Bregentved 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 usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

located 3 km east of

Haslev Haslev is a railway town in the southern part of the island of Zealand, Denmark, located about southwest of Copenhagen. It has a population of 12,634 (1 January 2025), and is the largest town and municipal seat of Faxe Municipality in Region Z ...

on the Danish island of

Zealand Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 Januar ...

. It has been owned by the

Moltke The Moltke family is an old German noble family. The family was originally from Mecklenburg, but apart from Germany, some of the family branches also resided throughout Scandinavia. Members of the family have been noted as statesmen, high-ranking ...

family since the middle of the 18th century.

History

Early history

The first known reference to Bregentved is from 1319 when King

Eric VI of Denmark Eric VI Menved (1274 – 13 November 1319) was King of Denmark (1286–1319). A son of King Eric V and Agnes of Brandenburg, he became king in 1286 at age 12, when his father was murdered on 22 November by unknown assailants. On account of his ...

passed the estate to Roskilde Abbey. From the end of the 14th century the property was owned by a succession of aristocratic families, including that of Krognos in the 16th century, until 1718 when it was acquired by King Frederick IV. In the eighteenth century Bregentved was in consecutive Birks, so had separate legal jurisdiction from Haslev Sogn (parish) and old Ringsted Herred (hundred). The north wing still extant in the early 21st century was built 1731-36 by architect

Lauritz de Thurah Laurids Lauridsen de Thurah, known as Lauritz de Thurah (4 March 1706 – 5 September 1759), was a Danish architect and architectural writer. He became the most important Danish architect of the late baroque period. As an architectural write ...

and has a black-tiled, hipped roof. It contains a chapel on the first floor.

Moltke era

In 1746, King

Frederick V Frederick V or Friedrich V may refer to: *Frederick V, Duke of Swabia (1164–1170) * Frederick V, Count of Zollern (d.1289) *Frederick V, Burgrave of Nuremberg (c. 1333–1398), German noble * Frederick V of Austria (1415–1493), or Frederick II ...

granted the Bregentved estate to

Adam Gottlob Moltke Count Adam Gottlob von Moltke (10 November 171025 September 1792) was a German-born Danish courtier, politician and diplomat who was a favourite of Frederick V of Denmark, Frederick V of Denmark-Norway. Moltke was born at Walkendorf, Riesenhof ...

, one of his closest companions who was at the same time made

lord chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Households of the United Kingdom, Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Monarchy of the United Ki ...

and a count. Over the next few years, Moltke adapted the two remaining wings with the assistance of the architects G.D. Anthon and

Nicolai Eigtved Nicolai Eigtved (4 June 1701 – 7 June 1754), also known as Niels Eigtved, was a Denmark, Danish architect. He introduced and was the leading proponent of the French rococo or late baroque style in Danish architecture during the 1730s–1740s. ...

. Moltke also commissioned Eigtved to build him a large mansion in Copenhagen, the south-western of the four

Amalienborg Palace Amalienborg () is the official residence for the Danish royal family and is located in Copenhagen. Frederick VIII's palace complex has four identical Classical façades, effectively four palaces, with Rococo interiors, laid around an octagona ...

s, which was completed in 1754. At Bregentved, Moltke introduced several agricultural reforms to the management of the estate with inspiration from

Holstein Holstein (; ; ; ; ) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider (river), Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost States of Germany, state of Germany. Holstein once existed as the German County of Holstein (; 8 ...

. A. G. Moltke died at Bregentved on 25 September 1792, passing his estates to his oldest son, Joachim Godske Moltke, who ceded their mansion in Copenhagen to the royal family after the fire of

Christiansborg Palace Christiansborg Palace (, ) is a palace and government building on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is the seat of the Danish Parliament (), the Danish Prime Minister's Office, and the Supreme Court of Denmark. Also ...

in 1794. As a replacement,

Adam Wilhelm Moltke Adam Wilhelm Moltke, 3rd Count of Bregentved (25 August 178515 February 1864) was a Danish nobleman, landowner, civil servant and politician, who in 1848–1852 was the first Prime Minister of Denmark under the new constitutional monarchy outl ...

