Graham Davey, Grwp Gyfarwyddwr / Group Director
Adfywio Cymunedol ac Economaid / Economic and Community Regeneration
Powysland Museum Amgueddfa Powysland and Montgomery Canal Centre a Chanolfan Gamlas Maldwyn
The Canal Wharf "The Canal Wharf"
Welshpool Y Trallwng
Powys SY21 7AQ Powys SY21 7AQ
Tel. 01938 554656 Rhif ffôn 01938 554656
Curator : Eva Bredsdorff Curadur : Eva Bredsdorff
Official opening Saturday the 1 st of May 2004
Open to the public from the 2 nd
of May to the 30 th
of August
Powysland Museum is proud and honoured to be able to present its most ambitious exhibition ever, bringing together many items never before seen in Great Britain.
The international exhibition, tracing the fascinating life and history of Denmark’s
Caroline Mathilde, is the inspiration of Powysland’s Danish-born curator Eva
Bredsdorff, who has gathered objects, paintings and documents from 11 Danish,
German and British museums and archives.
The little-known princess Caroline Mathilde (1751-75), youngest sister of King
George III of Great Britain, married the Danish King Christian VII in 1766. Together they had a son, later King Frederik VI. Sadly Christian VII was insane and the young queen fell in love with the king’s doctor, Johann Friedrich Struensee from Germany, who took on more and more power until he virtually ruled the country in the King’s name. A coup by other members of the Danish royal family, old politicians, members of the nobility and parts of the army stopped Struensee’s power.

While the doctor and his best friend were beheaded, Queen Caroline Mathilde was kept at Kronborg Castle near Elsinore until King George III sent three ships to escort her to Celle, near Hanover in Germany. Sadly she had to leave both her son and the daughter she had had with Struensee in Denmark. She died in Celle three years later.
Museum curator Eva Bredsdorff explains: “Most Danes will know the tragic story of this young woman, married to a mad king, in love with his doctor, separated from her children, banished to Germany and dying at the age of twenty-three. Yet in this country – her birthplace – she is virtually unknown.
Being Danish-born I felt it was a shame that more people here were not familiar with this British princess. It was partly for this reason and partly because her life story is so fascinating and relevant even today that I decided to stage an exhibition on her life.”
The exhibition offers visitors a unique opportunity to view these rare items together for the first time in this country, and would not have been possible without a generous grant of £45,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund Your Heritage scheme, and funding from Powys County Council.
Prof Tom Pritchard, Chair of HLF Wales, said, “This has been a unique opportunity for Powysland Museum to make its mark in an area of British history that has tended to be overlooked.
“It’s both a demonstration of the authority and resourcefulness of our Welsh museums, and further evidence of innovation in devising ways of supporting the community through attracting visitors”, he concluded.
The following institutions have most generously lent a large number of artefacts, portraits and documents for the exhibition:
 The Royal Danish Collections, Copenhagen
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The State Archives, Copenhagen
The Royal Library, Copenhagen
The Danish Museum of Decorative Art, Copenhagen
The Royal Collection of Coins and Medals, The National Museum of
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Denmark
Hørsholm Egns Museum
The Bomann-Museum, Celle
The Royal Collection, London
The British Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum
 The National Portrait Gallery
Editor’s notes:
Opening hours
Weekdays (except Wednesday): 11am-1pm and 2-5pm
Weekends 10am-1pm and 2-5pm
ADMISSION FREE
Extra information enclosed
For further details please contact the curator Eva Bredsdorff on 01938 554656