#Nyboder's Church

[theworldthroughmycamerassc]

St. Paul's Church - Copenhagen, Denmark

[everythingroyalty]

Hi Zelia, I'm planning a trip to Europe and considering spending up to 6 days in Copenhagen. I want to focus on palaces/royal history and wanted to see if you have any suggestions. Currently planning on seeing Christianborg, Amalienborg, Kronborg, Frederiksborg palace & castle(these last 3 in a 1 day tour), Rosenborg, Rosekilde, and Jaegerspris. Any suggested additions or subtractions based on your experience? Would appreciate the advice and hope you have a great day.

That’s so cool! 💪 I have a tag for posts where I’ve given others some suggestions of places they can visit in Copenhagen if you’re interested.

So I’d (obviously) say that Frederiksborg Palace is a must 😍 Christiansborg houses our parliament but it’s a lot more than that, so that’s definitely worth a visit as well. Visiting Roskilde Cathedral is also a super good idea. It’s not exactly close to Copenhagen (and that’s why I don’t recall suggesting it before), but if you’re willing to travel a bit, it’s definitely worth the visit for a history and royal aficionado. Roskilde also houses our Viking Ship Museum if you dig older history as well. In Copenhagen, we also have a lot of churches with solid roots in the Danish absolute monarchy. IIRC all of 4 different absolute monarchs have been involved in the creation of The Church of Our Saviour. Then there’s all of Christian IV’s creations such as Rundetårn, Nyboder, the Citadel (Kastellet), the Church of Holmen, the Old Stock Exchange (Børsen), Christianshavn and two of the palaces you’ve mentioned, Rosenborg and Frederiksborg. 

I have never been to Jægerspris Castle 🙈 So I can’t tell you whether that’s worth a visit, but I can tell you that it’s not exactly close to Copenhagen, so you should be prepared to spend some extra time on travelling. Depending on when you’re planning to visit, there’s also the Hermitage Palace located in the outskirts of Copenhagen. Alas, it’s only open for guided tours during the summer holiday and in the fall break (16-20 October) and although the park it’s located in is nice, it’s cooler to actually be able to see the palace.

I can’t quite make out if by “Frederiksborg palace and castle” you mean Frederiksborg Palace and Fredensborg Palace, or if the castle part references Kronborg. If you mean Frederiksborg and Fredensborg: It’s probably doable to fit those two in in one day (although, I don’t know when you’re planning to visit, but similar to the Hermitage, only the public part of Fredensborg’s palace garden is open to the public outside the summer holiday – during the summer holiday, there are guided tours through the palace), but I’d advice against throwing Kronborg in there on the same day. That’d leave you with too much transportation and too little time to take in the palaces. If you mean Amalienborg, Kronborg and Frederiksborg all in one day, that’s even less time for more palaces spread out all over the northern Sjælland, so I’d obviously advice you to set more days off for that.

I’d say spend some days on Copenhagen itself – there’s just so much to see and do that it’d be a shame to rush through it too quickly. And then for day-trips:

Frederiksborg and Fredensborg: Located within a decent distance of each other – Frederiksborg has a lot to see, it’s cultural history in itself, it also houses our museum of national history and it has a riveting palace garden, so be prepared to spend a fair amount of time there. Especially depending on when you’re planning to go, Fredensborg is a big quicker to get through.

Kronborg: If you rush, guess you could manage the two above and Kronborg in one day but I personally wouldn’t do that. Besides, if you’re planning to use public transportation to get back and forth, it’s absolute shite in Nordsjælland so you need to consider that when planning your travels as well.

Roskilde (and Jægerspris): I’d say it’s worth a day to itself. Public transportation runs a bit smoother here because most of our trains to Jylland pass through Roskilde 🤣 As I mentioned above, I can’t speak for Jægerspris and it’s not close to Roskilde at all, but I’d give Kronborg a day for itself just so you can enjoy Helsingør.

I hope this was somewhat useful! 😊 Feel free to hit my inbox up again if you have any more questions.

[healthmaria]

Stolpersteine in Copenhagen

In June 2019 it was finally our turn to get a visit from the German artist Gunter Demnig who since 1992 has placed brazen memorials in the pavements where Danish Jews lived before they died in Holocaust.

The three Stolpersteine at the Synagogue in Krystalgade. The police are on guard day and night after a terror attack in 2014

Thre Stolpersteine for the old people who lived in the nursing home at the Synagogue

You can find the 12 ‘Stones’ by chance, but the best way is to search for the addresses. In the link above, there is a map with all the memorials’ position. Copenhagen is not a huge city, you can easily walk around and see it all on foot.

