The House of Three Kings

The event is known as the Three Kings Meeting. In 1914, the Scandinavian monarchs appeared together in Malmö solemnly declaring their unanimous intention to stay out of the Great War raging in Europe and to maintain neutrality. The situation was slightly awkward. Less than a decade earlier, the union between Sweden and Norway had been peacefully dissolved almost on the brink of war; there was still tension and resentment in both countries. Moreover, the relation between King Christan X of Denmark and King Haakon VII of Norway was a bit frosty. Born and bred a Danish prince, the Norwegian king, christened Carl, was the younger brother of the Danish king. His appointment to King of Norway under the name of Haakon clearly aroused some rivalry, a rather Shakespearean intrigue.

King Christian was in fact reluctant to come but his government urged him to go. So, off they went all three of them. Gustav V, whose initiative it was from the beginning, hosted the meeting in Malmö. The parley was unexpectedly painless, the three kings reached an agreement, received the people´s applause, cheers, and praise, and waved back from the balcony of the regional governor’s residence. Shortly afterwards, a balcony inspection uncovered serious issues. One more king would have proved disastrous.

The same afternoon, their Majesties paid visits to each other’s quarters. One of the encounters took place in Master Nils Street where Christian X resided in a flat owned by Mr. Herslow, a former speaker of the Swedish parliament. Thus, three kings met here on the 18th of December 1914. The building was subsequently referred to as the House of Three Kings, erected between 1904 and 1907, Jugend, Secession, Art Nouveau, Stile Floreale, Modern Style, or whatever you prefer, dark grey granite, red brick, and pale beige plaster, organic shapes, curved lines, bowed bay windows, rounded balconies with cast iron parapets, and the whole lot crowned by the entablement’s relief cornice, vaulted frontispieces, and ornamental plaster decoration.

A decade and a half ago, we opened up our Kvänum showroom in the venerable house, more specifically in the old office of a savings bank on the ground floor at the corner of quiet Master Nils Street and busy East Street, pole position we like to think, light and spacy premises where we have the pleasure of exposing our interiors. The back gives onto the serene surroundings of Saint Petri Church with paths and lawns. Now, let´s shut up shop for a short while and pay a visit to tenants in the house, like the kings did. The elevator, a salon with enough seats for a Royal deputation, has a metal-barred sliding door and a silver plaque commemorating the spectacular occasion in 1914. Madeleine and Henrik are on the third floor. They recently moved into the distinguished building, and they love it.

Despite thirty happy years in a villa suburb by the sea, there is no remorse. Living in a flat is so much easier. A house with a garden, a garage, sheds, a pool, and God knows what, is after all a constant worry; anything can happen. This is something else, you just lock the door and disappear for a couple of weeks. When you´re back, it´s like you never left, whereas in a house something unpredictable always occurs, says Henrik.

About a month, they thought. Once they got started, Madeleine and Henrik did things unthought of. A revolution is not a tea party, nor is a restoration. Take the flooring for example, says Henrik with a laughter followed by a deep sigh, a flood of flow screeds, and upon that a twelve thousand pieces fishbone patterned parquet of Havanna Brown oil stained oak, cigar hues in smoky tones, and so forth … It took nine months before they could move in. We´ve got no regrets whatsoever, says Madeleine

Oodles of light pour in through high windows. For their roomy and bright kitchen, Madeleine and Henrik chose Modern Classic Steneby the colour of Almond with exquisite handle Vide. Worktop and splash guard are limestone from Kinnekulle, lush Grey Nr 5L, and above, our precious Vide antique stained oak rails for utensils run two in a row. Leaning towards the end wall, although the apartment seems endless, is our stained oak sky-high Jacob’s ladder. It sure came handy the other day, says Henrik, as the ceiling is three and half metres up.

The classic Kvänum kitchen island has a full stave worktop of antique oiled Royal oak from Visingsö. As if all this was not enough, they also settled for the Steneby vitrine in colour Ax with lined glass sliding doors and recessed brass handles. Last but not least they got hooked on our irresistible stained oak plate-shelf; their china from Rörstrand portraying the three kings in blue on white are not on display, though. Kitchen light armature is Megafon from Tyringe designed by Jesper Ståhl, and the bench gracefully following the curved wall is fine carpentry. I´ve fantasised of one day being able to stack up my grandkids in it while preparing goodies, says Madeleine. Now I do.

On the whole, their furnishing is modern Swedish, Danish, and Finnish design, blonde woods and textiles in a calming and soothing tonality. No signal colours, says Henrik, sharp red, yellow, or green. We´re more down to earth, Madeleine adds, nature’s own colours, soil, sand, moss, terra, ochre, umber. The hallway’s floor of patinised graphite grey tiles with white geometric figures is a find from the restoration, hidden beneath the old planks. It was like discovering a treasure, says Henrik. The pattern is very likely influenced by legendary Wiener Werkstätte.

It may be one of the smaller flats of the house, but it is still a grand apartment, roughly the size of two hundred square metres. As a visitor, you easily get lost. Large rooms flow, one into the other, through openings with sliding doors and a skirting of moulded pedestals and ornate architraves. Off-white doors have straight mirrors and shiny brass mountings, ceilings have stucco cornices and roses.

Dormitories and studies are located like compartments along a corridor with a black and white checkered carpet signalling Wiener Secession. Sides are covered with Rebel Wall’s landscape motifs, leaves of grass, plants, tree trunks, foliage, horizon, and sky seemingly widening the narrow passage, a graphic greenery again saluting Art Nouveau, Secession, Jugend, or Stile Floreale. In a couple of rooms, tapestries depict withering walls, a state of beauty in decay; it is endearingly theatrical and evocative.

Master bedroom, as well as a guest room, has our elegant Ekeby Sand wardrobes and storage with handle Vide. And it ain’t over yet. Bathroom cabinets and drawers are stylish Ramel the colour of Chocolate, once more with handle Vide, a recurring theme throughout the flat. An absolutely delightful original window mosaic picturing a commedia dell´arte character, we cannot account for. But Henrik is rightfully enthusiastic about their well-equipped compact laundry and its marvels, such as a lifting drying rack and a pocket door, items we do take credit for.