The medieval royal castle
In 1167, Bishop Absalon had his castle built on the island next to the harbour of the merchants. Since then, the isle of Slotsholmen has been of great importance although some of the most important royal Danish towns in the Middle Age were Vordingborg in southern Zealand and Kalundborg in western Zealand. Medieval royal families used to be travelling, but they lived here when in Copenhagen. Slotsholmen and thereby Copenhagen was the fixed address for the regent at the time of Christoffer of Bayern time, and from 1448 his successor, Christian I, ensured that the administration of the country was moved to the city. There is public admittance to the royal reception rooms at Christiansborg Castle, and beneath the castle you can see the ruins of the medieval castle and the circular wall built of chalk from Stevns and the inner yard.
Read more about the ruins beneath Christiansborg here
The present Christiansborg
The third Christiansborg came into use in 1928, but changes have been made since then. The newest addition is the decoration of the Great Hall with the 17 tapestries by the Danish artist Bjørn Nørgaard, recounting the history of Denmark and the royal family through 1000 years. The tapestries were a gift to the Danish Queen Margrethe, and it took 10 years to finish the work of art. The rooms functions as a presentday “castle” and are used for official banquets.