ABSTRACT
Designed in 1749 by Nikolai Eigtved under the direction of Denmark’s King Frederik V and his steward, Adam Moltkein, the Amalienborg Square and the rectilinear Frederik Square were meant to help redevelop lands held by the royal family. The heart of this redevelopment district is a two-square design linked by a primary northwest-southeast axis along Frederiksgade Street connecting the water’s edge to the Frederiks Kirke – an axial connection that today extends to the opposite shore to the city’s new opera house. Between these is the octagonal Amalienborg Square with the equestrian statue of King Frederik V at its center (Rasmussen 1969: 128-129). Nobility initially occupied the four pavilions, but in the late eighteenth century, the palaces became home to the royal family. Today, they are primarily the winter residence of the Danish royal family though two of the palaces are public museums.
