Frederiks Kirke

Commonly known as Marmorkirken (The Marble Church), this massive copper-domed landmark sits directly on the axis of Amalienborg. While it looks like an ancient Roman monument, its history is defined by financial ruin and a century of abandonment.

King Frederik V laid the foundation stone in 1749 as part of his grand plan for the Frederiksstaden district. The original architect, Nicolai Eigtved, envisioned a structure made entirely of Norwegian marble. It was meant to be the crown jewel of the city—a soaring Baroque monument to the Oldenburg dynasty.

The project was a financial disaster almost immediately. Within 20 years, the skyrocketing costs of imported marble and the death of the King led the government to halt construction in 1770. For the next 124 years, the church sat as a hollow, weed-grown "Marble Ruin" in the middle of Copenhagen. It became such an eyesore that several plans were proposed to demolish it or turn it into a gasworks.

The church was only finished in 1894, thanks to C.F. Tietgen, a powerful Danish industrialist and financier. He bought the ruins from the state on the condition that he would finish the church at his own expense.

However, marble was still too expensive. To save money, the upper sections were completed using Danish limestone and painted to look like marble. The massive dome, inspired by St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, was clad in copper, which has since developed its signature green patina.Read more