Sølvgade Barracks ( Danish: ) is a former military facility from 1771 located on the corner of

Sølvgade Sølvgade (; ) is a street in central Copenhagen, Denmark, extending north-west from Borgergade to The Lakes where Fredens Bro connects it to Fredensgade. The section from Kronprinsessegade to Øster Voldgade follows the walled north-eastern mar ...

and

Øster Voldgade Øster Voldgade ( lit. "East Rampart Street"), together with Vester Voldgade and Nørre Voldgade, forms a succession of large streets which arches around the central and oldest part of the Zealand side of Copenhagen, Denmark. It runs north-east ...

in central

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 ...

. The barracks closed in 1926 and the large

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

complex designed by

Nicolas-Henri Jardin Nicolas-Henri Jardin (22 March 1720 – 31 August 1799) was a French architect. Born in St. Germain des Noyers, Seine-et-Marne, Jardin worked seventeen years in Denmark–Norway as an architect to the Danish royal court. He introduced neoclassic ...

then served as headquarters for DSB, the Danish state railways, until 2013, when the building was converted into student apartments.

History

The barracks

Until the mid 18th century, soldiers from the garrison in Copenhagen were not quartered in barracks but boarded, usually two and two, with private families around the city. Personnel of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

were quartered at

Nyboder Nyboder (English language, English: New mallHouses) is a historic row house district of former Royal Danish Navy, Naval barracks in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was planned and first built by Christian IV of Denmark, Christian IV to accommodate a ...

. In 1765, Frederick (V) ordered the construction of Sølvgade Barracks in the grounds of the former St. Ann's graveyard.

was charged with the design of the new installation which was completed in 1771 under the supervision of Christian Carl Pflueg. The new barracks were met with opposition from the citizens of nearby

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 ...

who had lost an extra source of income. From 1775 the buildings were instead used as a military hospital (Frederiks Plejehus og Almindelig Hospital) but then in 1785 they once again came to serve as barracks. When space became too sparse in the facility, the Laurel House in

Rosenborg Castle Gardens Rosenborg Castle Gardens (Danish: ''Kongens Have''; literally ''The King's Garden'') is the oldest and most visited park in central Copenhagen, Denmark. Established in the early 17th century as the private gardens of King Christian IV of Denmark, ...

was converted into a new home for the Royal Life Guards, Rosenborg Barracks, which was inaugurated in 1786 to a design by military engineer

Ernst Peymann Major-General Hinrich Ernst Peymann (22 May 173728 January 1823) was a Danish army officer who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars (sometimes called the Great French War or the ...

DSB headquarters

In 1926 the barracks were decommissioned and the complex was converted into a new headquarters for the Danish State Railways. The adaption of the buildings for their new use was carried out by Theodor Petersen between 1926 and 1929. In October 2011, DSB announced their intentions to sell their headquarters at Sølvgade and concentrate their activities at Kalvebod Brygge near

Copenhagen Central Station Copenhagen Central Station (, ; abbreviated ''København H'', colloquially usually referred to as ''Hovedbanegården'' or simply ''Hovedbanen'') is the Central station, main railway station in Copenhagen, Denmark, and the largest railway station ...

Student residences

After the DSB headquarters was moved, the building was converted into student residences by BaseCamp. Over 400 students are accommodated, including international and Danish students from several universities, including the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen (, KU) is a public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia, after Uppsala University. ...

. The first students moved in during autumn 2016.

Architecture

Built in brick in the

style, the building complex consists of two F-shaped buildings, one along Sølvgade and one along Øster Voldgade, which face each other, and closed at the corner by a low gate wing. This layout may have been chosen as a reference to King Frederik V's name. The two main wings along the streets each consist of a cellar and four storeys under a red

Mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called French roof or curb roof) is a multi-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper, and often punctured by dormer wi ...

. Frederik V died before the buildings were completed and the sandstone portal therefore bears the monogram of his son

Christian VII Christian VII (29 January 1749 – 13 March 1808) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1766 until his death in 1808. He was affected by mental illness and was only nominally king for most of his reign. His roya ...

. The two main wings are 86 metres long and have 3-bay median and corner risalits. The buildings were listed in 1918.

References

External links

Source
{{DEFAULTSORT:Solvgade Barracks Barracks in Copenhagen Baroque architecture in Copenhagen Listed residential buildings in Copenhagen Residential buildings completed in 1771