Lejonbacken

Last updated September 25, 2019

View of Lejonbacken Royal-Palace-1.jpg — View of Lejonbacken

Lejonbacken (Swedish: "Lion Slope") is a system of ramps leading up to the northern entrance of the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden. They were built during the 1780s named after the pair of sculpted Medici lions prominently exposed on the stone railings of the ramps.

Swedish language North Germanic language spoken in Sweden

Swedish is a North Germanic language spoken natively by 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden, and in parts of Finland, where it has equal legal standing with Finnish. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and to some extent with Danish, although the degree of mutual intelligibility is largely dependent on the dialect and accent of the speaker. Written Norwegian and Danish are usually more easily understood by Swedish speakers than the spoken languages, due to the differences in tone, accent and intonation. Swedish is a descendant of Old Norse, the common language of the Germanic peoples living in Scandinavia during the Viking Era. It has the most speakers of the North Germanic languages. While being strongly related to its southern neighbour language German in vocabulary, the word order, grammatic system and pronunciation are vastly different.

Stockholm Palace or the Royal Palace is the official residence and major royal palace of the Swedish monarch. Stockholm Palace is located on Stadsholmen, in Gamla stan in the capital, Stockholm. It neighbours the Riksdag building. The offices of the King, the other members of the Swedish Royal Family, and the offices of the Royal Court of Sweden are located here. The palace is used for representative purposes by the King whilst performing his duties as the head of state.

Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north and Finland to the east, and is connected to Denmark in the southwest by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund Strait. At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi), Sweden is the largest country in Northern Europe, the third-largest country in the European Union and the fifth largest country in Europe by area. The capital city is Stockholm. Sweden has a total population of 10.3 million of which 2.5 million have a foreign background. It has a low population density of 22 inhabitants per square kilometre (57/sq mi) and the highest urban concentration is in the central and southern half of the country.

Setting

From the crest between the ramps is a panoramic view over the stately bridge Norrbro stretching across the Parliament island Helgeandsholmen over to square Gustav Adolfs torg, the latter flanked by the Royal Opera and the so-called Palace of the Hereditary Prince housing the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The bridge was originally intended to be extended some ten kilometres further north to the royal gardens at Haga and a royal palace there never built. The eastern ramp leads down to Strömbron and Skeppsbron, and the western to Mynttorget, while the quay Slottskajen passes beneath the entire composition along the canal Stallkanalen.

Norrbro is an arch bridge over Norrström in central Stockholm. It extends north from the northern front of the Royal Palace passing over Helgeandsholmen in front of the Riksdag building, and from there over to Gustav Adolfs torg. Norrbro was designed by the city architect Erik Palmstedt (1741–1803) in a neoclassical style.

Rikdag, also called Ricdag, Riddag, or Rihdag, was Margrave of Meissen from 979 until his death. In 982, he also acquired the marches of Merseburg and Zeitz. After the Great Slav Rising in 983, he temporarily reunited all of the southern marca Geronis under his command. His march included the territory of the Chutizi and Dolomici tribes.

Helgeandsholmen is a small island in central Stockholm, Sweden. It is located north of Stadsholmen, and east of Strömsborg, with which, together with Riddarholmen, it forms Gamla stan, the old town of Stockholm. Helgeandsholmen contains the Riksdag Building and the Museum of Medieval Stockholm, and is connected to neighbouring islands through three bridges: Riksbron, Stallbron, and Norrbro.

Inside the north-eastern wing of the palace is the Gustav III's Museum of Antiquities. Opened in 1794 and thus one of the oldest museums in the world, it displays over 200 sculptures and antiquities collected by King Gustav III during a trip in Italy as they were originally exhibited.^[1]

Gustav III was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of Adolf Frederick, King of Sweden and Queen Louise Ulrika, and a first cousin of Empress Catherine the Great of Russia by reason of their common descent from Christian August of Holstein-Gottorp, Prince of Eutin, and his wife Albertina Frederica of Baden-Durlach.

Underneath the ramps is the Tre Kronor Museum. When inaugurated in 1999, it replaced an older and much smaller museum. It exhibits the history and archaeological remains of the medieval castle originally built in the 13th century and preceding the present palace.^[2] Inside the five metres thick medieval walls and under the large bricked vaults are historical objects and modern models retelling the development of the palace from its Viking origin in the 10th century.^[3]

History

Ramps for the northern front were originally included in proposals for a rebuilding of the medieval palace Tre Kronor in the mid-17th century, and elevations from the 1690s also featured lions. Though the old palace was completely destroyed in the devastating fire on May 7, 1697, a new proposal for the northern front was quickly produced, presenting the ramps mostly in their present shape. The portions of the ramps next to the façade were quickly completed and the lions and their plinths were installed in 1704. The work on the lower lateral parts were however not begun until after Norrbro, the bridge extending north from the palace, was completed in 1807, and not finished until 1826-1834 when the last stage of the construction was realized to the plans of Per Axel Nyström (1793-1868).^[4]

Tre Kronor was a castle located in Stockholm, Sweden, on the site where Stockholm Palace is today. It is believed to have been a citadel that Birger Jarl built into a royal castle in the middle of the 13th century. The name "Tre Kronor" is believed to have been given to the castle during the reign of King Magnus IV in the middle of the 14th century.

