Hagestedgaard is a manor house and estate located at the village of Hagested, near

Holbæk Holbæk () is a town in Denmark and the County seat, seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 30,903 (1 January 2025).Holbæk Municipality Holbæk Municipality () is a '' kommune'' in northwestern Region Sjælland on the island of Zealand in Denmark. The municipality includes the island of Orø, and covers an area of 583 km², and has a total population of 74,490 (2025). Its may ...

, some 60 kilometres west of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. The estate traces its history back to the 13th century but the current asymmetrical complex of single-storey, white-washed buildings surrounding a central courtyard was constructed for

Hans Didrik Brinck-Seidelin Hans Diderik de Brinck-Seidelin (1 August 1720 - 5 March 1778) was a Danish Supreme Court justice and landowner who was raised to the peerage under the name Brinck-Seidelin in 1753. He owned the estates Hagestedgård (1748-1769), Holbæk Ladeg ...

in 1747 with the exception of the remains of a tower built by Johan Friis in 1555. The estate has been owned by members of the Castenskiold family since 1769.

History

Early history

In the

Danish Census Book The Danish Census Book or the Danish book of land taxation (, ) dates from the 13th century and consists of a number of separate manuscripts. The original manuscripts are now housed in the Danish National Archives (''Rigsarkivet'') in Copenhage ...

, Hagested is recorded as crown land. Little is known about the early history of the estate, but it was managed as a fief. The fiefholders ('' lensmand'') included Peder Jensen Pilegrim (1347), Markvard Tiinhuus (1502= and Otte Tiinhuus (1521 and 1540).

Friis, Guitfeld and Thott

In 1540, Hagestedgaard was passed to Chancellor Johan Friis in exchange for property in

Odsherred Odsherred is a peninsula in the north-western part of the island Zealand (Sjælland) in Denmark. Odsherred stretches from the Sjællands Odde in the north-west to the now drained Lammefjord in the south, covering an area with a wide range of the ...

. He was also granted ''

jus patronatus The right of patronage (in Latin ''jus patronatus'' or ''ius patronatus'') in Roman Catholic canon law is a set of rights and obligations of someone, known as the patron in connection with a gift of land (benefice). It is a grant made by the chu ...

'' of the local Hagested Church. Christen Friis remained unmarried. After his death, Hagestedgaard passed to his relative Christian Friis of Borreby. He did not have any children either. On his death in 1616, Hagestedgaard was therefore passed to his nephew Henrik Huitfeldt til Lillø. His daughter Lisbeth (died 1638) was married to Henrik Thott. In 1630m he succeeded his father-in-law as the owner of the estate. The ravages and looting of Swedish troops during the Dano-Swedish War economically ruined Thott.

Thomas and Caspar Bartholin, 1658–1704

In 1663, Thott had to sell Hagestedgård to

Thomas Bartholin Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

. Bartholin, who was just 44 years old at the time, retired from the university and settled on the estate. The main building, rectory and eight farmhouses were destroyed by fire in 1670. Bartholin's vast library and many of his works were lost. As compensation,

Christian V Christian V (15 April 1646 – 25 August 1699) was King of Denmark and Norway from 1670 until his death in 1699. Well-regarded by the common people, he was the first king anointed at Frederiksborg Castle chapel as absolute monarch since the de ...

granted him tax exemption, contributed with building materials for the rebuilding of the house and appointed him as court physician. Bartholin's son Caspar Bartholin took over the estate after his father's death. He sold the estate to Laurits Jacobsen in 1575 but reacquired it in 1695.

Changing owners, 1704–1740

In 1704, Hagestedgaard was acquired by Ursula von Putbus . She had become a widow after the death of her husband Knud Thott in October 1702. Ole Bornamann (1673-1725), a district judge of Zealand and

Møn Møn () is an island in south-eastern Denmark. Until 1 January 2007, it was a municipality in its own right but it is now part of the municipality of Vordingborg Municipality, Vordingborg, after merging with the former municipalities of Langeb ...

and the owner of Nørager at

Kalundborg Kalundborg () is a Danish city with a population of 16,659 (1 January 2025), In 1711, Hagestedgaard was sold in public auction. The buyer was

Peder Benzon Peder Benzon (26 July 1684 – after 13 May 1735) was a Denmark, Danish landowner and Supreme Court justice. He was the owner of seven manors on Zealand at the time of his death in 1735. Early life Bentzon was born in Copenhagen, the son of Danis ...

, another district judge. acquired the estate in 1712. He purchased Gjeddesdal from his brother

Lars Benzon Lars Benzon (July 21, 1687 – October 5, 1741) was a landowner and a Deputy Director (''deputeret'') in the General Affairs Commission of the Danish Royal Navy. Biography Lars Benzon was born at Sæbygård Manor on the island of Zealand, Denma ...

in 1714 and sold Hagestedgaard to him in 1715. In 1725, Lars Benzon sold Hagestedgaard to civil servant and poet Willum Worm (1698-1737). Just two years later, he sold it to Rachel Sophie Marschalk Fletscher.