, who had just left office as the first

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

under Denmark's new

constitutional monarchy Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...

, acquired a new mansion which became known as

Moltke's Mansion The Moltke's Mansion is a town mansion on the corner of Bredgade and Dronningens Tværgade in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is one of several town mansions in Frederiksstaden, although it actually predates the neighbourhood by half a century. It was bui ...

. After the harvests at Bregentved Manor and other family holdings, he would move his entire household to Copenhagen. In the 1880s, Count Frederik Christian Moltke decided to modernize the house. He demolished the two Eigtved wings and replaced them with two new wings which were completed in 1891 to the design of the architect Axel Berg.

Architecture

The main east wing and the south wing of the present three-winged building date from Axel Berg's 1891 rebuilding and stand on Eigtved's foundations. They are designed in the Neo-Rococo style and are topped by a

Mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called French roof or curb roof) is a multi-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper, and often punctured by dormer wi ...

in copper and tile. The east wing has a three-bay

risalit An ''avant-corps'' ( or , plural , , ), a French term literally meaning "fore-body", is a part of a building, such as a porch or pavilion, that juts out from the ''corps de logis'', often taller than other parts of the building.Curl, James Stev ...

with pilasters and a triangular pediment, and a two-bay corner risilit at each end with segmental pediments. The entrance tower also dates from Berg's expansion. The north wing was built 1731-36 by

and has a black-tiled, hipped roof. It contains a chapel on the first floor which has sculptor

Johann Friedrich Hännel Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

Gardens

In the 1760s, A. G. Moltke commissioned

Nicolas-Henri Jardin Nicolas-Henri Jardin (22 March 1720 – 31 August 1799) was a French architect. Born in St. Germain des Noyers, Seine-et-Marne, Jardin worked seventeen years in Denmark–Norway as an architect to the Danish royal court. He introduced neoclassic ...

to create a garden in the

French formal garden The French formal garden, also called the , is a style of "Landscape architecture, landscape" garden based on symmetry and the principle of imposing order on nature. Its epitome is generally considered to be the Gardens of Versailles designed ...

style but it was adapted into a

landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (, , , , ), is a style of "Landscape architecture, landscape" garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, r ...

in 1835. Some features have been retained from Jardin's garden, including avenues, and traces of a

parterre A ''parterre'' is a part of a formal garden constructed on a level substrate, consisting of symmetrical patterns, made up by plant beds, plats, low hedges or coloured gravels, which are separated and connected by paths. Typically it was the ...

surrounded by canals and a system of fountains, which was restored in 1994. Some vases and Frederik V's Obelisk (1770) by

Johannes Wiedewelt Johannes Wiedewelt (1 July 1731 – 17 December 1802), Danish neoclassical sculptor. He became a court sculptor, introducing neoclassical ideals to Denmark in the form of palace decorations, garden sculptures and artifacts and, especially, m ...

also date from this garden as does a copy of a statue by

Giambologna Giambologna (1529 – 13 August 1608), also known as Jean de Boulogne (French), Jehan Boulongne (Flemish) and Giovanni da Bologna (Italian), was the last significant Italian Renaissance sculptor, with a large workshop producing large and small ...

. The garden also features a statue of A. W. Moltke by

Herman Wilhelm Bissen Herman Wilhelm Bissen (13 October 1798 – 10 March 1868) was a Danish sculptor. Bissen created a number of public works, working in plaster, marble and bronze. The National Gallery of Denmark owns a collection of over two hundred of his ...

in 1858-59.