Elevation Height of a geographic location above a fixed reference point

The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface . The term elevation is mainly used when referring to points on the Earth's surface, while altitude or geopotential height is used for points above the surface, such as an aircraft in flight or a spacecraft in orbit, and depth is used for points below the surface.

Models for the bronze lions were completed in 1700 by the French sculptor Bernard Foucquet the Younger (1640-after 1711).^[5] Foucquet used stone lions at the Villa Medici in Rome as prototypes for the commission, while the Crown had to melt sculptures taken from Kronborg Castle in Denmark to assemble the required amount of bronze.^[4]

Villa Medici Historic house in Rome, Italy

The Villa Medici is a Mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and now property of the French State, has housed the French Academy in Rome since 1803. A musical evocation of its garden fountains features in Ottorino Respighi's Fontane di Roma.

Denmark, officially the Kingdom of Denmark, is a Nordic country. Denmark proper, which is the southernmost of the Scandinavian countries, consists of a peninsula, Jutland, and an archipelago of 443 named islands, with the largest being Zealand, Funen and the North Jutlandic Island. The islands are characterised by flat, arable land and sandy coasts, low elevation and a temperate climate. The southernmost of the Scandinavian nations, Denmark lies southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and is bordered to the south by Germany. The Kingdom of Denmark also includes two autonomous territories in the North Atlantic Ocean: the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Denmark has a total area of 42,924 km² (16,573 sq mi), land area of 42,394 km² (16,368 sq mi), and the total area including Greenland and the Faroe Islands is 2,210,579 km² (853,509 sq mi), and a population of 5.8 million.

A wide range of rocks from various regional sources were used for the palace which is discernible in the northern front where hard to cut but more resilient rock is used for the bases and railings (e.g. so called Stockholmsgranit, younger granite found readily around the capital, grey or red in colour), and less compact rock, which is easier to carve but less resilient for more elaborated details – sandstone from Gotland for ornaments and mouldings, and marble from Kolmården for balustrades and bollards. The original plans of King Charles XIII to use granite for the northern front were finally completed by King Charles XIV John using rock from just north of the city and from the palace of Gustav III at Haga which was never completed.^[6]

The two columns flanking the central entrance are six metres tall and cut from single blocks. They made a lasting impression on their arrival to the capital and were the pride of the architect when erected in 1695 (two years before the great fire). The quadrangular pedestals were however substituted for painted cast iron in the mid-19th century.^[6]

In 2000, a public convenience from the mid-18th century, arguably the oldest of the city, was discovered under the ramps following an archaeological excavation. A precursor of the modern W.C. it used water from the canal passing in front of the palace to dispose of the waste matter.^[7]

In 2006 the old façade lightning was replaced by a new, doubling the amount of light while considerably reducing the energy required and giving enhanced prominence to details and nuances.^[8]

Related Research Articles

The Royal palaces in the Kingdom of Sweden are the following:

The Bonde Palace is a palace in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Located between the House of Knights (Riddarhuset) and the Chancellery House (Kanslihuset), it is, arguably, the most prominent monument of the era of the Swedish Empire (1611–1718), originally design by Nicodemus Tessin the Elder and Jean De la Vallée in 1662-1667 as the private residence of the Lord High Treasurer Gustaf Bonde (1620–1667) it still bears his name, while it accommodated the Stockholm Court House from the 18th century and since 1949 houses the Swedish Supreme Court. On the south side of the building is the street Myntgatan and the square Riddarhustorget, while the alleys Riddarhusgränd and Rådhusgränd are passing on its western and eastern sides.

Haga Trädgård is a garden located at the northern end of Haga Park, Solna, Sweden.

Hagaparken, or simply Haga in Solna Municipality just north of Stockholm, Sweden, is a vast and popular nature area, with large parks, woods and gardens.

Gustav Adolfs torg is a public square in central Stockholm, Sweden.

Arvfurstens palats is a palace located at Gustav Adolfs Torg in central Stockholm.

Wrangel Palace is a townhouse mansion on Riddarholmen islet in Gamla Stan, the old town of Stockholm, in Sweden.

