Ferdinand Meldahl (16 March 1827 – 3 February 1908) was a Danish architect best known for the reconstruction of
Frederiksborg Castle
Frederiksborg Castle () is a palatial complex in Hillerød, Denmark. It was built as a royal residence for Christian IV of Denmark, King Christian IV of Denmark-Norway in the early 17th century, replacing an older castle acquired by Frederick II ...
after the fire in 1859. Meldahl was one of the leading proponents of
historicism
Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying the process or history by which they came about. The term is widely used in philosophy, ant ...
in Denmark.
Biography
He was the son of architect
Heinrich Meldahl.
He worked in his father's iron foundry and was also trained as a bricklayer.
He joined the
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts
The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark.
History
The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...
, where he was educated as an architect.
He conducted several study trips to
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
and
Syria
Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
.
As a member of the
municipal council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...
of
Copenhagen Municipality
Copenhagen Municipality (), also known in English language, English as the Municipality of Copenhagen, located in the Capital Region of Denmark, is the largest of the four municipalities that constitute the City of Copenhagen (), the other three ...
for 27 years from 1866, Meldahl managed to significantly influence the city.
In 1857, he became a member of the
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts
The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark.
History
The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...
and in 1863 a professor at the academy. He was its manager from 1873 to 1890. In 1904, he was appointed a
Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order on the occasion of the visit of King
Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910.
The second child ...
of the United Kingdom. At the time he was Chamberlain to the King
Christian IX of Denmark and Vice President of the Danish Royal Academy of Arts. He was appointed Knight of the
Order of the Dannebrog
The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...
(1861, Dannebrogsmand (1864), Commander of the 2nd degree of Dannebrog in (1874) and of the 1st degree that year and awarded the Cross of Honour of the Order of the Dannebrog (1904).
[ RVO appointments on the occasion of King Edward VII's visit to Denmark]
Selected works
*City Hall of
Fredericia
Fredericia () is a town located in Fredericia Municipality in the southeastern part of the Jutland peninsula in Denmark. The city is part of the Triangle Region Denmark, Triangle Region, which includes the neighbouring cities of Kolding and Vej ...
(1859)
* in
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...
(1880–1881)
*Reconstruction of
Frederiksborg Palace after the fire in 1859 (1860–1884)
*Completion of
Frederik's Church
Frederik's Church (), popularly known as The Marble Church () for its rococo architecture, is an Evangelical Lutheran church in Copenhagen, Denmark. The church forms the focal point of the Frederiksstaden district; it is located due west of A ...
in Copenhagen (1878–1894)
References
Other sources
''Ferdinand Meldahl''.
Danmarks Radio
DR (), officially the Danish Broadcasting Corporation in English, is a Danish public-service radio and television broadcasting company. Founded in 1925 as a public-service organization, it is Denmark's oldest and largest electronic media enter ...
.
*Hartung, Annette (2004-02-06
''Huse fortæller historie''.
Ingeniøren
''Ingeniøren'' (full name: ''Nyhedsmagasinet Ingeniøren'', literally ''The News Magazine "The Engineer"'') is a Danish weekly newspaper specialising in engineering topics.
History and profile
The paper has covered science and technology issues ...
.
*Schiødte, Erik (1897
"Meldahl, Ferdinand" in
Bricka, Carl Frederik (ed.) ''
Dansk Biografisk Lexikon, tillige omfattende Norge for Tidsrummet 1537–1814, XI. bind, Maar–Müllner. Copenhagen: Gyldendalske Boghandels Forlag, pp. 250–53.
Further reading
* Funder, Lise:
Arkitekten Ferdinand Meldahl'
* Bligaard, Mette (2008) ''Frederiksborgs genrejsning. Historicisme i teori og praksis'' . .
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meldahl, Ferdinand
1827 births
1908 deaths
19th-century Danish architects
Historicist architects
19th-century Copenhagen City Council members
Local politicians in Denmark
People from Frederiksberg
Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order
Recipients of the Cross of Honour of the Order of the Dannebrog
Academic staff of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts
Directors of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts
Recipients of the C.F. Hansen Medal
Politicians from Copenhagen