Posted by The old center of Copenhagen was centered around a fairly large square which is called Gammeltorv or old square. Today Gammeltorv combine with Nytorv to make a large open area in the center of the old town of Copenhagen. The square dates back to the 12th century but the buildings around the square are only a couple of hundred years old because everything around the square was destroyed in the great fires of 1728 and 1795.
Gammeltorv used to be a bustling center of Copenhagen with one of the two main market places in Copenhagen where the locals did their food shopping. The square was the most important in Copenhagen until it was surpassed by the new and more impressive square Kongens Nytorv.
Stone marking the old city hall before the fire 
The city seal
Even after Kongens Nytorv was made Gammeltorv was still the administrative center of Copenhagen for another 300 years. The old city hall was located at the square until it was relocated to the current location at the new City Hall Square. The second part of the square Nytorv is still the home to the Copenhagen court. On top of the building you see the written Med Lov Skal man Land Bygge – which is taken from the preamble of the first law in Denmark called Jyske Lov. The words translate into: with the law one shall build the land.
The three big squares are all connected by the pedestrian street Strøget which will take you from Kongens Nytorv to Rådhuspladsen (city hall square) with Gammeltorv in the middle between the two others. So a stroll through the pedestrian street will take you to all the main squares of Copenhagen.
From spring to autumn you will usually see people sitting at the square for lunch and a drink in the sun. It is the square in Copenhagen where there is the most space for outdoor dining.
FrejaTravels 