The Italian ambassador's residence in Copenhagen ( or ; ) stands at the corner of

Amaliegade Amaliegade () is a street in central Copenhagen, Denmark, which makes up the longer of the two axes on which the Rococo district Frederiksstaden is centred. Amaliegade extends from Sankt Annæ Plads to Esplanaden, passing through the central pl ...

with Fredericiagade in the

Frederiksstaden Frederiksstaden is a district in Copenhagen, Denmark. Constructed during the reign of Frederick V of Denmark, Frederick V in the second half of the 18th century, it is considered to be one of the most important rococo complexes in Europe and was in ...

neighbourhood of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

History

The original house was built by

Johan Christian Conradi Johan Christian Conradi (1709 – 30 September 1779) was a German born, Danish master builder, contractor and architect. Early life and education Conradi was born at Gotha in the Sazon duchy of Saxe-Gotha. He moved to Denmark in 1739 where h ...

for custom inspector Jacob Rahbek in the 1750s. The writer Knud Lyhne Rahbek, Jacob Rahbek's son and a central figure in the

Danish Golden Age The Danish Golden Age () covers a period of exceptional creative production in Denmark, especially during the first half of the 19th century.Kulturnet DanmarkGuide to the Danish Golden Age Although Copenhagen had suffered from fires, Battle of Co ...

, grew up in the building. Jacob Rahbek sold the property to a merchant named Duncan in about 1670 and built a new house at

Store Kongensgade Store Kongensgade (; ) is the longest street in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It extends northeast from Kongens Nytorv to Esplanaden, Copenhagen, Esplanaden, running parallel to Bredgade, where it breaks left, continuing northwest to Grønningen, ...

59 in 1782. Duncan expanded the house with two new wings to the rear in 1783. Custom officer Hans Boye purchased the house in 1795. His wife was the writer Birgitte Cathrine Boye. Baron Carl Frederik Gyllembourg-Ehrensvärd (1767–1815) rented the first floor appartement and lived here 1806-1813 with his wife

Thomasine Christine Gyllembourg-Ehrensvärd Baroness Thomasine Christine Gyllembourg-Ehrensvärd (9 November 17732 July 1856) was a Danish author, born in Copenhagen. Her maiden name was Buntzen. Life and writing She married the famous writer Peter Andreas Heiberg when she was 16 years ...

who later became a writer. The violinist and composer

Claus Schall Claus Nielsen Schall (28 April 1757 – 10 August 1835) was a Danish violinist and composer living much of his life as a subject of Denmark–Norway. Life and Career Niels Pedersen Schall's father, initially a cobbler's apprentice, later ...

lived at Fredericiagade 2 from 1825 until 1835. Later residents at Fredericiagade include philosophy professor F. C. Sibbern (1785–1872). Later Defence Minister P. F. Steinmann lived in the building from 1837 to 1839 and again in 1841. The actor Peter Schram (1819–1895) lived in te building from 1842 to 1845. The painter and illustrator

Lorenz Frølich Lorenz Frølich (25 October 182025 October 1908) was a Denmark, Danish painter, illustrator, graphic artist and etcher. Early life and education Frølich was born into a wealthy bourgeouis family in Copenhagen. The son of Johan Jacob Frølich ( ...

lived in the building from 1875 until 1878 after his return to Denmark after many years abroad. In 1908,Isak Glückstadt acquired the building. He was managing director of Den Danske Landmandsbank (now

Danske Bank Danske Bank A/S (, ) is a Danish multinational banking and financial services corporation. Headquartered in Copenhagen, it is the largest bank in Denmark and a major retail bank in the northern European region with over 5 million retail custome ...

). In 1909, he renovated the oldest part of the house. The dining room on the second floor and the

balcony A balcony (from , "scaffold") is a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade, usually above the ground floor. They are commonly found on multi-level houses, apartme ...

overlooking Amaliegade date from this renovation. The first expansion of the house from the second half of the 18th century was replaced by a new wing on Amaliegade in the 1910s. The new wing contained a large ball room. Amaliegade 19 by Sophus Bengtsson

The Italian state purchased the building in 1924. It fell into disrepair during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the years that followed. Restoration began in 1981.

Interior

The Italian state almost completely changed the interiors after acquiring the building in 1924. The only surviving features of note are two frescos painted on canvas. One is by Magnus Berg (1666–1739) and the other, ''Galatheas triumf'', is by Henrik Krock (1671–1738). The building now also contains paintings by

Giuseppe Recco __NOTOC__ Giuseppe Recco (1634 – 29 May 1695) was an Italian painter in the Baroque style. He specialized in a variety of still lifes. Career Born in Naples, he likely apprenticed with his family, including his father Giacomo Recco and unc ...

and One of the dining rooms features two flower paintings by G. Lopez (''Gaspare dei Fiori'') which came from the art museum in Naples.

References

{{reflist

External links

Embsassy of Italy in Copenhagen
Denmark–Italy relations Diplomatic residences in Copenhagen Frederiksstaden