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Vejle (Danish pronunciation: [ˈvɑjlə]) is a city in Denmark, in the southeast of the Jutland Peninsula at the head of Vejle Fjord, where the Vejle River and Grejs River and their valleys converge. It is the site of the councils of Vejle Municipality (kommune) and the Region of Southern Denmark. The city has a population of 60,231 (as of 1 January 2022) making it the ninth largest city in Denmark. Vejle Municipality has a population of 119,007 (as of 2021) making it the fifth largest municipality in Denmark. The city is part of the Triangle Region, which includes the neighbouring cities of Kolding and Fredericia and it is located 110 kilometres (68 miles) north of Germany.
Vejle is most known for its forested hills, fjord, harbour, shopping, pedestrian mall, and windmill.
The word "Vejle" derives from the Old Danish word wæthel, meaning "ford" or "wading place" due to its location at a busy crossing over Vejle River. During Viking times, the wetlands around Vejle had to be crossed at the Ravning Bridge, a nearly half-mile wooden boardwalk. The first recorded mention of the town is from 1256, and the first known merchant town privileges were issued by King Valdemar III in 1327.
Archaeological digs near St. Nicolai Church in downtown Vejle have shown that there were residences in the area as far back as 1100. The king's castle, Castrum Wæthel, was located where Vejle Trafikcenter is today.
During the Middle Ages, Vejle was important as a market town, and developed along those lines up to the mid-17th century, trading with cities such as Lübeck and Flensburg, in what is now Germany.
In the late 17th and early 18th centuries, Vejle's population was diminished as a consequence of plague and war. In 1796, though, Vejle was made the seat of the newly founded Vejle County, and the town expanded throughout the 19th century, benefiting from improvements such as a new harbour on the fjord, a railroad station, and modern utilities.
From the mid-19th century into the 20th century, Vejle developed from a provincial market town into a busy industrial centre, eventually becoming known as the "Manchester of Denmark" for its many cotton mills.
Downtown Vejle was built on an island of glacial till in Vejle River remaining from a hill formed during the last ice age.
For a country where the highest natural elevation is only about 170 m (558 ft) above sea level, Vejle is known for the forested hills that rise to the north and south of the town and fjord.
The valleys of the two rivers that converge at Vejle are both unique in Denmark: Vejle River Valley (Vejle Ådal) is the longest tunnel valley in Denmark, and the Grejs Valley (Grejsdalen) is the largest ravine in Denmark.
Both empty into Vejle Fjord, which connects Vejle by water through the Little Belt strait to the Baltic Sea, and through the Kattegat and Skagerrak straits to the Atlantic Ocean.