Bækkeskov is a manor house and estate located eight kilometres north of
Præstø
Præstø () is a town with a population of 3,880 (1 January 2024) in Vordingborg Municipality in Region Sjælland on the east coast of the island of Zealand (Denmark), Zealand (''Sjælland'').
The islands of Maderne, Storeholm, and Lilleholm are ...
, Denmark. The
Neoclassical main building was built for
Charles August Selby in 1796 to 1798 and was listed on the
Danish registry of protected buildings and places in 1918. It is located on a small hilltop in a parkland setting with views of Præstø Inlet. The home farm is located a few kilometres to the southwest of the main building. The estate is owned by Michael Immanuel Jebsen, the eldest son of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
–based businessman
Hans Michael Jebsen
Hans Michael Jebsen (; born 15 November 1956) is a Hong Kong–based Danish businessman and landowner.
Early life and education
Jebsen was born on 15 November 1956 in Siegen, Germany. The Jebsen family is of German-Danish origin and he attended ...
.
History
Early history
Bækkeskov is a relatively new manor. In the 17th century, it belonged to Joachim Beck. On his death, it passed to his daughter Vibeke Beck Galde. In 1631, Bækkeskov became crown land.
TIn crown sold the relatively small manor again in 1633 to Merete Grubbe. She later sold it to the naval officer
Christoffer Godskesen Lindenov. He served as chief of
Holmen from 1645 to 1657 with rank of admiral. On his death, Bækkeskov passed to his daughter. Anne Elisabeth Christoffersdatter Lindenov. In 1691, she sold the estate to Otto Krabbe. In 178+,
Frederick III had granted him nearby
Holmegaard
Until 1 January 2007, Holmegaard was a municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') in Storstrøm County in the southern part of the island of Zealand (''Sjælland'') in south Denmark. The municipality covered an area of 66 km2, and had a total p ...
.
Sten Skinkel acquired Bækkeskov in 1693. In 1729, it was sold by his son Rudolf Skinkel to Knud Ahasverus Becker. In 1718, he was appointed as deputy district judge of
Lolland
Lolland (; formerly spelled ''Laaland'', literally "low land") is the List of islands of Denmark#List of 100 largest Danish islands, fourth largest island of Denmark, with an area of . Located in the Kattegat, Belts and Sund area, it is part of Re ...
and
Falster
Falster () is an island in south-eastern Denmark with an area of and 43,398 inhabitants as of 1 January 2010. . He was known for his brutal treatment of the farmers on his estate. In August 1738, he was assaulted and killed after correcting and beating one of the farmers. 11 farmers were later sentenced to death.
The von Munthe af Morgenstierne family

In 1641, Bækkeskov was acquired by
Bredo Munthe. He placed the land from some of the tenant farms directly under the manor, modernized the management of the estate and improved the farm buildings. In 175, he was ennobled ny
letters patent
Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...
under the name von Munthe af Morgenstierne. He died on the estate on 13 January 1757. His widow Anna Dorothea von Munthe af Morgenstjerne née Smith passed Bækkeskov to their eldest son,
Otto Christopher von Munthe af Morgenstierne. He shut down the small village of Bækkeskov and instead incorporated all its land directly under the manor. In 1782, he constructed
Bredeshave after planting fruit trees on the surrounding land. He became a member of the Generalitets- og Kommissariatskollegiet in 1783 but was dismissed in 1789, possibly due to his opposition to the abolition of the
Stavnsbånd
The Stavnsbånd was a serfdom-like institution introduced in Denmark in 1733 in accordance with the wishes of estate (land), estate owners and the military. It bonded men between the ages of 14 and 36 to live on the estate where they were born. It ...
.
1795–1843: Changing owners
In 1795, Munthe sold Bækkeskov to the English-born merchant
Charles August Selby. He had founded the merchant house Selby & Co. in Copenhagen in 1777. He retired on the estate. He changed the operations with inspiration from England, introducing stable feeding, cattle fattening and the cultivation of beetroot, cabbage and potatoes. In 1807, he was ennobled with rank of baron. August Selby Bækkeskov in 1805. In 1809, he bought
Orupgaard on
Falster
Falster () is an island in south-eastern Denmark with an area of and 43,398 inhabitants as of 1 January 2010. . He died at Güldenstein in Holsten in 1823.
