Portal:Denmark/Selected article/Week 25, 2007



Amalienborg Palace (Danish: Amalienborg Slot) is the winter home of the Danish royal family, and is located in Copenhagen, Denmark. It consists of four identical classicizing palace façades with rococo interiors around an octagonal square (Amalienborg Slotsplads); in the center of the square is a monumental equestrian statue of Amalienborg's founder, King Frederick V.

Amalienborg was originally built for four noble families; however, when Christiansborg Castle burnt down on February 26, 1794, the royal family bought the palaces and moved in. Over the years various kings and their families have resided in the four different palaces.

Amalienborg is the centerpiece of Frederiksstad, a district that was built by King Frederik V to commemorate in 1748 the tercentenary of the Oldenburg family's ascent to the throne of Denmark, and in 1749 the tercentenary of the coronation of Christian I of Denmark. This development is generally thought to have been the brainchild of Danish Ambassador Plenipotentiary in Paris, Johann Hartwig Ernst Bernstorff. Heading the project was Lord High Steward Adam Gottlob Moltke, one of the most powerful and influential men in the land, with Nicolai Eigtved as royal architect and supervisor. Frederiksstad, which was planned as a fashionable district for the city's most important citizens, became a fine example of European Baroque architecture.

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