The Royal Danish Naval Museum (
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
: Orlogsmuseet) is a museum dedicated to the history of the
Royal Danish Navy
The Royal Danish Navy ( da, Søværnet) is the Naval warfare, sea-based branch of the Danish Defence force. The RDN is mainly responsible for maritime defence and maintaining the sovereignty of Denmark, Danish territorial waters (incl. Faroe Isla ...
. The displays include a collection of naval models which dates back to late 17th century. The museum is based in ''
Søkvæsthuset
Søkvæsthuset is a former Naval hospice located on Christianshavn Canal in the Christianshavn district of Copenhagen, Denmark. The listed building housed the Royal Danish Naval Museum indtil 2016. The collection has been moved to and is exhibite ...
'', a former naval hospice which overlooks
Christianshavn Canal.
The museum is a branch of the Museum of Military History which also includes the
Tøjhus Museum
, established =
, dissolved =
, location = Christian IV's Arsenal SlotsholmenCopenhagen, Denmark
, type = Military museum
, accreditation =
, key_holdings =
, collections ...
at
Slotsholmen
Slotsholmen (English: The Castle Islet) is an island in the harbour of Copenhagen, Denmark, and part of Copenhagen Inner City. The name is taken from the successive castles and palaces located on the island since Bishop Absalon constructed the ci ...
and three museum ships, the frigate
HDMS Peder Skram, the fast attack craft
HDMS
Sehested'', and the submarine
HDMS Sælen, all located at
Holmen.
History
The museum traces its history back to the foundation of the Royal Model Collection which dates back to the 17th century when it became common practice to build accurate models of ships, or detail models of components of them or their fittings, as part of the ship building process. In 1773 the collection was installed at
Gammelholm
Gammelholm ( lit. "Old Islet") is a predominantly residential neighbourhood in the city centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is bounded by the Nyhavn canal, Kongens Nytorv, Holmens Kanal, Niels Juels Gade and the waterfront along Havnegade. For cen ...
but later passed into oblivion. The 1830s saw a renewed interest in ship models, both the historic ones and of new ships, and the collection was finally installed once again in 1862. In 1894, a new building for the Royal Model Collection was constructed at
Holmen.
In 1940, the collection was evacuated and put in storge out of fear that it would be destroyed in the event of a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
attack on the Danish Navy. After the
Liberation
Liberation or liberate may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War
* "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode
* "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode
Gaming
* '' Liberati ...
in 1945, its building had been taken into use for other purposes. The museum was founded 1957 at the initiative of Vice Admiral A.H. Vedel and found a temporary home in
St. Nicolas Church. In 1974 a branch of the museum opened at
Valdemars Castle
Valdemar's Castle (Danish: Valdemars Slot) is a manor house situated on the island of Tåsinge near Svendborg in southern Denmark.
History
Valdemar's Castle was commissioned by King Christian IV (1588–1648) and built between 1639 and 1644 u ...
on the island of
Tåsinge
Tåsinge () is a Danish island immediately south of Funen, opposite and facing Svendborg, divided from Funen by Svendborgsund.See detailed Denmark roadmap in References section. The island covers an area of circa . It is part of the South Funen A ...
which mainly focussed on the naval hero
Niels Juel
Niels Juel (8 May 1629 – 8 April 1697) was a Danish admiral and a naval hero. He served as supreme command of the Dano-Norwegian Navy
The history of the Danish navy began with the founding of a joint Dano-Norwegian navy on 10 August 1510, ...
who had owned the estate in the middle of the 17th century. In 1984 the temporary premises at St. Nicolas' closed and the exhibition moved to a building at
Christianshavn Rampart at Christianshavn. In 1884 the south wing of Søkvæsthuset was put at the disposal of the museum which reopened at its new premises on 4 October 1989.
In 2015, the museum permanently closed.
