Kronborg Castle is located in Denmark near a city called Helsingør, which is located in the north-east of Zealand. The strait between Sweden and Denmark here has a width of 4 km, which led to the important strategic and military importance of this point over a long period of time.
Description
Kronborg Castle (Denmark) was included in the UNESCO heritage in November 2000. It was called one of the most significant architectural structures that were built during the Renaissance in northern Europe.
Previously, there was a fortress called Krogen, built in the 1420s. King Eric Pomeranian. This was a rather important step in the life of the state. Here duties were collected from ships that left the Baltic Sea, due to which the treasury was replenished.
At first there were only a few buildings and the wall surrounding them, far from today's grandeur of the architectural complex. Kronborg Castle began to be called just that in 1585. It was then that Frederick II, the monarch acting at that time, was engaged in the reconstruction of buildings, giving them great grandeur, which favorably distinguished the building from the rest of the architectural objects of that time.
Restoration of this building
In September 1629, a devastating fire occurred, causing significant damage to many parts of the structure, after which only the chapel remained more or less intact. In order to update and give the castle its former strength, restoration work was carried out, which ended in 1639. King Christian IV, who was in force at that time, was in charge of them, however, the interior was not recreated with perfect accuracy.
In 1658, the Kronborg castle was attacked by the Swedes, whose leader was Gustav Wrangel. As a result, he still returned to the number of possessions of Denmark. When this happened, the authorities began to strengthen approaches, in order to prevent a recurrence of such a situation and to reliably hold power over the territory in their hands. In 1688-1691 a crown brick was built here.
Since the 18th century, the king’s family began to use this building less. In the period from 1739 to the second half of the 19th century. Kronborg Castle, in addition to performing defensive functions, was also a prison. The prisoners were guarded by soldiers serving in the garrison. Criminals worked on fortification.
Those who were convicted of minor flaws were allowed to work outside the walls of the fortress. Today, every tourist can go down to the casemates of the castle to get acquainted with its underground environment. In custody here was Carolina Matilda, the sister of George III. Her detention lasted three months.
Importance
In the period 1785-1924. the Danish military ruled here. Although they could still be found here until 1991, when the dissolution of the Elsin garrison took place, which had been functioning since 1452.
Now this place acts as a tourist center of the state. Every year 200 thousand people come here. Tourists can get acquainted with the castle fortifications, casemates underground, a beautiful chapel. In 2010, the Powder House was opened, which is also quite interesting to visit.
Since 1915, the Danish Maritime Museum has been operating. There is a wide range of data on the history of the country's fleet from the Renaissance to the present day. In 2013, the historical complex was moved to a specially prepared new building, which took the place of the former docks. Margrethe II, Queen of Denmark, was present at the grand opening of the project.
Danish Prince House
An interesting fact is that this place is also called Hamlet Castle. Kronborg got this name because in his play Shakespeare described events against the backdrop of this particular place. When a literary work gained popularity and began to be staged in theaters, the actors played directly within the walls of this architectural structure. This happened in 1816. The event was timed to the 200th anniversary of the death of the master of drama. The roles of the heroes were then tried on by soldiers who served in the garrison.
Since then, such events have become regular. There are statues depicting Ophelia and Hamlet. Indeed, according to the plan of Shakespeare, the great tragedy of their love and betrayal of the people around them was unfolding here. Reading a well-known play, everyone tries to present the events described in it most vividly. Once in Kronborg, a person gets the opportunity to get in touch with the described atmosphere and atmosphere as tightly as possible.
Visit time
An extremely interesting and recommended place to visit is Kronborg Castle. The operating mode of this complex is different at different times of the year. So, from June to August you can walk on it from 10:00 to 17:30, and from September to May - from 11:00 to 16:00. In the period from November to April, work is carried out on all days except Monday, and in the remaining months - daily.
The good news is that you can enter the territory for free. To visit museums you need to pay a minimum of 35 kroons. It all depends on what kind of exposure you want to visit. The reviews of people who have been here indicate that very good and attentive guides, true experts in their field, work with people.
Way
Once in Denmark, you will probably want to visit such a famous place as Kronborg Castle. How to get there Motorists can use the coordinates N 56 ° 2.383 'E 12 ° 37.332'. There is also a train that you can catch at a train station in Copenhagen. The ride is worth to Elsinore.
Departure interval - once every 20 minutes. The road will take about an hour. Once at the destination stop, you will need to move to the castle, which can already be seen from the station. Walking, as a rule, lasts no longer than 15 minutes.
It is definitely worth a visit
Over time, Kronborg Castle did not lose its grandeur. The photos show the scale of the building. This place is really worth playing the role of the residence of kings. The royal couple and now comes to these walls for celebrations on important occasions. Here they celebrated their wedding anniversary and many other events.
Of course, the style of this architecture instills into the soul a bit of mysticism and superstitious fear. Therefore, there are legends of ghosts still wandering in the local walls. This is one of the factors that arouse keen interest of tourists. The tours are really fascinating and full of valuable information.
Walking around the castle and dungeons takes people to an environment completely uncharacteristic of their daily lives. This is a completely different world, a corner of the past that did not drown in the sands of the past. This place compares favorably with all other architectural structures of the same era due to its scale, fundamentality and beauty.