Thursday, October 20, 2011

Hamlet's Kronborg Castle - 2 minutes of ancient Danish culture



"Hamlet's" Krongborg Slot (Castle) in Helsingør (Elsinore), 50 kilometers north of Copenhagen. Built in 1420, but rebuilt by King Christian IV in 1639 after a fire. It looks out to Sweden from across the shortest gap of the sound seperating the kingdoms.

This is the castle Shakespeare is thought to have visited in the 1580's, when English actors performed there, after which he wrote Hamlet.

Highly strategic during countless wars, including Cold War, since this is the narrowest gap for ships sailing from the Baltic into the north Atlantic.

Mythological Holger the Dane (roots go back to the 7th century) "sleeps" here, and awakens only when Denmark is in danger.

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