Copenhagen, today the capital of Denmark, receives…

Copenhagen, today the capital of Denmark, receives its charter as a city under Jakob Erlandsen, the newly appointed Archbishop of Lund, in 1254.

From the Viking Age, there had been a fishing village by the name of "Havn" (harbor) on the eastern shore of the island of Zealand.

From the middle of the twelfth century the site had grown in importance after coming into the possession of the Bishop Absalon, who had fortified it in 1167, the year traditionally marking the foundation of Copenhagen.

The excellent harbor had encouraged Copenhagen's growth until it became an important center of commerce (hence its name—the first part of the word deriving from the Danish term for commerce).