Visit Rosenborg Castle in Copenhagen.
While walking through the large parks at the centre of Copenhagen, you will be sure to stumble across the turrets and spires of the impressive Rosenborg Castle at some point.
It was built by Christian IV in the 17th century as a ‘small’ (ahem) summerhouse, and is situated among the beautiful surroundings of the King’s Park (Kongens Have). These gardens, once private lands reserved for the rich and powerful only, are now lawns and gardens open for all. From hidden rosegardens to amazing food venues, they deserve their own article which I have linked to above!
Anywho, back to Rosenborg Castle. As well as the castle’s impressive exterior, visitors can explore the state rooms and visit royal treasures like the Danish Crown Jewels and Royal Regalia.
The delicate and glittering crowns of the Danish kings and queens are kept in special vaults at Rosenborg Castle, embellished with table-cut stones, enamel, and gold. The crown jewels primarily consist of four garnitures: a diamond set, a ruby set, a pearl set, and an emerald set – the emeralds being among the world’s finest.
The copper-roofed Rosenborg Castle with flower beds in full bloom.
The history of Rosenborg Castle.
The castle itself didn’t actually last long as a royal residence though. After the reign of Christian’s successor, Frederik IV came to an end, Rosenborg was only used during emergencies; once when Christiansborg Palace was destroyed in a fire and the second time when the British navy opened fire on Copenhagen during the Napoleonic wars of 1801 (sorry guys- our bad).
The castle is open to the public for tours and hosts a museum where visitors can see the Royal Collections of Denmark. Generally, I’m not a huge fan of these kind of museums, but the display of decadent furniture, drapes, paintings and artworks let me pretend I was a wealthy baron visiting the summer residence of the Danish monarch!
In case that isn’t enough, it also happens to host a treasury which displays the throne of Denmark (the one the queen sits on for important queeny things), the Coronation Carpet (I had to google it, it’s more impressive than it sounds) and of course, the Danish Crown Jewels (just as impressive as you might imagine).
The King’s Gardens attract around 2.5 million visitors every year, who take the opportunity to stroll the boulevards and lounge on the lawns.
If you decide to do the same, it is well worth walking the few extra paces to Rosenborg Castle. Even if you don’t go inside and see the Crown Jewels, the beautiful flower beds around the walls are a spectacular site to behold when in full bloom.
Getting to Rosenborg Castle.
As the map below shows, the Rosenborg Castle is pretty centrally located in Copenhagen.
It’s a 10 minute walk from the Queen’s royal residence at Amalienborg, a 20 minute walk from the riverside at the Black Diamond library and 18 minutes from Tivoli.
Alternatively, take the S train to the inner-city hub of Nørreport, from where the castle and accompanying gardens are a short 6 minute walk.
A little glimpse at the opulent furnishings of past Danish royalty on display in the Rosenborg Castle museum.
