk
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