He was the son of architect
Heinrich Meldahl. He worked in his father's iron foundry and was also trained as a bricklayer. He joined the
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, where he was educated as an architect. He conducted several study trips to
Germany,
France,
Spain, the
Netherlands,
England,
Egypt and
Syria. As a member of the
municipal council of
Copenhagen Municipality for 27 years from 1866, Meldahl managed to significantly influence the city. In 1857, he became a member of the
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and in 1863 a professor at the academy. He was its manager from 1873 to 1890. In 1904, he was appointed a
Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order on the occasion of the visit of King
Edward VII of the United Kingdom. At the time he was Chamberlain to the King
Christian IX of Denmark and Vice President of the Danish Royal Academy of Arts. He was appointed Knight of the
Order of the Dannebrog (1861, Dannebrogsmand (1864), Commander of the 2nd degree of Dannebrog in (1874) and of the 1st degree that year and awarded the Cross of Honour of the Order of the Dannebrog (1904). ==Selected works==