Hans van Steenwinckel the Elder (c. 1550 – 10 May 1601) was a
Flemish
Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
-Danish architect and sculptor. He worked on a large number of the most important Danish buildings of his time, although the exact scope of his contributions in many cases remains uncertain and much have been demolished or redesigned later. The father of
Hans van Steenwinckel the Younger
Hans van Steenwinckel the Younger (24 June 1587 – 6 August 1639) was a Flemish- Danish architect who specialised in the Dutch Renaissance style, typical of prestigious Danish buildings from the first half of the 17th century. Along with his ...
and
Lorenz van Steenwinckel
Lorenz van Steenwinckel (1585–1619) was a Flemish-Danish architect and sculptor, son of Hans van Steenwinckel the Elder and brother of Hans van Steenwinckel the Younger. From 1613, he was responsible for numerous projects commissioned by Christia ...
, he also founded a dynasty of architects and sculptors in Denmark.
Biography
Hans van Steenwinckel was born in
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, c. 1550. The family fled to
Emden
Emden () is an independent city and seaport in Lower Saxony in the northwest of Germany, on the river Ems. It is the main city of the region of East Frisia and, in 2011, had a total population of 51,528.
History
The exact founding date of E ...
,
East Frisia, where his father, Lourens van Steenwinckel, became master builder. later city architect, and designed the Town Hall from 1567 onwards, later destroyed during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Hans van Steenwinckel trained under his father, and it is known that he received payment for a design for the Town Hall's stairs and tower in 1574.
In 1578 he travelled to Denmark, most likely as one of the master bricklayers which his countryman
Anthonis van Obbergen
Anthonis van Obbergen (Antonius, Anthonis, Anthony, Antonie, Anton - Obberghen, Oberberg, Opbergen) (1543 in Mechelen – 1611 in Danzig (Gdańsk)) was a Flemish architect and fortifications engineer. After studying masonry in Mechelen and c ...
invited to Denmark to assist him building
Frederick II's
Kronborg Castle
Kronborg is a castle and stronghold in the town of Helsingør, Denmark. Immortalized as Elsinore in William Shakespeare's play ''Hamlet'', Kronborg is one of the most important Renaissance castles in Northern Europe and was inscribed on the UNES ...
at
Elsinore. Hans only worked on Kronborg for around a year before he, with royal permission, went on the island of
Hven
Ven ( da, Hven, older Swedish spelling Hven) is a small Swedish island in the Øresund strait, between Scania and Zealand (Denmark). It is part of Landskrona Municipality, Scania County. The island has 371 inhabitants and an area of . During ...
to work for the distinguished astronomer
Tycho Brahe
Tycho Brahe ( ; born Tyge Ottesen Brahe; generally called Tycho (14 December 154624 October 1601) was a Danish astronomer, known for his comprehensive astronomical observations, generally considered to be the most accurate of his time. He was k ...
, who had for life been granted the island by the King as well as funds for the construction of a house and observatory on the premises. Hans van Steenwinckel probably worked both on
Uraniborg
Uraniborg ( da, Uranienborg, sv, Uraniborg) was a Danish astronomical observatory and alchemy laboratory established and operated by Tycho Brahe. It was built on Hven, an island in the Øresund between Zealand and Scania, Sweden, which was ...
and the subsequent
Stjerneborg
Stjerneborg ("Star Castle" in English) was Tycho Brahe's underground observatory next to his palace-observatory Uraniborg, located on the island of Hven in the Øresund between Denmark and Sweden.
Tycho Brahe built it circa 1581. He wrote: " ...
observatory, both of which were demolished after Brahe's death in 1601. From 1585 he lived and worked in Copenhagen but his presence on Hven is documented several times in the 1580s and last in 1590. He studied theoretical renaissance architecture and Brahe taught him both astronomy and geometry.
In 1582 he had been named Royal Building Master and in the 1580s he designed
Slangerup Church. He also worked on a number of churches in Copenhagen, including
St. Peter's Church and possibly also the towers at the Churches of Saint Nicolai and the
Church of the Holy Ghost although this remains uncertain.
Hans van Steenwinckel also built and rebuilt a number of manor houses around the country, including
Berritzgaard
The Berritzgaard estate and manor house is one of the largest and best preserved manor houses on the island of Lolland in Denmark. The estate can be traced back to 1382, to its first owner, Markvard Pøiske. The estate developed from a village ca ...
,
Näsbyholm and Orebygård.
In 1588 the new King
Christian IV
Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
appointed him Government Architect and from this date his main task was to modernize the fortifications in many Danish towns and strongholds in Sweden and Norway. These included
Bohus Fortress
Bohus Fortress (also known as ''Baahus'' or ''Båhus'', originally: ''Bágahús'') lies along the old Norwegian–Swedish border in Kungälv, Bohuslän, Sweden, north east from Hisingen where the Göta river splits into two branches ( north of ...
,
Varberg
Varberg () is a locality and the seat of Varberg Municipality, Halland County, Sweden, with 35,782 inhabitants in 2019.
Varberg and all of Halland are well known for their "typical west coast" sandy beaches. In Varberg the coast changes from ...
,
Halmstad
Halmstad () is a port, university, industrial and recreational city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Socia ...
and
Akershus
Akershus () is a traditional region and current electoral district in Norway, with Oslo as its main city and traditional capital. It is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo. From the middle ages to 1919, Akershus was a fief and main county ...
. He was also responsible for the layout of the completely new town of
Christianopel. According to his gravestone he was himself most proud of the fortifications of Halmstad, where he died in 1601 and is buried at St. Nicolai's Church.
Projects
*
Uranienborg (1576–80)
*
Stjerneborg
Stjerneborg ("Star Castle" in English) was Tycho Brahe's underground observatory next to his palace-observatory Uraniborg, located on the island of Hven in the Øresund between Denmark and Sweden.
Tycho Brahe built it circa 1581. He wrote: " ...
(1584)
*
Näsbyholm
*
Berritzgaard
The Berritzgaard estate and manor house is one of the largest and best preserved manor houses on the island of Lolland in Denmark. The estate can be traced back to 1382, to its first owner, Markvard Pøiske. The estate developed from a village ca ...
(1586)
* Orebygaard (1578–1587)
*
Lundehave (1587)
* Slangerup Church (1588)
* Fortifications including
Bohus Fortress
Bohus Fortress (also known as ''Baahus'' or ''Båhus'', originally: ''Bágahús'') lies along the old Norwegian–Swedish border in Kungälv, Bohuslän, Sweden, north east from Hisingen where the Göta river splits into two branches ( north of ...
,
Halmstad
Halmstad () is a port, university, industrial and recreational city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Socia ...
,
Varberg
Varberg () is a locality and the seat of Varberg Municipality, Halland County, Sweden, with 35,782 inhabitants in 2019.
Varberg and all of Halland are well known for their "typical west coast" sandy beaches. In Varberg the coast changes from ...
,
Akershus
Akershus () is a traditional region and current electoral district in Norway, with Oslo as its main city and traditional capital. It is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo. From the middle ages to 1919, Akershus was a fief and main county ...
(1588-)
*
Christianopel (1599)
See also
*
Hans van Steenwinckel
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steenwinckel, Hans van
Danish architects
Renaissance architecture in Denmark
Renaissance architects
Architects from Antwerp
1601 deaths
Year of birth uncertain
16th-century architects
1550 births
Belgian expatriates in Denmark
Belgian expatriates in Norway
Belgian expatriates in Sweden