Bregentved today

Bregentved-Turebyholm covers 6,338 hectares of which just over half consist of agricultural land and the rest of forest. A total of 163 houses also belongs to the estate, including Turebylille, Holtegård, Eskilstrup, Rødehus, Sofiendal, Sprettingegård, Storelinde Overdrevsgård, Ulsegård and Statafgård. The estate maintains a staff of 40 and has a yearly turnover of approximately DKK 60 million. Apart from agriculture and forestry, the revenues derive from house rental, hiring-out of hunting areas, hiring-out of storage facilities and machine pool services. There is no public access to the house but the park is open to the public on Wednesdays, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Admission is free of charge.

List of owners

* ( -1319) The Crown * (1319- )

Ringsted Abbey Ringsted Abbey (''Ringsted Kloster'') was one of the earliest and most influential Benedictine houses in Denmark, active from the late 11th-century until the Danish Reformation. It was located at Ringsted on the Danish island of Zealand. Histor ...

* ( -1364) Hesso Hvittensee * ( -1364) Karl Nielsen * (1364-1382) St. Clare's Priory, Roskilde * (1382- ) Oluf Grubbe * ( - ) Margrethe, gift (1) Grubbe (2) Bydelsbak * ( -1414) Erik Bydelsbak * (1414-1433) Laurids Eriksen Bydelsbak * (1433-1456) Niels Pedersen Gyldenstjerne * (1456-1504) Mourits Nielsen Gyldenstjerne * (1504-1506) Oluf Stigsen Krognos * (1506- ) Anne Mouritsdatter Gyldenstjerne, gift 1) Krognos, 2) * Podebusk * ( -1541) Predbjørn Podebusk * (1541-1545) Anne Mouritsdatter Gyldenstjerne, gift 1) Krognos, 2) Podebusk * ( - ) Anders Bentsen Bille * ( - ) Bent Andersen Bille * (1545-1550) :da:Mourits Olufsen Krognos * (1550-1563)

Eline Gøye Eline is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Eline Berings (born 1986), Belgian athlete who competes in the 100 m hurdles *Eline Eriksen (1881–1963), wife of Edvard Eriksen, model for the Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen ...

, gift Krognos * (1563-1573) Oluf Mouritsen Krognos * (1573-1575) Anna Hardenberg * (1575-1581)

Christoffer Gøye Christopher is the English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or '' Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Christ" or "Anointed", and φέρει ...

* (1581-1630) Steen Brahe * (1630) Erik Steensen Brahe * (1630) Falk Gøye * (1630-1658) Frederik Knudsen Urne * (1658-1668) Karen Hansdatter Urne, née Arentfeldt * (1668-1682) Ove Juul * (1682-1709) Frederik Gabel * (1709-1718) Christian Carl Gabel * (1718-1731) The Crown * (1731-1740)

Poul Vendelbo Løvenørn Poul Thomsen Vendelbo de Løvenørn (born Poul Thomsen; 5 April 1686 – 27 February 1740) was a Danish army officer, diplomat and politician. He served as Secretary of War and Minister of the Navy in the 1730s and was the owner of Bregentved, Bre ...

* (1740) Frederik Poulsen de Løvenørn * (1740-1746) The Crown * (1746-1792)

* (1792-1818) Joachim Godske Moltke * (1818-1864)

* (1864-1875) Frederik Georg Julius Moltke * (1875-1936) Frederik Christian Moltke * (1936-1968) Christian Frederik Gustav Moltke * (1968-1995) Hans Hemming Joachim Christian Moltke * (1995-2017) Christian Georg Peter Moltke * (2017-2019) Frederik Christian Adam Moltke / Christian Georg Peter Moltke * (2019-) Christian Georg Peter Moltke

References

External links

Official website Source

Source
{{Faxe Municipality Manor houses in Faxe Municipality Houses completed in 1736 Houses completed in 1891 Baroque Revival architecture Listed buildings and structures in Faxe Municipality Listed castles and manor houses in Denmark Buildings and structures of the Bille family Løvenørn family Buildings and structures of the Moltke family Tourist attractions in Faxe Municipality Parks in Denmark