Gisselfeld, a former

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

, is

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

's fifth-largest estate. Located between

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 ...

and

Næstved Næstved () is a town in Næstved Municipality, the municipality of the same name, located in the southern part of the island of Zealand (Denmark), Zealand in Denmark. Næstved has several adult education centers, five Primary education, elemen ...

, it extends into several municipalities but the main building is located in Braaby Parish in

Faxe Municipality Faxe Municipality () is a '' kommune'' in Denmark in the Region Sjælland on the island of Zealand. The municipality covers an area of 406 km2 and has a population of 37,820 (2025). Its mayor as of January 2018 is Ole Vive. He is a member o ...

. The estate measures 3,850 hectares, including Hesede, Edelesminde, Brødebæk and Gødstrupgård, of which 2,400 hectares is forest. The three-storeyed Renaissance-style building has stepped gables,

loopholes A loophole is an ambiguity or inadequacy in a system, such as a law or security, which can be used to circumvent or otherwise avoid the purpose, implied or explicitly stated, of the system. Originally, the word meant an arrowslit, a narrow vertic ...

and a projecting tower over the main gate. The grounds include a moat, a well-kept park, lake, waterfall, gardens, greenhouse, and a fountain. A recent addition in its forest is a 45 meter tall hyperboloid tower.

History

Falk and Goye

Gisselfeld is first mentioned at the end of the 14th century when the owner was Bo Falk. At that time, there was a small manor situated some 2 km northwest of the site of today's main building. It stood next to an older fort, possibly the now demolished Valgestrup. Gisselfeld was later owned by Bo Falk's son Peder Falk and grandson Eskild Falk. The latter's daughter Ida was married to Mogens Axelsen Gøye. Their son, Eskil Gøye, owned Gisselfeld from 1450. His other holdings included

Krenkerup Krenkerup is an old manor house located 3 km (2 mi) southwest of Sakskøbing on the Danish island of Lolland. It is one of Denmark's oldest estates and manors, documented as early as the 1330s. Between 1815 and 1938, it was known as '' ...

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 Turnbyholm in

Skåne Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

as well as the fiefs of

Aalholm Aalholm, also Aalholm Castle (), is a castle and country estate in Nysted in the municipality of Guldborgsund, on the south coast of the island of Lolland, Denmark. It is the oldest castle on the island, first mentioned in 1329. The main buildin ...

and Lindholm. He served as ''rigsmarsk'' from 1489. Gisselfeld was upon Eskil Gøye's death in 1506 passed to his son Henrik Gøye. Krenkerup went to Henrik Jøye's elder brother

Mogens Gøye Mogens Gøye (surname also spelled Gøje
at Lollands-Herregaarde.dk or Gjøe) (ca. 1470 � ...

. Henrik Gøye served as governor during the siege of Copenhagen. In c. 1523, he had to mortgage Gisselfeld to his cousin Otte Holgersen Rosenkrantz and brother Mogens Gøye.

Oxe and Lykke families

Today's estate was founded by Peder Oxe til Nielstrup who built the manor from 1547 to 1575. It originally consisted of four interconnected red-brick wings, three storeys high with thick outer walls, a number of loopholes and large stepped gables. A protruding gate tower stands at the centre of the left wing. The fourth wing, now demolished, housed a chapel."Gisselfeld Kloster"
''Maskinstationen og Landbrugslederen'', July 2011, pages 32–35. Retrieved 1 May 2013. After Peder Oxe's death, his widow Mette Rosenkrantz til Vallø became the owner of the estate. After her death in 1588, her niece Karen Banner inherited Gisselfeld. She married Henrik Lykke til Overgaard whose family ran the estate until Kai Lykke was executed and relieved of all his rights in 1661.

Changing owners1661-1688

After a short period of ownership by the Crown, in 1670 the property was presented to Count

Hans Schack Hans Schack (28 October 1608 – 27 February 1676) was a member of the north German noble family Schack, who after many years in French service, entered the Danish service, made major contributions during the war with Sweden, and loyally supporte ...

as a reward for the part he played in the Swedish wars. In 1688, his son Otto Diderik sold the estate to Adam Levin Knuth whose family maintained ownership until 1699.

Convent

In 1699,

Christian V Christian V (15 April 1646 – 25 August 1699) was King of Denmark and Norway from 1670 until his death in 1699. Well-regarded by the common people, he was the first king anointed at Frederiksborg Castle chapel as absolute monarch since the de ...

