page_title: Aalborg
section_title: 20th century industrialisation
hierarchical_section_title: Aalborg / History / 20th century industrialisation
caption_attribution_description: Augustoprøret. Tyske soldater i konflikt med befolkningen Sted: Aalborg Dato: August 1943 Se flere billeder her: erez.natmus.dk/FHMbilleder/Site/index.jsp Rights: natmus.dk/en/besoeg-museerne/frihedsmuseet/archives/photo... More about The Museum of Danish Resistance (Frihedsmuseet): natmus.dk/en/besoeg-museerne/frihedsmuseet/
context_page_description: Aalborg, also spelt Ålborg, is Denmark's fourth largest city with an urban population of 140,897.
  The twin city Nørresundby is 600 metres across the Limfjord. With a population of 217,075, the Municipality of Aalborg is the third most populous in the country after Copenhagen and Aarhus. By road Aalborg is 64 kilometres southwest of Frederikshavn, and 118 kilometres north of Aarhus. The distance to Copenhagen is 412 kilometres if travelling by road and not using ferries.
  The earliest settlements date to around AD 700. Aalborg's position at the narrowest point on the Limfjord made it an important harbour during the Middle Ages, and later a large industrial centre. Architecturally, the city is known for its half-timbered mansions built by its prosperous merchants. Budolfi Church, now a cathedral, dates from the end of the 14th century and Aalborghus Castle, a royal residence, was built in 1550. Today, Aalborg is a city in transition from a working-class industrial area to a knowledge-based community. A major exporter of grain, cement, and spirits, its thriving business interests include Siemens Wind Power, Aalborg Industries, and Aalborg Portland.
context_section_description: Around the beginning of the 20th century, as a result of decisions taken by the municipality, many of the city's half-timbered houses were torn down. They were replaced by hundreds of modern buildings, completely changing the look of the city. Factories with smoking chimneys became ever more prevalent in the outskirts. Among the most important were De Danske Spritfabrikker (spirits and liquors), De forenede Textilfabrikker (textiles), the East Asiatic Company (trading), Dansk Eternit (building materials) and C.W. Obel's tobacco factory (established in 1787). Aalborg Portland, run by F.L. Smidth, was one of several cement factories operating in 1913, together employing some 800 workers. By the 1930s, Aalborg was being promoted as "Denmark's new centre for industry and workers". Replanning continued with additional thoroughfares cutting through the city. The port facilities were also improved with the help of a dredger and the opening of new docks. In 1933, Christian X inaugurated a new bridge over Limfjord to replace the fragile pontoon crossing.
  Aalborg Airport, officially opened in 1938 because of the success of the cement industry, had in fact operated flights to Copenhagen since 1936. During the German invasion of Denmark in 1940, the airport was captured by German paratroopers on the night of 21 April as a base for German aircraft flying to Norway. On 13 August 1940, a dozen Bristol Blenheim bombers of No. 82 Squadron RAF were launched against the Luftwaffe airfield during one of the most disastrous Royal Air Force raids of the war. One turned back because of fuel problems, but all of the remaining 11 were shot down by enemy fighters and/or flak batteries within 20 minutes. After the war, the Royal Air Force destroyed all the German facilities including planes, hangars and equipment but left the passenger facilities intact.
  By 1960, Aalborg had become known as the "city of smoking chimneys", with half of the inhabitants working in industry or manufacturing. Ten years later, Aalborg's population had grown to around 97,000 inhabitants.
caption: German soldiers in conflict with Aalborg citizens (August 1943)
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