Villa Helene
NextThe history of Villa Helene
Svend Aage Mørkvig writes about the property Helene in his book “Jægersborg – from crown estate to urban area”. On the corner of Jægersborg Alle and Ermelundsvej lies a beautiful patrician building that has been a listed building since 1945. However, it has not been listed since 2002. Together with the equally listed Jægerborg Hotel, Villa Helene constitutes a veritable port to Jægersborg Alle and the neighbourhood’s many other listed properties. The main building is a one-storey white building with a manzard style roof that has remained unchanged after rebuilding and renovation was carried out in 1918 according to Mogens Clemmensen’s instructions. The building was built in approx. 1830. In 1847 it was acquired by C. L. Erichsen M Sc. , via a conveyance made by the commissioner of public sales, who made over the property to the restaurant owner H. Henrichsen in 1871. After only 4 years the property was bought by restaurant owner Lars Larsen who then sold it to Professor Arnold Krogh in 1892 who built a big veranda and had a number of improvements made.
In 1900, the property was taken over by the French, Orléan born, Princess Marie, who married Christian IX’s son, Prince Valdemar in 1885. When the 44 year old Princess died in 1909, Prince Valdemar took over the property. In 1915, the property was sold to Captain of the Royal Horseguards, Count Eigil Valdemar Knuth, who worked at Jægersborg barracks. In 1918 he expanded the main building by approx. 30% according to Mogens Clemmesen’s project giving the house the appearance as we know it today.
One of Count Knuth’s children, who had spent a happy childhood at Ermelundsvej 101, was the next eldest son, sculptor, author, artist and Greenland traveller, PhD in Sociology, Count Eigil Knuth, who visited his childhood home shortly before his death in 1996.
Count E.V. Knuth, who died in 1933, had already sold the property in 1920 to Hotel Director, Ernst Michaelsen, who in the same year also bought the neighbouring property, Schaeffergaarden. In 1920, Ernst Michaelsen allowed the large piece of land to be divided into two plots from which the present Jægersborg Alle 166A was parcelled out. Afterwards he donated Count Knuth’s extended main building and an larger stable, situated up close to the boundary to Schaeffergaarden, to Copenhagen’s local municipality, who , after rebuilding would use both buildings for a home for elderly women entitled to old age pension mainly for those who had been in service with a family for at least 15 years. The home opened on 7 July 1922 and housed 21 housemates. The home was named after Michaelsen’s mor, widow Helene Michaelsen, née Heymann, and was consequently named: Helene Michaelsen’s home for elderly women.
In 1930 a connecting corridor was built between the two buildings and a wall built up towards Ermelundsvej so the elderly ladies andstaff could walk dry shod between the two buildings. This connecting corridor is still there today. After 56 years, the old people’s home closed down in 1978 and the elderly ladies were moved to a nursing home in Copenhagen called the “De gamles By” very much against their will. The property then stood unused for a few years but in 1981-1982 it was taken over by the Ministry of Transport and was used by the Danish Road Safety Council. The main building and the former residential wing that are both from approx. 1830 were listed in 1945. Of the old houses on Ermelundvejs, the majority were built in 1920, though a number of houses were built in 1940-1960s’. From 1927 a road ran from Ermelundsvej towards the east, “Soløsevej” named after the south easterly edge of Ermelunden. Dating back from the old days, at the edge of the wood, north of Soløsevej, runs the path “Ermelunden” towards the west and into Lyngby and “Soløsestien” towards the east along “Enghaverenden” until it reaches Klampenborgvej. These paths are essentially used as riding paths. The Foundation of Danish-Norwegian Cooperation bought the property on 1 May 2001.
