Aalholm, also Aalholm Castle ( da, Aalholm Slot), is a castle and country estate in

Nysted Nysted is a town in Guldborgsund Municipality in Region Zealand on the southeastern coast of the island of Lolland in south Denmark. Nysted is located on the southern coast of Lolland, and has a population of 1,292 (1 January 2022).

in the municipality of Guldborgsund, on the south coast of the island of Lolland,

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 ...

. It is the oldest castle on the island, first mentioned in 1329. The main building was built in 1300–1585, with major rebuilding especially in 1768 and in 1889 under

Hans Jørgen Holm Hans Jørgen Holm (9 May 1835 – 22 July 1916) was a Danish architect. A pupil of Johan Daniel Herholdt, he became a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and a leading Danish proponent of the National Romantic style. Biograph ...

and Gotfred Tvede. Inscriptions in the building show that it was originally completed in 1585.

History

The castle was initially the seat of the king's vassal or ''lensmand'', and thus the centre of local government. It is not known when the castle was founded, but for historical reasons, it was probably around 1200. During this period, a number of royal castles were built across the country to strengthen the king's power in the regions and guard against attack. They include

Koldinghus Koldinghus is a Danish royal castle in the town of Kolding on the south central part of the Jutland peninsula. The castle was founded in the 13th century and was expanded since with many functions ranging from fortress, royal residency, ruin, mus ...

, Riberhus,

Copenhagen Castle Copenhagen Castle ( da, Københavns Slot) was a castle on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It was built in the late 14th century and was located at the site of the current Christiansborg Palace. History In 1167, Bisho ...

, Næsbyhoved Castle near Odense,

Sønderborg (; german: Sonderburg ) is a Danish town in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Sønderborg Municipality (Kommune). The town has a population of 27,766 (1 January 2022),Nordborg Nordborg (german: Norburg), is a town with a population of 5,709 (1 January 2022),Als, Tårnborg near Korsør,

Nyborg Nyborg is a city in central Denmark, located in Nyborg Municipality on the island of Funen and with a population of 17,525 (2022). It is the easternmost settlement on Funen. By road, it is located 34 km east of Odense, 35 km north of ...

Gurre Castle Gurre Castle ( da, Gurre Slot, link=no) was a royal castle situated in North Zealand, Denmark. Its ruins lie on the outskirts of Helsingør, close to the town of Tikøb on lake Gurre Sø at Gurre. The ruins have been excavated and are now restor ...

and Søborg in the north of Zealand,

Ravnsborg Until 1 January 2007 Ravnsborg was a municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') on the northwest coast of the island of Lolland in the former Storstrøm County in south Denmark. The municipality, including the islands of Fejø and Femø, covered an area ...

in northern Lolland and many more. Aalholm was located on a very favorable site, standing on a little island in the inlet known as Nysted Nor. Completely surrounded by water, it was protected from the open sea although ships of all kinds could sail right up to the island, provided they had crews conversant with the channel to be followed. Not far to the north and west, there was fertile land where produce could be grown for the castle, with a surplus for the vassal and the king. Moreover, Nysted Nor was the only suitable site for a building of the kind between

Nakskov Nakskov is a town in south Denmark. It is situated in Lolland municipality in Region Sjælland on the western coast of the island of Lolland. The town has a population of 12,495 (1 January 2022). To the west is Nakskov Fjord, an inlet from the L ...

in the south of Lolland and

Stubbekøbing Stubbekøbing () is a town with a population of 2,268 (1 January 2022) ...

