The Christiansborg Palace -aka Borgen

The Christiansborg Palace, located in the central Copenhagen hosts all three branches of the Danish power, and it is the only building in the world to do so.   

The palace or also referred to as the slot (castle) hosts in the same building the Danish Parliament (Folketinget), the Supreme Court, and the Prime Minister’s Office. Some parts of the palace are also used by the Danish Royal family, such as the Royal Reception Rooms (open to the public), the Palace Chapel and the Royal Stables (open to the public). The Royal Reception Rooms are also used by the Danish Prime Minister for state visits, heads of states and other official occasions, such as dinners and similar. 

The Royal Reception Rooms, which are also open to public, are located in the northern part of the building- this is also where the Danish Queen delivers her New Year’s speech on live television. The Royal Reception Rooms are full of stunning artwork, paintings (some were saved from the palace during the fire) and contemporary tapestries with motives from the Danish history and Danish folk ballads. The high ceilings of the palace and marble portals make this building a really stunning piece of architecture. 

The current palace that is standing, is actually the third palace that was built on these premises, between 1907 and 1928. The first construction of the palace began in 1735 and lasted till 1745, although it was burned down in 1794. The second palace was constructed in 1828 under Frederik VI, however the building has been destroyed by fire in 1884. 

Christiansborg Palace is also referred to by the Danes as Borgen (castle), many of you might have come across the name before, which comes from a popular TV show called Borgen. It is in fact, a political TV drama series, which has won numerous awards since it has been first aired. It tells the story of how Helle Thorning-Schmidt (acted by Brigitte Nyborg) became the first Danish female Prime Minister, depicting her life as a politician and a leader of a country, as well as her challenge to raise a family. 

The show started in 2010 and has three seasons in total, which were aired all across Europe and the world. Since then, the show has won numerous awards, amongst them one for the Best European Drama TV Series, as well as an International Prize in 2014.  

Parts of the palace are open to visitors, such as the Royal Kitchen, the Royal Reception Rooms and the Royal Stables. You can visit them individually, or get one ticket and visit all the venues, for DKK 150 (20€).