Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen, Denmark

Christiansborg Palace is the seat of the Danish Parliament, the Danish Prime Minister's Office and the Danish Supreme Court. Also, several parts of the palace are used by the monarchy, including the Royal Reception Rooms, the Palace Chapel and the Royal Stables.

The palace is thus the house of Denmark's three supreme powers: the executive power, the legislative power, and the judicial power. It is the only building in the world that houses all three of a country's branches of government. Christiansborg Palace is owned by the Danish state, and is run by the Palaces and Properties Agency.

The present building, the third to be built on the site, is the last in a series of successive castles and palaces constructed on the same site since the erection of the first castle in 1167. The first castle on the site was Absalon's Castle. According to the Danish chronicler Saxo Grammaticus, Bishop Absalon of Roskilde built a castle in 1167 on a small island outside Copenhagen Harbour. Since the early fifteenth century, the various buildings have served as the base of the central administration; until 1794 as the principal residence of the Danish kings and after 1849 as the seat of parliament.

The palace today bears witness to three eras of Danish architecture, as the result of two serious fires. The first fire occurred in 1794 and the second in 1884. The main part of the current palace, finished in 1928, is in the historicist Neo-baroque style. The chapel dates to 1826 and is in a neoclassical style. The showgrounds were built 1738-46, in a baroque style.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Claudia Chiţu (7 months ago)
This is the greatest palace I have seen. The rohal rooms are spectacular and impressive by the style and size. It is free to take pictures and there is an app Useeum that helps with an audio guide. The royal kitchen is small and simple but interesting. Another point of interest is the ruins from the first castle which is well presented. The royal stables is a small place and all horses are white and is more enjoyable to see them outside on a morning ride rather than at the opening time when is lunch time for them.

Joe Hyde (9 months ago)
This is a great excursion as you have the main palace as it stands today which is extremely luxurious and well presented with information throughout. Then you also have the basement museum which showcases the original foundations of a much earlier palace which was destroyed. It also showcases the many iterations of the palace between the original and the current which still stands today. Great visit and included in Copenhagen card.

Varun R (9 months ago)
My visit was during 2018. Even though I didn't go inside the palace, the surrounding areas are nice to roam around. Good place to get a glimpse of street life and local scene of Copenhagen. Can be nicer during spring or summer. Enjoy your tour!

Georgios T (9 months ago)
Majestic palace with lots of history behind it. If you are interested in the historical aspect don't miss the ruins part. Otherwise just the Reception Rooms are enough for an experience worthy of the slightly steep price. Access to the tower and chapel is free.

Sajid Decosta (10 months ago)
Beautiful place and they give free entrance to top of the building. Yes with elevator. Perfect place to see city from some heights. Just be ready to stand in a long queue. It’s worth. Go early in morning and you will get less people in queue. They also have good restaurant on top. Actually that is the reason they give free access to top with elevator. It is most recommended place to visit if you want to see Copenhagen from some height.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright nikonaft

Historic Site of the week

Cesis Castle

German crusaders known as the Livonian Brothers of the Sword began construction of the Cēsis castle (Wenden) near the hill fort in 1209. When the castle was enlarged and fortified, it served as the residence for the Order's Master from 1237 till 1561, with periodic interruptions. Its ruins are some of the most majestic castle ruins in the Baltic states. Once the most important castle of the Livonian Order, it was the official residence for the masters of the order.

In 1577, during the Livonian War, the garrison destroyed the castle to prevent it from falling into the control of Ivan the Terrible, who was decisively defeated in the Battle of Wenden (1578).

In 1598 it was incorporated into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Wenden Voivodship was created here. In 1620 Wenden was conquered by Sweden. It was rebuilt afterwards, but was destroyed again in 1703 during the Great Northern War by the Russian army and left in a ruined state. Already from the end of the 16th century, the premises of the Order's castle were adjusted to the requirements of the Cēsis Castle estate. When in 1777 the Cēsis Castle estate was obtained by Count Carl Sievers, he had his new residence house built on the site of the eastern block of the castle, joining its end wall with the fortification tower.

Since 1949, the Cēsis History Museum has been located in this New Castle of the Cēsis Castle estate. The front yard of the New Castle is enclosed by a granary and a stable-coach house, which now houses the Exhibition Hall of the Museum. Beside the granary there is the oldest brewery in Latvia, Cēsu alus darītava, which was built in 1878 during the later Count Sievers' time, but its origins date back to the period of the Livonian Order. Further on, the Cēsis Castle park is situated, which was laid out in 1812. The park has the romantic characteristic of that time, with its winding footpaths, exotic plants, and the waters of the pond reflecting the castle's ruins. Nowadays also one of the towers is open for tourists.

Do you know an ancient castle or magnificent church near you?

Why not share it with other people interested in history? You can add your own historic sites and attractions to SpottingHistory.com.

It's absolutely free, easy, and doesn't even need registration!

Upload data

Christiansborg Palace

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

History of Guernsey & Jersey

Most beautiful castles in Lithuania

Cultural Landscape of Sintra, Portugal

Historic Site of the week

Cesis Castle

Looks like you are a history fan!