in the northeast of Falster. The importance of the area at the time can also be appreciated from the fact that the Franciscan monastery in Nysted, built in 1286, was the only one on the islands, especially as the Franciscans always settled in thriving, populated areas where they could rely on the support of the inhabitants. However, it is impossible to trace the early history of the castle as there are no written sources and any archaeological evidence is hidden beneath today's building. The castle has been built and rebuilt even since it was founded. The oldest part of the existing building is the north wing, thought to date from the 14th and 15th centuries. Thereafter, there is plenty of documentation on restoration and refurbishment, sometimes also revealing the poor state of the building. For example, in the 1550s, bricks from the Franciscan monastery were used to repair the castle while after the Swedish Wars of 1657-1660, the building had no windows and the towers no roofs. In the 18th century, parts of the south wing were demolished and the east wing was fully renovated. In 1889, a further section of the south wing was pulled down and two new lateral wings were added on the south side of the north wing. As a result, the once rectangular structure now took on a shape resembling a pair of spectacles. Since then there have been no significant changes to the castle's exterior. In the 1970s, parts of the castle were opened to the public as a museum, while the former owner established a vintage car museum on Stubberup Farm about one kilometer to the west of the castle. In connection with the sale of the castle and estate in 1995, all the furnishings were auctioned off while the new owner took over the automobile museum. The museum was closed in 2008 owing to the poor state of the buildings. The cars were sold by RM Auctions on August 12, 2012, realizing sales of 10.2 million Euros.

Surroundings

Early on, possibly from the outset, there was an access causeway from Søstræde and Slotsgade in Nysted. It traced an S-shaped course to the south of the castle, possibly all the way to the opposite bank where the castle's farm buildings once stood. Beside the south wing, there was a bridge to the dam. As time went by, groundfilling works were undertaken and in 1796 a small garden was added on the west side of the castle. In 1814 and during the 1830s, a large park-like facility was built in Hestehave Woods southwest of the farm. At some point, maybe in the 1890s, a walled garden with greenhouses and a water tower was added west of the castle. To the north of the lake which formed after the dam was built there is now a road, No. 283 from Nysted to

Sakskøbing Sakskøbing (), previously spelled Sakskjøbing, is a town with a population of 4,595 (1 January 2022).Rodby. It was built over rather swampy ground but it is unclear exactly when. Although it appears on a map from 1807, it is probably older. In connection with the change of ownership in 1889, the dam south of the castle was closed to the public and a new smaller dam was built on the north side in order to provide additional land. Part of the lake to the north of the new dam was drained and used for cattle. After the pumps were turned off in 2008, the area has once again become a shallow lake.

The king's vassals or ''lensmænd''

The king's castles which were spread across the country were run by

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

s who were responsible for defending the area and either had to provide the king with produce or lend him money in return for the revenues they received. In many cases, however, the vassals appointed a representative to run the castle and its district as they often owned farms elsewhere in the country and were also required to fight in the king's wars. We know a number of Aalholm's vassals, many of them members of the Danish nobility. Later, some of them stemmed from

Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; nds, label= Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schweri ...

Holstein Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...

, simply acting in as officials. In certain periods, the kings would allow their widowed mothers to enjoy the benefits of the castles, providing them with a pension.

Aalholm Amt

After Frederik III's coup establishing an autocratic regime in Denmark, the feudal approach was abolished. Aalholm became an ''amt'' or county with an administration consisting of civil servants. These officers did not necessarily live at Aalholm. Some lived in their own homes, some in nearby Nykøbing. In the 65 years from 1660 to 1725 when the estate was sold to Emerentia von Levetzow, the castle often lay empty.

Owners of Aalholm

* (1329-1725) The Crown * (1725–1734) Emerentia von Levetzow, married name Raben * (1734–1750) Christian Raben * (1750–1791) Otto Ludvig Raben * (1791–1838) Frederik Christian Ottosen Raben * (1838–1875) Gregers Christian Raben * (1875–1879) Julius Raben * (1879–1889) Josias Raben-Levetzau * (1889–1933) Frederik Raben-Levetzau * (1933–1977) Johan Otto Valdemar Raben-Levetzau * (1977–1992) Johan Otto Valdemar baron Raben-Levetzau / John Otto Raben-Levetzau * (1992–1995) John Otto Raben-Levetzau * (1995–2008) Stig Husted-Andersen * (2008–2009) Stig Husted-Andersen's estate * (2009-) Estate after Stig Husted-Andersen

References

External links

Official website
{{Castles in Denmark Castles in Denmark Manor houses in Guldborgsund Municipality Listed castles and manor houses in Denmark Listed buildings and structures in Guldborgsund Municipality Houses completed in 1585 1585 establishments in Denmark Castles in Region Zealand