Ribe

Sister cities

• Güstrow
• Balleroy
• Strängnäs Municipality
• Ratzeburg
• Ely
• Krems
• Leikanger Municipality

History

The town was a center of commercial activity in the early 8th century, and this may have been where the riches in Denmark originated, including with royal influence. Coins may have been struck there in 720. Whichever king was involved in the digging of the Kanhave Canal may have been involved in the establishment of Ribe also. Trade contacts were mostly with Frisia and England. Of the over 300 sceatas found in Denmark, 216 come from in or around Ribe, most of them were of the Frisian Wodan type, and these were likely minted in Ribe in the early eighth century. The Ancient Diocese of Ribe was established in 948 with the consecration of Leofdag of Ribe as its first bishop. Early in the ninth century a 2-meter wide ditch (a demarcation rather than a fortification) was dug around the town, enclosing a 12-hectare area. Later that century the ditch was replaced by a moat, 6 to 7 meters wide. Archeological evidence shows Ribe was "an active and impressive market place" in the eighth and ninth centuries, and again at the end of the eleventh century, but there is little evidence from the period in between; the town may have dwindled or even disappeared. Excavations conducted between 2008 and 2012 have also revealed more details of the original church built by Ansgar. Construction on the Ribe Cathedral started in 1150, on top of an earlier church, most probably Ansgar's church, built in 860. The Treaty of Ribe was proclaimed in 1460. Being located in a large region of low-lying marshland, Ribe has repeatedly been hit by storm floods, the most devastating being the Burchardi flood of 1634. The marks after this flood can still be seen on the cathedral's walls and is also marked as the top point on a flood pillar in the town. The Catholic diocese was dissolved in 1536 during the…

Most-observed species

• White-tailed Eagle

  Haliaeetus albicilla (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,881
• Great Egret

  Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,841
• Northern Lapwing

  Vanellus vanellus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,135
• Hen Harrier

  Circus cyaneus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  2,817
• Gray/Purple Heron

  Ardea cinerea Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,771
• Eurasian Marsh-Harrier

  Circus aeruginosus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,687
• Common Buzzard

  Buteo buteo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,571
• Eurasian Curlew

  Numenius arquata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,470