Skovsbo Castle is a

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

located 6 km south-west of

Kerteminde Kerteminde (nickname: ''Min Amandas by'', i.e. ''My Amanda's town''), is a town in central Denmark, located in Kerteminde Municipality on the island of Funen. The town has a population of 6,042 (1 January 2022).

, on

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

. The main building dates from the 1570s and is built in the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

style.

History

Skovsbo traces its history back to the 14th century. The castle seen today was built from 1572 to 1579 for privy councillor Erik Hardenberg (1534-1604). Some of the land was sold off in lots in 1914. Skovsby was in 2006 acquired by Jens Belling for circa FKK 66.5 million- In 2020, it was sold to

Thomas Kirk Kristiansen Thomas Kirk Kristiansen (born 18 February 1979) is a Danish fourth-generation owner of The Lego Group. Together with his father Kjeld, and sisters Agnete and Sofie, they split ownership of a 75% stake in the company. Among the children of Kj ...

Architecture

Built in the

style, with

Dutch gable A Dutch gable or Flemish gable is a gable whose sides have a shape made up of one or more curves and has a pediment at the top. The gable may be an entirely decorative projection above a flat section of roof line, or may be the termination of a ...

s, Skovsbo consists of two floors over a vaulted basement and an octagonal staircase tower with a spire to the west. An appendix in the south-eastern corner, with a second staircase, dates from the original house while another appendix built to a similar design at the north-eastern corner was added in 1891 by the architect

August Klein August Klein (1870-1913) was an architect of Germany, German origin, who worked in Vilnius. from 1891 till 1896 studied in Saint Petersburg. Among his prominent works are Vileišis Palace, completed in 1906, and Church of the Exaltation of the Ho ...

(1839-1902).

Skovsbo Crufifix

Across the road from Skovsbo stands a roadside crucifix which was installed in about 1600 by Anna Rønnow, the wife of Erik Hardenberg, who unlike her husband was a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. It is the second oldest roadside crucifix in Denmark, second only to the Crucifix of Holy Anders near Slagelse.

Notable people

Agnes Henningsen Agnes Kathinka Malling Henningsen (18 November 1868 – 21 April 1962) was a Danish writer and an activist for sexual freedom. Her writings were centred on love and sex, as was her own life. Biography Henningsen was born on the Skovsbo estate i ...

(1868–1962) a Danish writer and an activist for sexual freedom; she was born on the Skovsbo estate where her father was the farmer.

Skovsbo today

The estate covers 183 hectares of land. It is privately owned and was sold in 2006 for the price of DKK 66.5 million.

List of owners

* (1359-1369) Tue Nielsen Bild * (1369-1410) Niels Tuesen Bild * (1410-1450) Tove Andersdatter Hvide gift Bild * (1450-1452) Johanne Nielsdatter Bild gift Lykke * (1452-1458) Peder Lykke * (1458-1480) Niels Lykke * (1480-1541) Joachim Lykke * (1541-1562) Peder Lykke * (1562-1565) Eiler Hardenberg * (1565-1604) Erik Hardenberg * (1604-1609) Anne Eilersdatter Rønnow gift Hardenberg * (1609) Mette Eriksdatter Hardenberg gift Gyldenstierne * (1609-1616) Preben Gyldenstierne * (1616-1629) Mette Eriksdatter Hardenberg gift Gyldenstierne * (1629-1640) Knud Gyldenstierne * (1640-1669) Henrik Gyldenstierne *(1669-1680) Lisbeth Podebusk gift Gyldenstierne * (1680-1689) Erik Lykke / Claus Brockenhuus / Eiler Brockenhuus * (1689-1694) Erik Lykke / Claus Brockenhuus * (1694-1701) Erik Lykke * (1701-1705) Øllegaard Sehested gift (1) Lykke (2) Rosenkrantz * (1705-1736) Christian Rosenkrantz * (1736-1767) Frederikke Louise Krag gift Rosenkrantz * (1767-1769) Hans Berg * (1769-1803) Olave Marie Lange gift Berg * (1803-1824) Jens Magnus Berg * (1824-1844) Johanne Francisca von Westen gift Berg * (1844-1851) Christian von Westen Berg * (1851-1853) Enke Fru von Westen Berg * (1853-1865) F. C. G. Busck * (1865-1874) Frederik Ludvig Vilhelm lensgreve Ahlefeldt-Laurvig * (1874-1912) Julius Ludvig greve Ahlefeldt-Laurvig-Bille * (1912-1914) Jessie baronesse Bille-Brahe gift Ahlefeldt-Laurvig-Bille * (1914) Udstykningsforening For Sjælland Og Fyns Stifter * (1914) P. Christensen * (1914-1915) Mejeriejer Jensen * (1915-1916) Mads Larsen * (1916-1923) K. Brandt * (1923-1946) Kai Gustav Hamann * (1946-1972) Aage Johannes Fast * (1972-2006) Per Haustrup Normann * (2006-2020) Jens Belling * (2020-present)

References

{{Denmark castles and manor houses Houses completed in 1579 Manor houses in Denmark Renaissance architecture in Denmark Castles in the Region of Southern Denmark Listed buildings and structures in Kerteminde Municipality Buildings and structures of the Gyldenstierne family Buildings and structures of the Ahlefeldt family