"Charles Selby"
''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon''. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
The new owner of Nækkeskov was Peter Benedikt Petersen. In 1710, he sold the estate to Mikkel Leigh Smith. It was later sold by his widow Cecile Caroline Smith (née de Coninck).
1843–1923: The Vind family
Christian Vind acquired Bækkeskov in 1844. His widow kept the estate after his death in 1869. It was later taken over by their son Emil Vind who spent most of his time abroad as Danish envoy in St. Petersburg and Berlin. He had no children and Bækkeskov was therefore endowed to his nephew Ove Vind. He initially acquired more land but had to sell all the tenant farms in 1920 as a result of the land reforms of 1919.
Later history
More of the land was sold to the government in 1923 and converted into smallholdings.
Peter Hermann Zobel purchased Bækkeskov in 1996. He retired as CEO of the insurance company Codan in 1999.
Architecture
The main building is designed in the Neoclassical style. It consists of two storeys over a high cellar and has a rectangular floor plan. The central part of the southern facade features four Ionic pilaster
In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...
s. The building has sash window
A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels, or "sashes". The individual sashes are traditionally paned windows, but can now contain an individual sheet (or sheets, in the case of double glazing) of glass.
History
...
, an influence from English architecture. The hipped, black-glazed tile roof features four dormer windows on each side.
Today
The estate covers 745.8 hectares of land of which 180.2 hectares are farmland and 450 hectares are woodland.
List of owners
* (date unknown) Joachim Beck
* (unknown–1609) Vibeke Galde, née Beck
* (1609–1631) Christoffer Galde
* (1631–1633) The Crown
* (1633–unknown) Merete Grubbe, gift Urne
* (unknown–1679) Christoffer Godskesen Lindenov
* (1679–1691) Anne Elisabeth Christoffersdatter Lindenov, gift Urne
* (1691–1693) Otto Krabbe
* (1693–1711) Sten Skinkel
* (1711–1718) Anne Marie von Offenberg, gift Skinkel
* (1718–1729) Rudolf Skinkel
* (1729–1738) Knud Ahasverus Becker
* (1738–unknown) Helene Marie Brummondt, gift 1) Becker, 2) Folsach
* (unknown–1741) Hans Folsach
* (1741–1757) Bredo von Munthe af Morgenstierne
* (1757–1759) Anna Dorothea Smith, gift von Munthe af Morgenstierne
* (1759–1795) Otto Christopher von Munthe af Morgenstierne
* (1795–1805) Charles August Selby
* (1805–1810) Peter Benedikt Petersen
* (1810–1843) Mikkel Leigh Smith
* (1843–1844) Cecile Caroline de Coninck, gift Smith
* (1844–1869) Christian Andreas Vind
* (1869–1881) Anne Sophie Elisabeth Hoppe gift Vind
* (1881–1906) Carl Rudolph Emil Vind
* (1906–1923) Ove Frederik Christian Vind
* (1923–1924) E. Bruun
* (1924–1926) E. Bruun
* (1926–1929) P.F. Lagoni
* (1929–1936) Emil Victor Schau Lassen
* (1936–1942) Siegfried Victor Raben-Levetzau
* (1942–1975) Else Illum, gift Trock-Jansen
* (1975–1996) Børge Hinsch
* (1996–2017) Peter Hermann Zobel
* Bækkeskov Gods A/S (Michael Immanuel Jebsen, a son of Hans Michael Jebsen
Hans Michael Jebsen (; born 15 November 1956) is a Hong Kong–based Danish businessman and landowner.
Early life and education
Jebsen was born on 15 November 1956 in Siegen, Germany. The Jebsen family is of German-Danish origin and he attended ...
)
References
{{reflist
External links
Bækkeskov
Drawing
in the Danish National Art Library
The Danish National Art Library is the national research library for architecture, art history, visual arts and museology in Denmark. It was founded in 1754 as part of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and has been located at Charlottenborg' ...
Manor houses in Næstved Municipality
Listed buildings and structures in Næstved Municipality
Houses completed in 1798