Over the summer months Queen Margrethe and the Prince Consort split their time between the palaces of Marselisborg and Graasten, and the royal yacht Dannebrog. During the winter they reside in Copenhagen's Amalienborg Palace. This consists of four mansions built around one of the most beautiful squares in Europe and is commonly regarded as the finest example of rococo architecture in Denmark. Its individual palaces - each with a unique interior and identical exterior - were originally built for and named after Danish aristocratic families in the mid-1700s.
In 1765, King Frederik V purchased one of the mansions and turned it into a military academy. It later became the home of Crown Prince Frederik VII and was renamed in honour of Frederik VIII who resided there when he became king in 1906. From 1934 until her death in 2000, it was the home of Queen Ingrid.
After a fire destroyed their primary residence at Christiansborg Palace in 1794, the Danish royals purchased the remaining three mansions on the square, completing what is now known as Amalienborg Palace. Though it was originally intended as a temporary residence, King Frederik VI decided his family should remain at the palace even after Christiansborg was rebuilt.
Over the years the original names of the mansions were replaced by those of successive monarchs. Today, Christian IX's Palace - which once housed the Supreme Court and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs - is home to Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik, while Christian VIII's Palace is the residence of Crown Prince Frederik. The fourth building, the palace of Christian VII, which features a Louis XVI-style banquet hall, is used almost exclusively to accommodate guests.
The official royal website can be found at www.kongehuset.dk