Here lived Ernst Platzko born 1882 deported from Denmark in 1940 died in Sachsenhausen October 1942

Here lived Ruth Fanni Niedrig born 1920 deported from Denmark in 1940 and died August 1943

Here lived Rosa Nachemsohn born 1868 died December 1943 in Theresienstadt

Here lived Thora Krogmann born 1867- Died 1944 in Theresienstadt

Here lived Pinkus Katz born 1875 died in Theresienstadt August 1944

By a combined effort by many people at the time most of our Jews were rescued to Sweden on illegal boat trips in the middle of Yom Kippur in October 1943. On the list are also German Jews who were shamefully forced out of Denmark. They had come as fugitives or students to save their lives from Hitler’s cruel regime.

Gunter Demnig’s Stolpersteine project is the world’s largest memorial with 74.000 brass ‘stones’ in 26 different countries.

To end this post on a lighter note, I would like to show you some of the old buildings and areas in central Copenhagen. Please click on the photos for a little more info.

The Round Tower from the 1600s in central Copenhagen

The Stork Fountain in Art Nouveau in central Copenhagen

The Stock Exchange from the 1600s in Copenhagen seen from the canal

A street view from Christianhavn a part of central Copenhagen

Our Savior’s Church in Christianshavn

An iconic tower at a bridge in Copenhagen called Knippelsbro

An old storage house made into a hotel in Copenhagen

A view from a street in Christianshavn Copenhagen

  The Gefion Fountain at the Langelinje in Copenhagen

A view to Kastellet/ Citadel in Copenhagen at the Churchill Park

The Gefion Fountain at the Langelinje in Copenhagen

The Nyboder Houses from the 1600s in Copenhagen. The Navy’s people lived there

The equestrian statue of a king in front of the Queen’s palace Amalienborg

  Hidden WWII Memorials Stolpersteine in Copenhagen In June 2019 it was finally our turn to get a visit from the German artist Gunter Demnig…

[ghengiskhanarch-blog]

Kastellet – the citadel – located in Copenhagen, Denmark is one of the best preserved star fortresses in Northern Europe. It is constructed in the form of a pentagram with bastions at its corners. Kastellet was continuous with the ring of bastioned ramparts which used to encircle Copenhagen.

A number of buildings are located within the grounds of Kastellet, including a church as well as a windmill. The area houses various military activities but it mainly serves as a public park and a historic site.

King Christian IV of Denmark initiated Kastellet’s construction in 1626 with the building of an advanced post to guard the entrance to the port.  King Frederick III succeeded King Christian IV and continued the construction of Kastellet. After the Swedish siege on Copenhagen (1658–1660) the Dutch engineer Henrik Rüse was called in to help rebuild and extend the construction.

Kastellet was part of the defense of Copenhagen against England in the Battle of Copenhagen (1807).

Christen Købke (1810–1848), Danish painter associated with the Golden Age of Danish Painting, grew up in Kastellet and made many paintings of the area.

Kastellet was renovated 1989–1999 with funds from the A.P. Møller and Wife Chastine McKinney Møllers General Fund.

The Citadel has two gates, King’s Gate on the south side, facing the city, and Norway Gate on the north side of the edifice, which both date from 1663 as part of Ruise’s original citadel. They are built in the Dutch Baroque style, and are on their interior side flanked by guardhouses. The Norway Gate used to face open countryside outside the city, and has therefore been built in a more simple design.

The Commander’s House (Danish:Kommandantboligen) served as the residence of the commander of Kastellet. It was built in 1725 in the Baroque style by architect and master builder Elias Häuser.

The Rows (Danish: Stokkene) are six two-storey terraces which were originally built by Henrik Ruise as barracks for the soldiers based at the Citadel. The dorms measured four by four metres and contained two triple beds, a small table and two benches.

The two storehouses also date from the foundation of the Citadel. They were to store everything needed in the event of a siege, and could when full feed the 1,800 men of the garrison, other personnel, and their families for four years. The Southern Storehouse (Danish: Søndre Magasin) served as an arsenal while the Northern Storehouse (Danish: Nordre Magasin) contained a granary.

The Powder House at the Queen’s Bastion, which was used for the storage of black powder, is the only surviving of originally two identical powder houses which were built by Domenico Pelli in 1712. When in 1779 a powder house at the East Rampart exploded, causing damages in the Nyboder area and all the way to Bredgade, it was decided that it was too dangerous to store explosives at the Ramparts, and the powder houses at the Citadel instead came into use as a jailhouse.

The Church at the Citadel was built in 1704 in heavy Baroque style during the reign of King Frederik IV.

A prison complex was built on the rear side of the church in 1725. Eye holes in the wall between the church and the prison cells made it possible for the prisoners to follow the church services.

On the King’s Bastion, in the southwestern corner of Kastellet, stands a windmill. Built in 1847, it replaced another mill from 1718 which was destroyed by a storm the year before. The original mill was a post mill while the current mill is of the Dutch type.

Since a fortified city needed secure supplies, including supplies of flour and rolled groats, in the event of siege, numerous windmills were constructed on the bastions. In 1800, a total of 16 windmills were found on the ramparts of Copenhagen. The mill at Kastellet is the last which is still working.

