torsdag 27 september 2012

Shakespeare and Kronborg Castle


"To be or not to be, that is the question........"




We all remember the words of Hamlet, and the play that takes place on the Kronborg castle.
There are no evidences that Shakespeare ever went to Elsinore to see the castle.
 King Frederik II loved banquetes, music and theater. He invited english actors and musicians to Elsinore to entertain at the court.  They lived on the Bramstraede.
For the building of the Kronborg Castle he invited german and dutch craftsmen and artists.
Elsinore was during the 16th and 17th century a cosmopolitical city.

Here came sailors, seecaptens, actors, craftsmen and merchants from all over Europe.
The castle is today on the World Heritige list of Unesco and over 200.000 turists visit it every year
Both the castel and the surroundings are being restored. "The Culturharbour Elsinore" is the name of this interesting project.

Visit the site www.kulturomraade.dk


onsdag 19 september 2012

Sainte Magnhild of Fulltofta

 Saint Magnhild of Fulltofta is one of three female scanian saints


Magnhild was a pious woman who lived in Blenarp, in the middle of Scania ,during the 13th century
She helped the sick, the orphans and the poor.
For som reason her daughter in law, killed her.
When her coffin was transported to the church of Fulltofta, the men who were carrying it, stopped for a pause.
This was at Hästhaga.
A source floated, close to the coffin.

Her coffin was placed on the Fulltofta churchyard until the 18th century when it and the gravestone disappeard.
At her gravestone many wonders and miracles took place and many people came to visit it.
During the 14th century her grave became the nest for players and singers who sung lascivious songs and danses, drank and behaved badly.
Therefore the archbishop of Lund, Magnus Nilsson decided to move her remnants, which were taken to the Cathedral of Lund. Probably they were placed close to her protector Archbishop Anders Sunesens grave.
Magnhild never was canonised but she had saint-like status.

The beautiful little church of Fulltofta was built in the 12th century and inside are modern painted glasswindows by Hugo Gehlin, which presents the life of Magnhild. She is teaching children, taking care of the sick, with a halo and getting killed by an arrow.





 






tisdag 18 september 2012

The Monastery of Herrevad, the first monastery for monks in Denmark

This chapel is the only remain of the monastery of Herrevad, the first monastery in Denmark, when Scania was part of the danish kingdom.

It was the archbishop of Lund, Eskil, who invited 12 monks and an abbot and some laymen to
Herrevad by the Rönne river to start a cicstercienser monastery for monks in 1144. They came from the cistersiencer monastery in  Citeaux in France. The laymen were farmers and crasftsmen and millers.

The Cistercienser orden was a practical working order, They were placed where there were good natural resources, hydropower, pastures, fishing, forestry and minerals. They were also missionairies and interested in arhcitecture.

Perhaps stoneworkers came fro Lund, when the cathedral was built and helped with the building of the monastery.

After the reformation the property was handed over to the danish magnate Sten Bille, uncle to Tyko Brahe, the famous danish astronomer, who spent a lot of time at Herrevad. Her he also saw Stella Nova

 Sten Bille together with Tyko Brahe constructed the first paperpress in the Nordic Countries 1570. Here the papermill, later called  "Klippan" started which still is active.

torsdag 13 september 2012

Esrum kloster

Esrum monastery in Zealand was constructed in 1151, after the monastery in Herrestad. Earlier here was a Benedictin monastery. It was the archbishop Eskol of Lund who took the initiative. Bernard of Clairvaux was a good friend of Eskil.

Esrum monastery became so rich och had such big influence, that by the time of the reformation it owned a third of all properties in norhern Zealand. After the reformation it was taken over by the Crown.

Today, the twostorey wing is what's left of the monastery. Today it's a very nice museum.

From the reformation to the 18th century it became a stud farm for the king.

It is open to week 42, thirsday to sunday- 10.30-16.30

During the winterseason, thursday to sunday- 11-16

söndag 9 september 2012

Fredriksborgs Castle on Zealand

 
Fredriksborg castle on Zealand in Denmark was built during the reign of Christan IV.
With it's baroquegarden, on of the finest in northern Eurospe, it is a lovely place to visit.
It is open from the 1 of november to the friday before the Palm sunday 11-15
The rest of the year 10-17.

It is placed at Hilleröd, close to Elsinore.
It was Fredrik II who took over a smaller property, and layed out channels for watersupply.
His son Christian IV, tore down most of the buildings and had a new magnificent castle built in dutch-danish renaissancestyle, probably with help from the builderfamily Steenwinckel.

In 1859 the castle was partly destroyed by fire, but rebuilt. The brewer J.C. Jacobsen, owner of the Carlsberg brewery payed for new inventories.

The castlechurch is the most magnificent churchroom from the renaissance time, in Denmark.

tisdag 4 september 2012

Harehunting on Ven, 1891, 5 september

On the Island Ven, in the middle of the Sound, between Seden and Denmark, hares were inplanted
1850-1877. The King had the huntingrights until 1917.

Hunting has always been important, during all times. On plenty of the old maps from teh 16th century there is always a hunter, some hares and other animals depicted.

From the middle of the 19th century the royal huntings dominated.

The most glorius hunt was on the 5th of september in 1891. In the huntingjournal it says:
Shot hares: 130, Number of shoots: 400, Number of hunters:28,  Hence the King: 12
Weather: Good, +19 Farenheit. Note: The Russian Tsar.

The swedish king Oscar II, had invited eleven royal guests. The guest of honor wa the russsian Tsar Alexander III. The others were Christian IX of Denmark, King Georg of Greece, the russian heir, later Emperor Nikolaus II, the english prince George, later king George V, the future danish kings Fredrik VIII and Christian X and the greek princes Nikolaus and Konstantin, who also became king
in due time.