Gamlehaugen is a mansion in Bergen, Norway, and the residence of the Norwegian Royal Family in the city.

Gamlehaugen has a history that goes as far back as the Middle Ages, and the list of previous owners includes many of the wealthiest men in Bergen. Today owned by the Norwegian state, the most recent private owner was Christian Michelsen, a politician and shipping magnate who later became the first Prime Minister of Norway after the dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway. Michelsen commissioned the construction of the current main building at Gamlehaugen, where he would live for most of the rest of his life. When Michelsen died in 1925, his closest friends and colleagues started a national fund-raising campaign that brought in enough money to allow the Norwegian state to purchase the property.

The large English park was opened to the public the same year, and the first floor of the house was opened as a museum two years later. Gamlehaugen has been the Norwegian Royal Family's residence in Bergen since 1927. Gamlehaugen was the site of a farm as early as the Middle Ages, but it was abandoned as a result of the Black Death. In 1665, it once again became farmland, as part of the larger Fjøsanger manor. In 1809, Gamlehaugen was separated from Fjøsanger. 

The park was designed as an English garden, adhering to the natural lines and curves of the landscape. The alley which today leads from the main road to the mansion is a baroque element, unfamiliar to the garden as a whole. The park has been open to the public since the state acquired it in 1925. The fruit trees and bushes which were planted when the park was first laid out all died soon after, but the park still contains many of the original trees, several of which are from before Christian Michelsen acquired Gamlehaugen. The park is still a popular recreation ground, especially due to its location next to Nordåsvannet, which allows for bathing and other water activities. The stable is a red building located next to the road. It was originally located near the caretaker's house, which had to be demolished in 1986 when the rock it was built on was blasted away to make room for the widening of the main road. Directly west of the stable is an unused root cellar. Further west, on the other side of the main building, is a greenhouse, currently used by the janitorial crew. While the greenhouse is relatively small, a larger greenhouse is known to have existed at some point during the time Michelsen was the owner of Gamlehaugen. Finally, a boathouse, built c. 1900, can be found by the waterside in the far north of the property. The property originally contained several additional buildings; the most recent ones to be demolished, apart from the caretaker's house, are a gardener's house, demolished in 1972, and a bath house, demolished in the 1950s, both of which stood by the waterside.


Source of description: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamlehaugen wikipedia
Price definition of price normal : 70.00
Geographical coordinates 60.3425610, 5.3369580
Address 5231 Bergen, Gamlehaugvegen
Construction dates 1899 - 1900
More information official website

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