Building
The building was designed by J. C. Conradi and completed in 1755 as the home of the Royal Orphanage (da. ''Det Kongelige Opfostringshus'') which had been founded a few years earlier and took care of the upbringing of sons of single parents from poor backgrounds. In 1775 the institution moved to new premises in Store Kongensgade and the building was instead converted into a new home for the Royal Naval Hospice which had until then been located at
Sankt Annæ Plads
Sankt Annæ Plads (English: St. Ann's Square) is a public square which marks the border between the Nyhavn area and Frederiksstaden neighborhoods of central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is a long narrow rectangle which extends inland from the waterfron ...
. The wing toward Bådsmandsstræde, which now houses the Naval Museum, was built in 1781 by the mason J. B. Schottmann (1734-1786).
The long building stands in yellow-dressed masonry with light grey pilasters. The rounded pediment is decorated with war trophies.
[
]
Exhibition
Model Collections
The oldest ship in the Model Collection is an unnamed vessel from the 1660s with a bust resembling Niels Juel
Niels Juel (8 May 1629 – 8 April 1697) was a Danish admiral and a naval hero. He served as supreme command of the Dano-Norwegian Navy
The history of the Danish navy began with the founding of a joint Dano-Norwegian navy on 10 August 1510, ...
decorating its Transom. The collection consists of several hundred large and small models, ranging from fully rigged ships of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colum ...
to over model docks to various detail models. A common trait of the models is that they display fine craftsmanship and an immense richness of details. The models served as a sort of "blue prints" and are therefore crafted in accurate scale.
The museum has also acquired several modern models of contemporary naval vessels, including a model of a flexible support ship of the Absalon class.
Artifacts, marine painting and maps
The exhibitions also comprise a vast number of weapons, uniforms and artifacts such as navigational equipment and tools.
The museum also holds a large number of artworks which depict naval history. Represented artists include Christian Mølsted
Christian Ferdinand Andreas Mølsted (15 October 1862 – 10 May 1930) was a Danish artist who specialized in marine painting. He is best known for his painting of the frigate ''Niels Juel'' during the Battle of Heligoland on 9 May 1864.
Biograph ...
, Anthon Melbye and Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg
Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg (2 January 1783 – 22 July 1853) was a Danish painter. He was born in Blåkrog in the Southern Jutland region of Denmark. He went on to lay the foundation for the period of art known as the Golden Age of Dani ...
.
Dioramas
Apart from the collections, the museum also use diorama
A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies such as military vehicle mode ...
of important naval battles and mock-ups to present the history of the Danish Navy.
Children's museum
Historic ships at Holmen
The museum also takes in three decommissioned naval ships of the Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
era which are docked at Nyholm. They can only be visited during the summer months (June–August) and on limited opening hours.
During opening hours visitors are free to walk around the largest of the ships, FDMS ''Peder Skram'', a Peder Skram class frigate, while the two others, HDMS ''Sælen'', a submarine, and HDMS
Sehested'', a Willemose-class missile boat
A missile boat or missile cutter is a small, fast warship armed with anti-ship missiles. Being smaller than other warships such as destroyers and frigates, missile boats are popular with nations interested in forming a navy at lower cost. They a ...
, can only be visited on tours. They start every 30 minutes during opening hours and are available in English. The opening hours for the ships are:
June:
Sælen and Sehested: Weekends from 11.00 am - 5 pm.
Peder Skram: All days from 11.00 am - 5 pm.
July:
All ships from 11.00 am - 5 pm.
August:
Until 15 August: All ships from 11.00 am - 5 pm.
From 15 August: Only Peder Skram, open 11.00 am - 5 pm.
File:HDMS Peder Skram F352 Royal Danish Navy Copenhagen Holmen 2014 01.jpg, HDMS Peder Skram
File:Danish Submarine -a.jpg, HDMS Sælen
File:P-547 Schested - Holmen.jpg, HDMS Sehested
See also
* List of museums in and around Copenhagen
References
External links
Official site
{{Copenhagen
Museums in Copenhagen
Maritime museums in Denmark
Military and war museums in Denmark
Naval museums
Royal Danish Navy
Christianshavn