Russian Empress Concort Maria Feodorovna, daughter of Christian IX of Denmark, got her rye flour from the mill at Kastellet. The Army’s Bread Factory would send it to the Imperial Court in Saint Petersburg where she was served øllebrød every morning in the Anichkov Palace.

Located just inside the King’s Gate, the Central Guard House was built from 1873 to 1874 with an attached jailhouse.

The Citadel is still an active military area that belongs to the Danish Defence Ministry. Military activity in the area includes use by the Chief of Staff, the Danish Home Guard, Military Intelligence, the Judge Advocate Corps, and the Royal Garrison Library.

In spite of the continuous military presence in the area, the Citadel is today a peaceful, protected area, serving as a public park as well as a cultural-historical monument.

It is located close to Langelinie, The Little Mermaid, and the Gefion Fountain.

It is a popular place to go for a walk on a sunny day, and is very popular with children because of the many animals and birds in the grounds.

The site includes two small museums with limited opening hours.

There is a changing of the guard ceremony at the Central Guard House every day at 12.00. Military concerts take place at the drill grounds on summer afternoons at 14.00. The Citadel Church frequently arranges concerts as well.

[healthmaria]

A greeting from his sister Caroline for his Confirmation 1880

A greeting from his sister Caroline for his Confirmation 1880

Confirmation card from William’s sister Caroline, 4 April 1880 at Holmen’s Church

She reminds him to remember his family who loves him and the trust in God for his life. 

A picture from his first year at school. William is in the blue frame. The boys wear sailor hats.

My grandfather i the blue frame. A school picture from 1871. The school was for the boys who’s fathers worked with ship building or in the Navy

This photo was taken at Stjernevej where sister Caroline lived with her large family. The house is demolished many years ago, but the street is still there in Copenhagen.

From the right back row William, Asta, Peter Caroline’s husband and some of the boys and Caroline their mother, second row from the right Laura, cousin Julie with Ellen and Caroline with Kaj. Third row from the right Svend Asta’s little brother and the rest are Caroline’s children

This greeting card is from his sister Caroline who got a lot of children and many of them died unfortunately.

Nyboder then and now

A birthday card for my grandmother Asta from Nyboder from the time they lived there

photo from 2016 from the last place Laura and William lived in Nyboder

A photo from Nyboder at the time

William Nielsen lived from 1865- 1926 in Copenhagen. My Grandmother Asta has saved a lot of greeting cards from birthdays and Christmas and for celebrations of confirmation both her own and her father’s. I am so lucky to have them in small fine boxes.

A greeting from an aunt ( in German)

A greeting from an aunt ( in German)

For his 24th years’ birthday from his German writing aunt in 1889

The postal system was very effective. Some of the cards were posted and received the same day as there were several deliveries every day and even one on Sundays. (Unheard of today).

  William was born in a famous area of Copenhagen still existing today called “Nyboder”. In the linked post you can see the houses. The rows of houses were built for the people working for the navy building ships or attached to the navy as sailors or of higher rank. The streets had very special names as “Fox street” or “Crocodile Street”, or “Dolphin Street”.

This greeting card is from his sister Caroline . The card is from 1884. I feel I “know” the boy on the card. William’s sister wishes him a lot of good things and that he later will look back at his life with joy.

From his sister Caroline for his 19th birthday 1884

At this time William was nineteen years old and in the Danish Navy

William about 19 years old in the navy

He got married to Laura in 1889 and in 1890 my grandmother Asta was born. They lived in “Hare Street” 11. The house is still there today. This card he sent to his wife in 1897 from Stockholm and the text is like a text message we would send today like when he arrives back home again.

He worked as a carpenter building ships for the Navy

William is writing to his wife Laura from Sweden in 1892

William is writing to his wife Laura from Sweden in 1892

A love letter from William 22 years old to his fiance Laura in 1887

He writes that she is in his thoughts always. They are apart at that time so he longs to be with her.

The front of the love letter, a birthday card from 1987 to Laura my great grand mother

A love letter written as a poem from William to his fiance Laura in 1987. He is 22 years old

  His medal of honor for 25 years of faithful service

His medal of honor for faithful service. The King’s signature

  Greeting telegrams from family and friends as William receives his medal of honor in 1910

A telegram for William on his Medal of honor from the Navy 1910 after 25 years in the Navy

A telegram for William on his Medal of honor from the Navy 1910 after 25 years in the Navy

  His sister’s  Caroline’s wish for him at his confirmation that he would choose to live a godly life wasn’t fulfilled as he left his family and moved together with a woman with whom he got a son. My grandmother was eighteen and her brother was eight years old. This left Laura and the children in a difficult situation. William was back to the family when my grandmother got married in 1919. I have other posts on this issue. I plan to make a post on her greeting cards and old gems from her childhood.

Small glimpses of my Great Grandfather Confirmation card from William's sister Caroline, 4 April 1880 at Holmen's Church She reminds him to…