Lensgreve is the name of the highest noble rank in
Denmark
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, song_type = National and royal anthem
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, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
, and refers to a count (''greve'') holding an estate with the status of a (len)
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
. They rank above ordinary (titular)
counts
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
, and their position in the Danish aristocracy as the highest-ranking noblemen is broadly comparable to that of
dukes
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...
in other European countries.
[Ferdinand Christian Herman von Krogh: ''Den høiere danske Adel. En genealogisk Haandbog'', C. Steen & søn, 1866]
The rank was introduced in 1671 by a regulation establishing
counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
and
baronies.
References
Danish noble titles