Trelleborg
Sweden's southernmost city
Trelleborg has approximately 28,000 inhabitants and it the main city of the municipality Trelleborg. It is located in Söderslätt, a very fruitful countryside in the southwest of the province of Scania (Skåne län). Trelleborg is also the southernmost city in Sweden and belongs next to Åhus, Helsingborg and Lund to the oldest cities of the county.
Trelleborg is probably familiar to many Sweden tourists as the largest Swedish ferry port. It is also the only Swedish ferry port which is served by a railway ferry. Currently, the train ferry on the so-called Royal Line Trelleborg–Sassnitz is used only by the daily night train Malmö-Berlin (Berlin Night Express).
While the street in the downtown of Trelleborg still largely correspond to the medieval city map, only a few old houses can be found in the city center. Only around the old market square Gamla torg you can still find some old buildings.
Trelleborg is nicknamed Palmernas stad (City of Palms). It was the festival committee of the annual city festival, which came up with the idea to plant palm trees in Trelleborg. In 1984 they presented the first 24 imported palms from Spain. Meanwhile, there are nearly hundred palm trees, rooting in oversized plant pots, that adorn the summer beach promenade. From October to May the plants overwinter in a palm house.
History of Trelleborg
The first documentary mention of the city dates back to 1257. Around the same time originates the oldest church in the city, the S:t Nicolai kyrka, built near the old Viking fortress. From the Franciscan monastery near the old market place Gamla torg, also founded in the mid-13th century, are only some wall remains left.
At first herring fishing and trade was the main source of income of the city in the Middle Ages. After the decline of fish stocks Trelleborg developed to a successful craftsmen and trading town. So successful that the Malmö merchants insistently complained to King Christian IV due to the strong competition from Trelleborg. The King then eluded Trelleborg's city privileges in 1619 thus also the right to operate trade and craft.
Trelleborg developed a resourceful solution to continue to stay in business. They invited the merchants from the official cities Skanör and Falsterbo, to operate trading on the Trelleborg market. The icing on the cake was in this case, that Trelleborg took taxes from the merchants in the amount as if it still possessed municipal rights, but themselves led away to the King only taxes in accordance with its official status as a village.
Since the beginning of the industrial age, Trelleborg has developed into today's industrial and port city. The largest employers are the port operator Trelleborgs Hamn AB and the Trelleborg AB, founded as Trelleborgs Gummifabrik AB in 1905. Trelleborg AB is now the world's third largest producer of rubber and plastic products for industrial applications and the automotive industry. The first ferry route was opened in 1897 and the first rail ferry from Trelleborg to Germany was established in 1909.