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Kings and queens, castles and forts, intrigues, scandals and wars. The history of Denmark is long and filled with royalty, riches, plots, politics, sex and love. Nowhere is this more evident than in North Zealand, which is also known as “The Kings’ Zealand”.
In the past, large tracts of forest land were set aside for royal hunting and shipbuilding. These woods still dominate much of the landscape. Castles and manors dot the area, reminding us of past power and riches.
I have visited the hugely impressive renaissance period Frederiksborg Castle built in the reign of King Christian IV (1588-1648). The castle is surrounded by a moat. Leading down to the moat and castle is a magnificently orderly baroque garden.
The castle houses Denmark’s most important portrait collection and shows the chronological history of Denmark from the 1500s until the present. All these men and women in their fancy clothes! Silk, velvet, ermine, lace and jewels; they once clothed real people who laughed, cried, talked, walked, dined, gossiped, fell in and out of love (there was seemingly rather a lot of philandering in some cases), and got married according to political plans and designs.
Frederiksborg Castle is proof of the power and wealth of the Danish monarchy at the time. Much as we prefer democracy to absolute monarchy, our present day democracy does not have the same ability to foster such artistic and cultural pearls, such impressive grandeur. The kings had great power and wealth in which to luxuriate; the present system must take more heed of wishes and tastes that pull in different directions.
