| Fredensborg
| | The Danish king Christian IX was called the father-in-law of Europe, because his sons and daughters were married into a number of prominent European principalities, who often spent their summer holidays in Fredensborg Castle.
(L. Tuxen: Kongefamilien på Fredensborg Slot. Malet 1883-86.) |
In essence the life of the summer residents, which developed in North Zealand in the 1900th century was very similar to the way the royal family had used the landscape for centuries. Before North Zealand was the private playground of the king, or his hunting grounds with fenced deer parks, his own roads and ostentatious castles, where he could take residence. First the renaissance castles Kronborg and Frederiksborg castles and finally, in between these Fredensborg castle, which was built in the 1800th century.
In the first half of the 1900th century Fredensborg castle fell into decay, but when Frederiksborg castle burned in 1858 efforts were made to restore the castle and it was here that King Frederik VII under the flag of Scandinavism received Norwegian and Swedish students and later the Swedish king in 1862.
Fredensborg Castle | 
Frederiksborg Castle |
A mid-European principality
In time Fredensborg castle became, especially in the time of Christian IX (1863-1906) the chosen summer residence of the royal family. Christian IX took, as the first of the royal family’s side branch, Glücksburg, the throne in 1863, the year before Denmark lost Schleswig-Holstein and shrunk to the size of a mid-European principality. As an almost symbolical compensation for its small state position the royal family was allowed to deliver genetic renewal to a number of the larger European royal families. His oldest son, the later Frederik VIII married a Swedish princess, Louise. The brother, Wilhelm was elected king of Greece in 1863, the sister, Alexandra married with he English king Edward VII and the sister, Dagmar married the later tsar Alexander III of Russia.
The Family | 
Three future monarchs | 
TSar Alexander | 
The royal children | 
A relaxed homely atmosphere |
Imperial engagement
The regular meeting point of the large royal family became Fredensborg castle and here and in the surrounding country it was possible to meet prominent members of the royal families of Europe. In the castle and in the 85 hectare park there was ample place to scamper about, but they also took trips outside in the scenic North Zealand, for instance in Julebæk on the north coast, where Dagmar´s engagement to the Russian heir to the throne was declared in 1866. The future Russian tsar was fond of children and a prankster, who had to take the throne already in 1881, when his father was murdered in the street in St. Petersburg.
Empress Dagmar | 
The engagement |
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