1740–1769: The Seidelin family

Hans Seidelin purchased Hagestedgård in 1730. A favourite of the new king Christian VI, he had just been appointed to Post Master-General of the Royal Danish Mail, Director of the Royal Vajsen House and judge at the Hofretten. The purchase of Hagestedgård emphasized his new position in society and he was ennobled the following year. Seidelin's son, Hans Hansen Seidelin, who inherited Hagestedgård in 1740, had no male heirs. After his death, Hagestedgård was therefore endowed to his nephew,

Hans Diderik Brinck-Seidelin Hans Diderik de Brinck-Seidelin (1 August 1720 - 5 March 1778) was a Danish Supreme Court justice and landowner who was raised to the peerage under the name Brinck-Seidelin in 1753. He owned the estates Hagestedgård (1748-1769), Holbæk Ladeg ...

y. In 1752, Brinck-Seidelin founded Stamhuset Hagested (a family trust) from the estates of Hagestedgaard,

Holbæk Ladegård Holbæk Ladegård is a former manor house at Holbæk, Denmark. It is now home to Kunsthøjskolen, a folk high school specializing in art programmes. Holbæk Ladegård was for centuries a home farm under Holbæk Castle, which was built to protect ...

and

Eriksholm Eriksholm Castle is a manor house located at the foot of the Isefjord inlet, 6 km south-east of Holbæk, in east Denmark. The history of the estate dates back to 1400 but today's house was built in 1788 to a Neoclassical design by Caspar F ...

. Hagestedgaards was, however, with royal approbation, already sold in 1769.

1769–present: The Castenschiold family

The new owner was

Carl Adolph von Castenschiold Carl Adolph Castenschiold (1740 – 30 July 1820) was a Danish landowner and royal official. He owned the Knabstrup Manor and Hagestedgaard estates, and was the brother of Joachim Castenschiold. Early life Castenschiold was born on St. Thomas in ...

. His son, Christian Ludvig Castenschiold sold Hagestedgaard to his cousin Casper Holten Grevencop-Castenschiold in 1825, due to economic difficulties. His son of the same name (1809-1882), who inherited the estate in 1854, sold the tenant farms to the tenants on favourable conditions. He had one son and three daughters. One of the daughters, Severine Jacobine Grevencop-Castenschiold, married the prominent archaeologist

Jens Jacob Asmussen Worsaae Jens Jacob Asmussen Worsaae (14 March 1821 – 15 August 1885) was a Danish archaeologist, historian and politician, who was the second director of the National Museum of Denmark (1865–1874). He played a key role in the foundation of scientifi ...

. The couple did not own the estate but lived there for extended periods of time. Worsaae died there in 1885. Hagestedgaard vintage photo

Grevencop-Castenschiold's widow, Cathrine Marie Louise Grevencop-Castenschiold, née Jensen, kept Hagestedgaard until 1901. The estate was then passed on to their son, Casper Holten Jens Peter Grevenkop-Castenskiold (1845-1937). His only child, Addie Grevenkop-Castenskiold (1878-1963), married Baron Wilhelm Lerche (1857-1916), a son of Count Vilhelm Cornelius Magnus Lerche of Birkendegaard, on 19 May 1908. She inherited Hagestedgaard in 1937. Her only child, Esther, Baroness Lerche, who had been born on the estate in 1909 (died 1986), married

Frants Hvass Frants Hvass (29 April 1896 - 21 December 1982) was a Danish diplomat. Early life and education Hvass was born in Copenhagen, the son of barrister Anders Hvass (1858–1916) and Anna Augusta S. E. Hvass née Saxild (1864–1955). He graduated fro ...

(1896-1982), a diplomat, on 17 September 1949. She bought the Hagestedgaard estate from her mother in 1953. She passed the estate on to their son Anders Michael Hvass om 1975. He was a chamberlain and Master of the Hunt (''Hofjægermester'').

Architecture

Most of the buildings seen today were built for Hans Didrik Brinck-Seidelin in 1748. It is an asymmetrical complex of single-storey, white-washed buildings surrounding a central courtyard. The buildings are built with timber framing on foundations of fieldstone and have roofs clad with winged, red tile. The main wing is located on the west side of the courtyard and incorporates the remains of a tower and a barrel-vaulted cellar built by Johan Friis in 1555. The tower has a pyramid roof. To the east of the central courtyard are two L-shaped residential wings surrounding an extra courtyard. Two small pavilions with half-hip roofs are located on the north side of the central courtyard.

Today

The current owner is Henning Hvass. The estate covers 555 hectares of land of which 336 hectares are farmland, eng 84 hectares are pastures and 89 hectares are Forest.

List of owners

* ( -1540) The Crown * (1540-1570) Johan Friis * (1570-1586) Frederik Friis * (1570-1586) Christian Friis * (1586- ) Henrik Huitfeldt * ( -1663) Henrik Thott * (1663-1680)

* (1680-1686) Caspar Bartholin * (1686-1695) Laurits Jacobsen * (1695-1704) Caspar Bartholin * (1704-1709) Ursula von Putbus * (1709-1712) Ole Bornemann * (1712-1715)

* (1715-1725)

* (1725-1727) Willum Worm * (1727-1730) Rachel Sophie Marschalk Fletscher * (1730-1740) Hans Seidelin * (1740-1748) Hans Hansen Seidelin * (1748-1769)

* (1769-1818)

* (1818-1825) Christian Ludvig Castenschiold * (1825-1854) Casper Holten Grevencop-Castenschiold * (1854-1880) Casper Holten Grevencop-Castenschiold * (1880-1901) Cathrine Marie Louise Grevencop-Castenschiold, née Jensen * (1901-1937) Caspar Holten Jens Peter Grevencop-Castenschiold * (1937-1953) Addie Cathrine Juliane Lerche, née Grevencop-Castenskiold * (1953-1975) Esther Hvass, née Lerche * (1975- ) Anders Michael Hvass * (2012–present) Henning Hvass

References

External links

{{Commons
Hagestedgaard
aerial view
Source
Listed castles and manor houses in Denmark Listed buildings and structures in Holbæk Municipality Manor houses in Holbæk Municipality Buildings and structures of the Friis family Buildings and structures of the Bartholin family Buildings and structures of the Benzon family Buildings and structures of the Castenschiold family Buildings and structures of the Lerche family