Hellebæk

History

The name Hellebæk is first recorded as Hellebeck in 1554. The name means "Holy Stream" and refers to the local streams that runs through the town. Frederick II constructed a watermill named Kongens Mølle ("The King's Mill") at the mouth of the stream in 1576. It produced flour for the many soldiers, craftsmen and builders that worked on the expansion of Kronborg Castle which was completed in 1586. A second watermill was built after a few years and a total of seven mills were ultimately powered by the local watercourses. Christian IV established an ironwork at the site in 1597-1600 and from 1603 also a copperwork. The ironworks was chiefly used for the manufacture of canons. The weapons factory closed in 1870. The buildings were then used by Hellebæk Textile Factory which existed until 1977.

Geography

Hellebæk occupies a narrow strip between the Kattegat and forest Teglstrup Hegn. The hinterland consists of hilly terrain that was formed by the Øresund Glacier during the last Ice Age some 10,000 years BC. The landscape is characterized by a number of southeast-to-northwest oriented, parallel streams and many small lakes, bogs and marshy depressions. The two state forests Teglstrup Hegn and Hellebæk Skov have both been designated as Natura 200 sites. In 1974, n 806 ha area of the Hellebækgård estate was protected by the Danish conservation authorities.

Most-observed species

• Common Buzzard

  Buteo buteo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  18,842
• Red Kite

  Milvus milvus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  14,776
• White-tailed Eagle

  Haliaeetus albicilla (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  11,326
• Graylag Goose

  Anser anser (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  11,106
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  11,071
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,712
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  10,651
• Common Chiffchaff

  Phylloscopus collybita (Vieillot, 1817) · Aves
  10,577

Most recent

• M 3.5 — 2026-05-20
  7 km WSW of Bjæverskov, Denmark
• M 4.2 — 2012-08-06
  39 km WSW of Steninge, Sweden
• M 4.3 — 2008-12-16
  7 km NW of Skurup, Sweden
• M 2.6 — 2005-03-16
  13 km NNW of Kalundborg, Denmark
• M 2.8 — 2005-03-03
  29 km E of Ebeltoft, Denmark
• M 3 — 2005-02-03
  29 km NNW of Nykøbing Sjælland, Denmark