Christiansborg Palace is a building in the Danish capital,
Copenhagen. It is the seat of the
Danish Parliament, the Office of the
Prime Minister, and the
Supreme Court. The first castle on the site was
Absalon's Castle, built in 1167 by the bishop
Absalon and demolished in 1370, after King
Valdemar was defeated by the
Hanseatic League. By the end of the 14th century
Copenhagen Castle was built on the site but that too was demolished in 1731. The
first Christiansborg was then built, on the orders of King
Christian VI, becoming the largest palace in northern Europe on its completion in 1745. It was destroyed in 1794 by fire, and replaced by the
second Christiansborg. That too burned down in 1884, eventually being replaced by the current building, which was built between 1907 and 1928. The modern building is
neo-Baroque in style, although the 19th-century
neoclassical chapel and the original
Baroque riding grounds remain, having survived the fires.
Photograph: Julian Herzog