| Baroque Gardens
| | The Danish despotic kings in the 1700s were inspired to lay out baroque gardens, which supported the self-image of the despotic state. This was true of for instance Frederiksborg and Fredensborg Palace Gardens and Marienlyst Palace Garden in Elsinore. |
The Gardens of Frederik 4.
The signing of the peace treaty took place in Frederiksborg Castle, where the Danish king, Frederik 4..(1699-1728), in 1720 started to lay out an extensive garden with fountains.
Like his father king Frederik as the crown prince in 1692-93 had undertaken a culture trip to the south, through Germany to Italy and France, where he visited the court of Louis 14. While Christian 5. was inspired to innovate hunting and horse breeding, Frederik was first and foremost interested in gardens with cascading fountains. He had the opportunity to see this in Renaissance garden in Northern Italy and of course the impressing baroque garden at the Versailles Castle outside Paris.
Versailles |
Frederiksborg´s Baroque Garden
As early as 1702 the king considered removing Sparepenge and the garden to make use of the slanting terrain on the other side of the castle lake in order to lay out a larger baroque garden. In 1720 he starts to realize his plans. Sparepenge is demolished and some of the stones from here are used to build Fredensborg Castle. In the years 1720-25 the new garden is laid out according to the designs of the architect Johan Cornelius Krieger.
The garden is 100x 400 metres, laid out in three levels on the sloping terrain. The left side of the garden is concentrated in a mid axis, which is formed by a water cascade. The garden around this axis planted symmetrically, where the low parterre-beds on the first step consist of varied royal monograms.
Frederiksborg Palace Garden | 
The surroundings of Frederiksborg Palace |
The Idea of the Garden
The mid axis of the garden ends with a obelisk, which together with the vertical plantation contributes to the creation of an optical illusion, a sense of an almost endless garden. With this the originator demonstrates his ability to command the landscape and the nature.
Moreover the axis is extended over the lake to the castle itself, the residence of the absolute monarch. On a whole it is an expression of the monarch´s control of nature and culture. The control is expressed in the details, through the symmetry and the meticulous cutting of the plantation. The garden impresses the viewer and expresses the capabilities of the absolute power of the state.
Fredensborg Castle Garden
The predecessor of Fredensborg Castle, Østrup, was an integral part of the king´s hunting grounds, in fact it was situated in the middle of one of the stars of the hunting grounds, where a number of roads met. This also became the basis of the garden, which was begun by the architect Krieger around 1722.
The cut out roads in the forest landscape was now transformed into avenues, which was united in the centre of the garden room in the main building. Transverse roads were added and farthest in this semi circle a number of parterre beds in regular patterns were laid out, probably planted with yew trees, which had been taken from Jægersborg. To the west a number of square parterre beds were laid out. They had royal monograms.
In connection with the the garden round avenues were created, among them the so-called Normandsdal, which was built around 1760. A detailed plan for the re-organization of the garden by the French architect N.H. 191 originates from the same time. In this a central axis is underlined in the middle avenue, but the other avenues are kept and united they form a so-called goosefoot pattern, which can also be found in the Versailles park. The layout is thus still in the baroque style, but the Normandsdalen with sandstone figures of Norwegian and Faroese good people testifies to the interest of the Enlightenment period for mapping and recording with the Norwegian voyage of Christian 6. in 1766 as a point of departure.
Fredensborg 1729 | 
Jardin´s plan 1760 | 
The Normand Valley | 
The Normand Valley |
Frederiksberg Garden
Frederik 4.also built Frederiksberg Castle in the beginning of the 18th century close to Copenhagen. The aim was to create a recreational area for the court and of course a garden was part of the plans. A plan rom around 1760 shows a typical baroque layout with a strict symmetrical layout in front and behind the main building in the present Søndermarken on the other side of Roskildevej.
Frederiksberg Palace | 
Frederiksberg Garden Park |
Marienlyst Castle and Baroque Garden
The French architect Nicholas-Henri Jardin came to Denmark originally to extend the so-called Frederiksstad in the middle of Copenhagen. However the plans were never carried out, instead Jardin participated in laying out the new garden in Fredensborg and rebuilding the old summer cottage Lundehave outside Elsinore. Jardin chose to keep the old Lundehave as a protruding central part in a tripartite building in neo-classical style.
Thus Denmark received an early and successful building in the style of a new age. The baroque style was fading, but it can still be seen in the adjoining garden, which is still strictly symmetrical in the baroque French garden style.
Marienlyst Castle in Elsinore | 
Moltke´s Garden | 
Marienlyst with garden |
|