Marienlyst Castle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Marienlyst Palace |
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Marienlyst Slot
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Main façade of Marienlyst Castle
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| Former names | Lundhave Pavilion |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Neoclassicism and Louis XVI |
| Location | Marienlyst Allé 32, Helsingør, Denmark |
| Coordinates | 56°2′31.2″N 12°36′7″E / 56.042000°N 12.60194°E |
| Construction started | 1587 |
| Completed | 1588 |
| Client | King Frederick II of Denmark |
| Owner | Helsingør Municipality Museums |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Hans van Steenwinckel Nicolas-Henri Jardin (current building) |
Marienlyst Castle (Danish: Marienlyst Slot) is a beautiful old palace in Helsingør, Denmark. It got its name from Juliana Maria, who was the queen and second wife of King Frederik V.
This building was once a royal pavilion (a fancy garden building) for Kronborg Castle. It was mainly used for fun activities and hunting trips. Later, from 1796 to 1847, it was home to Colonel Adam Gottlob von Krogh, who was in charge of the Øresund Custom House, and his wife Magdalene.
The first pavilion and garden were designed by the royal architect Hans van Steenwinckel in 1587 for King Frederick II. In 1758, Count Adam Gottlob Moltke bought the estate. He completely changed the building and garden with the help of French architect Nicolas-Henri Jardin between 1759 and 1763. These changes gave the castle its look that we see today.
Jardin also redesigned the gardens. He turned them into a large, modern French-style garden. This included neat, symmetrical hedges, long paths, fountains, and calm mirror ponds. Much of these elegant gardens inside the castle walls are still there. However, a lot of the original garden outside the walls has been lost. This includes a famous romantic garden designed by Johan Ludvig Mansa in the 1790s.
The Helsingør city bought the entire Marienlyst estate in 1851. They sold off much of the land. One buyer, J.S. Nathanson, built Hotel Marienlyst in 1859. It was the first luxury hotel in Helsingør and was named after the castle.
Between 1919 and 1921, a local gardener named Gudmund Nyeland Brandt removed the last parts of the romantic gardens. He replaced them with an 18th-century garden design. This new design matched the castle's classical architecture. Most of the gardens visitors see today are these ones. Since 1930, the castle and gardens have been part of the Helsingør Municipality Museums.
Contents
History of Marienlyst Castle
From Friary to Royal Land
In the Middle Ages, there was a small church in this area. It was dedicated to Saint Anne. In 1438, this church was given to a group of Franciscan friars. They turned it into a friary (a monastery for friars), also dedicated to Saint Anne. Today, nothing remains of the friary except for a street name, Sankt Anna Gade, in Helsingør.
During the Reformation in 1536, the king took over the friary. It likely became part of the royal land called Lundegaard. There was an old stone house on this land in 1576.
King Frederick II's Pavilion
In the 1420s, King Eric built Kronborg Castle. This castle became famous in Shakespeare's play, Hamlet. Kronborg was a strong fortress. It guarded the Øresund strait and made sure ships paid "Sound Dues" (a tax for passing through). If a ship refused to pay, all the cannons would fire! This system was very effective and collected two-thirds of the king's money.
By the late Renaissance, people wanted grand gardens. But Kronborg's high walls and defenses made it impossible to have a large Italian Renaissance garden. So, an old monastery north of the castle was chosen. It was named Lundhave, after the royal estate.
In 1587, the royal architect Hans van Steenwinckel built a special garden and a pavilion for King Frederick II. The pavilion was a three-story building in the northern Italian Renaissance style.
- The first floor held weapons and equipment for horse riding competitions. These were important skills for nobles, along with fencing and dance. Young nobles learned these at special academies.
- The second floor was for the queen, Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow.
- The top floor was for the king.
Sadly, King Frederick II only got to enjoy his new pavilion and garden for a short time. He died in 1588, just a year after it was finished. His son, King Christian IV, used it often during his reign. He spent a lot of money improving the garden and planting rare trees. He also kept many pheasants and other game birds on the estate for hunting.
Lundhave from the 1650s to 1750s
King Frederik III took over the estate in 1648. He didn't seem very interested in the pavilion. However, he did have a new gardener simplify the grounds. They planted a fruit and vegetable garden.
Ten years later, the war with Sweden damaged the pavilion. Luckily, the garden was mostly fine. The pavilion wasn't used much until Frederik III's reign ended in 1670. You can see a picture of the pavilion and gardens in Peder Resen's Atlas Danicus, published in 1677. He called them Kongenshafve (The King's Garden).
King Christian V brought the pavilion back to life. He often came to hunt and relax in the gardens. He was also the first to give it a full renovation. This happened between 1680 and 1681. Hans van Steenwinckel Jr. did the work. He fixed damage from age and the recent war. Steenwinckel Jr. stuck to his father's original plans. He only made small changes, like adding Christian V's monogram and the year 1681.
