Nykøbing Castle

Nykøbing Castle, known in Danish as Nykøbing Slot, once stood where Slotsbryggen is today in Nykøbing Falster. It was a royal palace rebuilt and expanded in the Renaissance style around 1594, taking the place of an earlier structure that dated back to the 12th century. The castle was traditionally the home of Denmark’s queen dowagers, and it also hosted a number of key political gatherings.

The original need for a castle came from the unstable conditions in the Baltic Sea. The earliest version likely appeared in the second half of the 12th century. In 1253, Lübeckers took it over and burned Nykøbing. From 1264 to 1282, Christopher I’s widow, Margrethe Sambiria—known for her lively character and skill as a rider—lived there. In 1289, Stig Andersen Hvide and his men stormed the building. Christopher II seized it in 1320, but twelve years later he was captured and imprisoned there, dying in the castle in 1332.

The castle frequently served as a venue for political meetings. In 1365, a peace was made there between Valdemar IV and the Hanseatic League. In 1399, Queen Margrethe and the League agreed on joint action against the Victual Brothers. In 1507, the “Nykøbing Recess” ended a dispute between King Hans and the Hanseatic towns. Because the surrounding area offered good hunting, various kings often stayed there. It also housed dowager queens such as Dorothea of Brandenburg, widow of Christian I.

The medieval castle gradually fell into decay. King Frederik II and his wife Queen Sophie saw the need for a new building. In 1587, on the advice of Sophie’s parents, a Dutch architect—though not Philip Brandin, as is sometimes claimed—came to Nykøbing and designed a new Renaissance-style castle. When the king died unexpectedly the next year, his young widow took charge of construction, funded by the crown estates of Lolland and Falster. Sophie lived there until her death in 1631. The castle then passed to her grandson, Prince Christian, and his wife Magdalene Sibylle. Christian hosted many parties with music and dance, created a large garden with exotic plants and bulbs, and expanded the stables for his many horses. From 1642 to 1645, he improved the town’s fortifications with ramparts, moats, and bastions.

After Christian died in 1647, the castle was used only occasionally by other Danish queen dowagers.