Early history Assistenshuset was created at the initiative of the merchant Nicolai Wesling. He applied to the
Danish Chancellery for a
royal privilege to operate a pawnbroking establishment with inspiration from abroad. On 3 August 1688,
Christian V issued a royal ordinance for the establishment of an "Assistance House". Wesling's pawn shop was located in a building at the corner of
Nyhavn and
Kvæsthusgade. He died in November 1698. His
widow, Maren Iversdatter, received permission to continue the operations on 31 January 1698 but died just a few months later. The license was then passed on to Diderik Frandsen Klevenow who moved the pawn shop to a property in
Frederiksborggade. In 1699, it was decided that part of the profits should be allocated to
Børnehuset and the city's poorhouses.
The royal pawnbroking establishment in 1840 After a turbulent period with several competing applicants, the license was taken over by director of
Søkvæsthuset and councilman Steffen Heger and merchant Diderich Munch and Assistenshuset was converted into a state-run establishment under Søkvæsthuset by royal ordinance of 29 June 1753 (Forordning om Assistantz-Huuset i Kiøbenhavn 29. juni 1753). It was now moved to a building at the corner of Store Færgestræde (now
Højbro Plads) and Store Kirkestræde. The opening hours were eight to 12 am and 14 to 19 p, pm Sundays in the summer time and nine to 13 and 14 to 16 pm in the winter time. The new manager was Jens Hansen Løwe who had also worked for the old pawn shop. :
Pawn House manager Holm In 1758, Assistenshuset moved to a three-winged building at the corner of Nybrogade, Manoløs and Snaregade. It had been constructed for burgermaster
Christian Berregård in 1730-32 after his house at the site had been destroyed in the
Copenhagen Fire of 1729. His son sold the property to Adrian Kiøbke in 1754. In 1755, it had been acquired by two French hatters, Jean Jaques Douihac and Jaques Cuny, who had used it for manufacture and sale of hats. in 1907 In 1765, Assistenshuset commissioned
Philip de Lange to expand the complex with a new wing on Nybrogade. The neighbouring building, known as
Pæretræet, was acquired by the institution in 1792. It was used as residence for its director. In the 1850s and 1860s, Assistenshuset was subject to public criticism and several participants in the public debate argued in favour of a liberalization of the pawnbroking market. The institution was separated from Søkvæsthuet in 1860 and the regulation was revised several times.
Late years and closure in 1907 In 1935, Assistenshuset achieved a
de facto monopoly on pawnbroking. In 1961, Assistenshuset's head office moved to Svanevej in
Nørrebro and its nine branch offices closed. Assistenshuset closed in 1975. ==The building today==