From 1699 to 1723, Frederick IV owned the pavilion. He renovated it between 1716 and 1717. The king did not return after his marriage in 1721. In 1747, Frederick V leased Lundhave for four years. Then, in 1751, he sold the property to Johannes G. Putscher, a citizen of Helsingør.
King Frederik V's Pleasure Palace
In 1758, Lord Chamberlain, Count Adam Gottlob Moltke, bought Lundhave. It's thought he bought it for King Frederik V. The official document was given to the king in 1760 but kept secret until the king's death in 1766. During these years, Count Moltke completely changed King Frederick II's pavilion. He worked with French architect Nicolas-Henri Jardin. Jardin's additions gave the castle its current look.
Jardin was first told to keep the original pavilion. But he decided to add extensions on both sides. This turned the pavilion into a palace. The new parts were the same height and depth. But they were set back slightly so the original pavilion still stood out. The building's original lines were kept. A strong main cornice (a decorative molding) and a balustrade (a row of small pillars) around the flat roof tied the whole building together.
The outside of the building had horizontal bands of polished stone. It also had medallions and decorations above the windows. Arches on the second floor showed off the classical style Jardin brought to Denmark. Inside, there were fancy Louis XVI style rooms. Artists like painter Carl Gustaf Pilo and sculptor Simon Carl Stanley worked on them.
The gardens were changed to a larger French style. They had symmetrical hedges, paths, boxwood hedges, fountains, and mirror ponds.
King Frederik V only got to enjoy the new palace for a few years. He died in 1766. After him, Queen Juliana Maria took over the castle. It was renamed Marienlyst (Mary's Delight) in her honor. In the 1790s, she had a romantic garden created. It had winding paths and fun, decorative buildings. These included small hills, hermit cottages, and a Gothic tower. She used the castle often until she died in 1796.
After Queen Juliana Maria's death, there was talk of Crown Prince Frederik living there. But it didn't happen. Instead, from 1796 to 1847, it became the home of Colonel Adam Gottlob von Krogh and his wife Magdalene. Colonel von Krogh was in charge of the Øresund Custom House.
In 1800, he built a small, thatched house and Krogh's garden in a little forest on the property. The house is gone now, but parts of the small stone fence around the garden can still be seen. Near the garden is Magdalene's Hill. Here, von Krogh put up a monument in the 1830s to honor his wife. He died in 1839, but his widow stayed there until her death in 1847.
In 1824, Andreas Andersen Feldborg wrote about the romantic gardens in his book Denmark Delineated. He said: "Hamlet's garden is the favorite walking place for people in Elsinore (Helsingør). It is usually full of groups of elegant ladies and lovely children."
Just two years later, a young Hans Christian Andersen also wrote about Marienlyst. He was on a class trip from grammar school in Helsingør. His excitement shows he hadn't traveled much yet: "Yesterday I was with Meisling in Marienlyst; oh, it's one of the finest I've seen! Where sea and the whole countryside is lovely. Meisling says that the whole coast here is similar to that of Naples; the glorious hills are there in the garden, everything seems like Switzerland, and I felt so unspeakably happy, oh, one must become a poet or artist to see the beautiful nature. O Benefactor, Thanks! Thank you! for every happy moment! Life is Wonderful!"
Sold to Helsingør City
In 1851, King Frederick VII offered the entire property for sale at a public auction. The Helsingør city bought it for 32,000 Rigsbankdaler. They divided most of the land into smaller pieces. Then, they rented out the castle to J.S. Nathanson. He owned the nearby Marienlyst Health Spa and Bathing House. Nathanson renovated the castle and made it part of his resort.
The connection to the health spa ended in 1896. In 1904, the castle was rented out as homes for three families.
The Park Today
The park was changed to how it looks today between 1919 and 1921. Local gardener Gudmund Nyeland Brandt led this work. It wasn't a copy of Jardin's old gardens. Instead, it was a new version of a 17th-century neoclassical style. This style suited the castle's classical design.
Marienlyst Castle Today
In 1930, the Town Museum moved into the basement of the castle. By 1940, the museum took over the whole building. After a big restoration in 1953 by architect Volmars Drosted, Marienlyst was used as offices for the Helsingør City Council.
Today, Marienlyst Castle is part of the Helsingør Municipality Museums. The castle has a permanent display of paintings and silver from Helsingør from the 1700s and 1800s. They also have temporary exhibitions about art history. These have included paintings by William Petersen and marine painter Carl Frederik Sørensen. Danish craft exhibitions have shown things like The Danish Brooch and The Ceramic Jug.
See also
- Architecture of Denmark
Sources
