The Royal Danish CollectionAmalienborgThe PalaceInterior and objectsThe Dining Room
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The Dining Room

The Dining Room stands almost exactly as it did when Christian X and Queen Alexandrine lived in the palace from 1899 until their deaths in 1947 and 1952 respectively. This is true of the dining table and chairs, cabinet, as well as the lighting and the golden walls. The decorative plates hung on the walls were amongst Christian X and Queen Alexandrine’s wedding presents in 1898, which included a complete unique set from Royal Copenhagen with motifs from the town of Randers and the surrounding area – in memory of the King’s time as a young soldier in Randers.

On the window sills are marble busts of the Royal Couple, and the room’s furnishings are supplemented by various objects which are related to the Royal Family.

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Chaiselongue

The chaiselongue from 1864 is made of satin with twisted silk fringes and two large tassels.

Queen Alexandrine

Queen of Denmark from 1912. Born Princess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Queen Alexandrine preferred to avoid the media limelight, but was an extremely important figure within the private sphere of the Royal Family.

Christian X

King of Denmark from 1912. Christian X's long reign spanned both world wars, and during the German occupation in World War II he became a national icon.

1925-1950

The economic downturn at the end of the 1920s and in the 30s created great social instability. While the Social Democrats gained power in Denmark, in Germany Nazism gained a foothold. The result was the Second World War 1939-45 that ended with a Europe in ruins.

1900-1925

With the change of system in 1901 parliamentarism became the current practice in Denmark, and the first liberal government came to power. The most important event was the First World War, 1914-18 theat ended with a dramatically altered Europe.

Collection history

The museum in Christian VIII’s Palace is a recent addition to Rosenborg’s royal collections, which were founded by Frederik III in the 1660s. At the beginning of the 19th century the idea of opening Rosenborg to the public arose, and in 1812 the principle, which is still current, was established that the historical interiors chronologically follow the changing generations of the Royal Family. The Danish Royal Collections was founded in 1833, and Rosenborg was opened to the public in 1838. A tour of the palace thus became a journey through Danish history from the time of Christian IV to the present moment, since there at the opening was a room furnished for Frederik VI, who lived until the following year. In 1868 a room was furnished for Frederik VII, who had died five years previously, and Christian IX was also given a room at Rosenborg in 1910. The limited space at Rosenborg was now utilised to the full, and if later kings were to be added, it would have to be somewhere else. At first Christian IX’s Palace at Amalienborg presented itself as a possibility. The palace had been left as good as untouched since the death of Christian IX in 1906, and in the 1950s Christian IX’s study and Queen Louise’s salon were preserved on the initiative of Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid. Furthermore, it was ensured that Christian X’s study in Christian VIII’s Palace, which was packed away following Queen Alexandrine’s death in 1952, was preserved. In 1956 Frederik IX created by royal resolution the juridical basis for the establishment of The Royal Danish Collections at Amalienborg. Thus in 1977 a museum for the House of Glücksburg opened in part of the ground floor of Christian IX’s Palace, but it already closed again in 1982, as running a museum in the Royal Couple’s palace of residence proved in practice to be inexpedient. After an extensive restoration of Christian VIII’s Palace the opportunity arose to re-establish the museum on the ground floor of this palace, which more than doubled the previous exhibition space. In 1994 the museum was reopened here, and remained true to the original idea: to exhibit a series of historical interiors which trace the royal generations. At the opening the museum included Christian IX’s study, Queen Louise’s salon, Christian X’s study, as well as Christian X and Queen Alexandrine’s dining room. The large exhibition space also afforded the opportunity to reconstruct Frederik VIII’s study, and more rooms were made available to the museum, which are today known as The Garden Room, The Costume Gallery, and The Golden Cage. In the 1990s the museum was entrusted with Frederik IX’s study as it had looked on the king’s death in 1972. The room was opened to the public on the occasion of the King’s 100th birthday on 11 March 1999. Since its opening the museum has arranged guided tours on the palace’s piano nobile, where you can see Nicolai Abildgaard’s magnificent neoclassical interiors, which he created at the request of Hereditary Prince Frederik after the royal assumption of Amalienborg in 1794. Since July 2013 the piano nobile has been open to the museum’s visitors every Saturday.

Fig leaves

These fig leaves were made in order to make the male figures in The Golden Tableau more respectable. They were presumably made shortly after the bronze figures were delivered in the mid-1820s, as other statues by Thorvaldsen were also given fig leaves around this time. According to the accompanying instructions the fig leaves should be attached to figures with sewing thread.