Gustav III's Pavilion is a royal pavilion at the Haga Park, 2 km north of Stockholm. As a highlight in Swedish art history, the Pavilion is a fine example of the European neoclassicism of the late 18th century in Northern Europe. Beside the Pavilion lie the "Sultan's Copper Tents", buildings designed to resemble big tents.

Stallbron bridge between Helgeandsholmen and Gamla stan in Stockholm, Sweden

Stallbron is an arch bridge located in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching some 20 meters over Stallkanalen it connects Riksgatan passing through the Parliament Building on Helgeandsholmen to the square Mynttorget on Stadsholmen from where Västerlånggatan extends it further south.

Slottsbacken is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden.

Högvaktsterrassen is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden passing west of Yttre Borgården, the outer court of the Stockholm Palace.

Mynttorget is a public square in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden.

Riddarhustorget is a public square in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden, named after its location in front of the House of Knights (Riddarhuset).

Slottskajen is a quay and a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden.

Louis Masreliez, born Adrien Louis Masreliez, was a French born, Swedish painter and interior designer.

The Obelisk at Slottsbacken is an obelisk monument adjacent to the Royal Palace on Slottsbacken in Old Town, Stockholm, Sweden. Unveiled in 1800, it commemorates the deeds of Stockholm's citizenry during the Russo-Swedish War. The obelisk is considered to be the very centre point of the Swedish capital city.

References

↑ "Gustav III*s Museum of Antiquties". Stockholm: Royal Court. Archived from the original on 2007-02-13. Retrieved 2007-02-19.
↑ Catrine Arvidsson (December 1999). "I djupa källarvalven - Museum Tre Kronor" (PDF). Kulturvärden (in Swedish) (4/99): 28–33. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 7, 2006. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
↑ "The Tre Kronor Museum". Stockholm: Royal Court. Archived from the original on 2007-02-14. Retrieved 2007-02-19.
1 2 Nils-Gustaf Stahre ... ; under medverkan av Börje Westlund ... (1992). "Innerstaden: Gamla stan". Stockholms gatunamn (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Kommittén för Stockholmsforskning. p. 59. ISBN 91-7031-042-4. OCLC 185885052.
↑ "Foucquet (Fouquet)". artnet (Grove Dictionary of Art). Retrieved 2007-02-18.
1 2 Anna Birath, Pedro Gandra (September 1997). "Kungens stenhus" (PDF). Kulturvärden (in Swedish) (3/97): 3–8. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2005. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
↑ "Nytt flugmöte funnet vid Lejonbacken" (PDF) (in Swedish). Statens Fastighetsverk. 2000-11-24. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-12-10. Retrieved 2007-02-19.
↑ "Kungliga Slottet i Stockholm är tänt" (in Swedish). Stockholm: Statens Fastighetsverk. 2006-03-30. Archived from the original on 2007-08-06. Retrieved 2007-02-18.

External links

Coordinates: 59°19′38.3″N18°04′15.9″E / 59.327306°N 18.071083°E / 59.327306; 18.071083

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[Court_GIII-gallery-1] "Gustav III*s Museum of Antiquties". Stockholm: Royal Court. Archived from the original on 2007-02-13. Retrieved 2007-02-19.

[2] Catrine Arvidsson (December 1999). "I djupa källarvalven - Museum Tre Kronor" (PDF). Kulturvärden (in Swedish) (4/99): 28–33. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 7, 2006. Retrieved 2007-02-18.

[Court_3crowns-3] "The Tre Kronor Museum". Stockholm: Royal Court. Archived from the original on 2007-02-14. Retrieved 2007-02-19.

[Gatunamn-4] 1 2 Nils-Gustaf Stahre ... ; under medverkan av Börje Westlund ... (1992). "Innerstaden: Gamla stan". Stockholms gatunamn (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Kommittén för Stockholmsforskning. p. 59. ISBN 91-7031-042-4. OCLC 185885052.

[artnet-5] "Foucquet (Fouquet)". artnet (Grove Dictionary of Art). Retrieved 2007-02-18.

[SFV-birath-6] 1 2 Anna Birath, Pedro Gandra (September 1997). "Kungens stenhus" (PDF). Kulturvärden (in Swedish) (3/97): 3–8. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2005. Retrieved 2007-02-18.

[SFV-loo-7] "Nytt flugmöte funnet vid Lejonbacken" (PDF) (in Swedish). Statens Fastighetsverk. 2000-11-24. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-12-10. Retrieved 2007-02-19.

[SFV-slottet-tant-8] "Kungliga Slottet i Stockholm är tänt" (in Swedish). Stockholm: Statens Fastighetsverk. 2006-03-30. Archived from the original on 2007-08-06. Retrieved 2007-02-18.