It was planned and first built by Christian IV to accommodate a need for housing for the personnel of the rapidly growing Royal Danish Navy and their families during that time.

While the area is still commonly associated with the name of its founder as one of his numerous building projects around Copenhagen, the Nyboder seen today was in fact, except for a single row of houses in Sankt Pauls Gade, built from 1757.

[2] On 16 December 1658 a gunpowder magazine just north of Nyboder exploded, damaging or demolishing many houses and causing numerous casualties.

[4] In 1695 a commission considered a proposal to move some of the naval personnel to the island of Møn, due to lack of space in the crowded city which was still not allowed to develop beyond its fortifications but it never happened.

[6] Nyboder still houses personnel of the Danish Navy, Army and Air Force, and priority is given to service members stationed in Copenhagen.

It has several times been proposed to sell the houses and use the proceeds for various purposes, including investments in improved infrastructure in Copenhagen, but so far it has been rejected.

At Store Kongensgade, in front of Nyboder, there is a memorial to Vice Admiral Edouard Suenson who commanded the Danish ships in the Battle of Heligoland 9 May 1864.

On the corner of Kronprinsessegade and Øster Voldgade, there is a bronze statue of Christian IV, the founder of the area, standing on a granite plinth.