Thott Mansion
| Thott Mansion | |
|---|---|
Thotts Palæ | |
 Thott Mansion seen from the square | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Neoclassical |
| Location | Copenhagen |
| Country | Denmark |
| Coordinates | 55°40′52″N12°35′14″E/ 55.68111°N 12.58722°E |
| Construction started | 1683 |
| Completed | 1686 |
| Client | Niels Juel |
| Owner | State of France |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Nicolas-Henri Jardin |
TheThott Mansion(Danish:Thotts Palæ) is a listedtown mansionlocated onKongens NytorvinCopenhagen,Denmark.It was built for the naval officerNiels Juelin the 1680s but his Baroque mansion was later adapted to theNeoclassicalstyle by the French architectNicolas-Henri Jardinin 1763. The building takes its current name after the Thott family who owned it from 1750 to 1930. It now houses theFrench embassy.
History
[edit]
Niels Juel's mansion
[edit]Originally known as the Juel Mansion, the house was built from 1683 to 1686 for the Danish naval officerNiels Juel.It was the second building which was completed onKongens Nytorvwhich had been laid out byChristian V of Denmarkin the years following his coronation in 1670 inspired by theroyal squaresofParis.[1]Niels Juel's victory in theBattle of Køge Bayhad won him fame and wealth. His new mansion was designed byLambert van Havenas an L-shaped building in theDutch Baroque style.[2]
The next owners
[edit]
After Juel's death in 1697, Christian V arranged for his official mistress and mother to five of his children,Sophie Amalie Moth,to take over his mansion.[3]She immediately passed it on to their eldest son,Christian Gyldenløve,who in about 1700 extended the building with a third wing.[2]The house stayed in Gyldenløve's family for two more generations, although it was rented out to foreignenvoysduring some periods.[3]The owners included Frederik Danneskiold-Samsøe, Gyldenløve's second oldest son, who played an important role in the development of theNyholmnaval base and dockyard.
Countess Anne Sophie Schack acquired the mansion from Count Frederik-Christian Danneskjold in 1734.
Thott era
[edit]
The house was then sold at auction. The buyer wasOtto Thott,who gained a reputation for being one of the most learned and competent statesmen of the 18th century in Denmark. He spent his summers atGavnøin the far south ofZealandand the winters in his mansion at Kongens Nytorv. In 1763, he commissionedNicolas-Henri Jardinto adapt the building to a more modern style. The mansion housed Thott's extensive collections. At the time of his death, he had a book collection of 138,000 volumes and the largest private art collection in Denmark. His will provided that the latter be sold at auction. The catalogue contains 4,500 items of which 1,000 are oil paintings.[4]
After Thott's death, the mansion stayed in his family. The most notable of his descendants to own the house wasTage Reedtz-Thott.Later the department storeMagasin du Nord,located on the other side of the square, had a window exhibition in the mansion's ground floor and a tea garden opened in the courtyard.[3]
French ownership
[edit]The property remained in the ownership of the Thott family until 1930 when it was purchased by the French State and turned into the French Embassy in Denmark.[2]
In 2012, the French State decided to put the mansion through a major restoration under the leadership ofFrédéric Didier,head architect at thePalace of Versailles.[4]
Architecture
[edit]
Niel's Juel's original mansion was an L-shaped building in theBaroquestyle. The facade stood in blank red brick decorated withpilasters.Nicolas-Henri Jardin dressed the brick and adapted the building to theNeoclassicalstyle. The triangular pediment above the main entrance towards Kongens Nytorv replaced a belvedere. The sandstonefestonsbelow the first floor and thebalustradewith vases and statues on the roof also date from his alterations.[5]The pilasters' originalTuscan capitalscan still be seen on the Bredgade facade while they have been replaced by compositeIonic-Corinthiancapitals facing the square.[6]
It has previously been assumed that Jardin was also responsible for adapting the interiors. However, examination of Countess Shack's private letters has shown that transformation of the interior actually happened a few years earlier during her ownership to designs by the French architect Christophe Jacob Vallois.[7]
List of owners
[edit]- (1671-1697)Niels Juel
- (1697-1699)Sophie Amalie Moth
- (1699-1703)Christian Gyldenløve
- (1703-1720)Dorothea Kragnée (1) Juel (2) Gyldenløve
- (1720-1728)Christian Danneskiold-Samsøe
- (1728-1747)Frederik Danneskiold-Samsøe
- (1747-1754)Frederik Christian Danneskiold-Samsøe
- (1754-1760)Anne Sophie Rantzau gift Schack
- (1760-1785)Otto Thott
- (1785-1797)Holger Reedtz-Thott
- (1797-1862)Otto Reedtz-Thott
- (1862-1922)Tage Reedtz-Thott
- (1922-1927)Otto Reedtz-Thott
- (1927-1930)Axel Reedtz-Thott
- (1930-present)State of France
References
[edit]- ^"Kongens Nytorv"(in Danish). Selskabet for Københavns Historie. Archived fromthe originalon 2007-10-22.Retrieved2010-01-07.
- ^abc"Thotts Palæ"(in Danish). Gyldendal.Retrieved2009-08-30.
- ^abc"Søheltens palæ på Kongens Nytorv"(in Danish). Berlingske.Retrieved2010-01-07.
- ^ab"Renovering af det Thottske Palæ"(in Danish). French embassy in Copenhagen.Retrieved2013-02-27.
- ^"Kongens Nytorv 4"(in Danish). indenforvoldene.dk.Retrieved2010-01-04.
- ^"Palatial Mansions in Copenhagen".Astoft.Retrieved2013-02-27.
- ^"Tag med på en virtuel rundtur på Den Franske Ambassade".French embassy.Retrieved2013-03-03.
External links
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