Höfði () is a house 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 ...

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

, built in 1909, and best known as the location for the 1986

Reykjavík Summit The Reykjavík Summit was a Summit (meeting), summit meeting between President of the United States, U.S. President Ronald Reagan and General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev, held in Reykjavík, Iceland, on ...

meeting of President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

of the United States and

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

of the Soviet Union. This meeting was an important step towards ending of the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

. Within the building, the flags of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

are cross-hung to commemorate the meeting.

History

The house was built in 1909 and is located at Félagstún. It was initially built for the French

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

in Iceland, Jean-Paul Brillouin, and was the exclusive residence of poet and businessman

Einar Benediktsson Einar Benediktsson, often referred to as Einar Ben (31 October 1864 – 12 January 1940) was an Icelandic poet and lawyer. Einar Benediktsson's poetry was a significant contribution to the nationalistic revival which led to Iceland's independenc ...

(1864–1940) for twelve years (1913–1925). From 1925 to 1937 painter Louisa Matthíasdóttir grew up in the house since her family resided there. In the 1940s and 1950s, it was home to the British Embassy in Reykjavík. The city of Reykjavík purchased the house in 1958, and restored it. From then on it has been used for formal receptions and festive occasions. On 25 September 2009, on the building's 100th birthday, Höfði was damaged in a fire. All irreplaceable artifacts were saved. In 2015, Einar Benediktsson's statue, by

Ásmundur Sveinsson Ásmundur Sveinsson (20 May 1893 – 9 December 1982) was an Icelandic sculptor, whose works include “ Thor's gavel”, the ornate gavel used by the President of United Nations General Assembly. Early years Ásmundur Sveinsson was born in Kol ...

, was moved to a spot near Höfði house.

Construction

The house, which shows the influence of ''

Jugendstil (; "Youth Style") was an artistic movement, particularly in the decorative arts, that was influential primarily in Germany, Austria and elsewhere in Europe to a lesser extent from about 1895 until about 1910. It was the German and Austrian cou ...

'', was prefabricated in Norway, shipped to Iceland and erected in 1909 for the French consul, before permission for the house had been granted by the city planning department. At the time of construction it was the largest private estate in the city.

Telecommunications history

Before the house was built, the site was used to make the first radio communications between Iceland and the outside world on 26 June 1905, when contact was made with

Poldhu Poldhu () is a small area in south Cornwall, England, UK, situated on the Lizard Peninsula; it comprises Poldhu Point and Poldhu Cove. Poldhu means "black pool" in Cornish. Poldhu lies on the coast of Mount's Bay and is in the northern part ...

in Cornwall, UK, with a Marconi antenna. The effort was instigated by poet

. The antenna was in use until October 1906.

Local legend

The memoirs of one of the earliest occupants of Höfði state that the house is inhabited by the spirit of a young woman. Accounts vary on who she is but most commonly she is either a suicide or drowning victim. John Greenway, who inhabited the house in 1952, insisted that it be sold and the British consulate moved elsewhere, because of what he called "bumps in the night". He even applied for special permission from the Foreign Office to do so. That same year the house was sold back to the Icelandic government. Popular local legends differ from the accounts of the house's inhabitants; the most popular of which is that the house is a Viking burial site. For this reason locals say the liquor cabinet of the house is frequently raided by spirits. The legend has even gained recognition by the Foreign Ministry, who have officially stated that "We do not confirm or deny that the Höfði has a ghost."

Gallery

Reagan Gorbachev Island.jpg,

and

at Höfði File:President Ronald Reagan says goodbye to Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev.jpg, Reagan and Gorbachev greet each other at Höfði File:Hofdi house telecomms plaque reykjavik.JPG, Telecomms commemoration plaque File:Gorbachev reagan plaque reykjavik.JPG, Reagan-Gorbachev plaque

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hofdi Houses in Iceland Houses completed in 1909 Buildings and structures in Reykjavík Diplomatic buildings Cold War sites