's illegitimate son took it over. As a result of his will, on his death in 1703 the manor should have become a convent but this did not happen until the death of his widow Dorothea Krag in 1754 extinguished her dower rights. Since 1755, under the name of Danneskiold-Samsøe his descendants have run the estate as "Gisselfeld Adelige

Jomfrukloster The term (; ) is derived from the verb (to donate) and originally meant 'a donation'. Such donations usually comprised earning assets, originally landed estates with serfs defraying dues (originally often in kind) or with vassal tenants of noble ...

I Sjælland" (Gisselfeld

Convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

in Zealand for Virgins of Noble Birth). The 11th in line, Helene Danneskiold-Samsøe, has run Gisselfeld since 2010.

Geography

Gisselfeld is Denmark's fifth-largest land estate, covering an area of 3,850 hectares. It is set in a scenic forested environment in an area of lakes and hills. It was known for its wildlife and organic farming until ownership legally changed hands in 1996. Subsequently, organic farming was discontinued and replaced by logging of the forests. The hunting grounds have been leased out. The property was surrounded by moats on three sides, the ''gårdsø'' (estate lake) flanking the north side. Water spouts from the four frogs that embellish a fountain on the property.

Legal status

In the seventeenth century Gisselfeld was within consecutive Birks, :da:Birk (retskreds) so had separate legal jurisdiction from Bråby Sogn (Braaby Parish) and old Ringsted Herred (hundred). Special inheritance laws were enacted in 1701 and 1702 that define the inheritance laws of the castles and estates, promulgated by Christian Gyldenløwe (Golden Lion), son of the Danish King Christian V. Under this law, the present Count of Gisselfeld was the director of the estate and ran this estate until 1996 when a new Board was instituted by the Ministry of Justice and the Directorate of Civil Rights. This change was challenged by the Count, and became a well-publicized legal case.

Owners

* (1381–1411)

Bo Falk Bo or BO may refer to Arts and entertainment *Box office, where tickets to an event are sold, and by extension, the amount of business a production receives *'' BA:BO'', 2008 South Korean film * ''Bo'' (film), a Belgian film starring Ella-June ...

* (1411–1431)

Peder Falk Jan-Peder Falk (20 September 1947 – 19 May 2024) was a Swedish actor, screenwriter and director. He spent most of his career at Stockholm's stadsteater and was also involved in improvisational theatre. On television, he was most known for his ...

* (1431–1450)

Eskild Falk Eskil is a masculine given name mainly in use in Scandinavia. In Danish and Norwegian it may be spelled Eskild. The name may refer to: *Saint Eskil, 11th century Anglo-Saxon monk and missionary * Eskil Brodd (1885–1969), Swedish diver *Eskil Br ...

* (1450)

Ida Falk Ida or IDA may refer to: People *Ida (given name), including people so named * Ida (surname), a list of people so named Astronomy *Ida Facula, a mountain on Amalthea, a moon of Jupiter *243 Ida, an asteroid *International Docking Adapter, a doc ...

, married Gøye * (1450–1506) Eskil Gøye * (1506–1526) Henrik Gøye * (1526–1537) Johan Oxe * (1537–1545) Torben Oxe * (1545–1575)

Peder Oxe Peder Oxe (''Peder Oxe til Nielstrup''; 7 January 1520 – 24 October 1575) was a Danish finance minister and Steward of the Realm. Background At the age of twelve he was sent abroad to complete his education, and resided at the principal univ ...

* (1575–1588)

Mette Rosenkrantz Mette is a female given name of Scandinavian origin. It is descended from the name Margaret and is also considered a variant of Matilda. Notable people *Mette Abildgaard (born 1988), Danish politician * Mette Andersen (born 1974), Danish cyclist ...

, gift Oxe * (1588)

Karen Banner Karen may refer to: * Karen (name), a given name and surname * Karen (slang), a term and meme for a demanding white woman displaying certain behaviors People * Karen people, an ethnic group in Myanmar and Thailand * House of Karen, a historic ...

, gift Lykke * (1588–1619) Christian Lykke * (1619–1655) Frands Lykke * (1655–1661)

Kai Lykke Kai Lykke or Cai Lykke (16 March 1625-9 September 1699) was a Danish nobleman and courtier. Biography Lykke was born at Gisselfeld in Zealand, Denmark. He was the son of nobleman Frands Lykke (1591–1655) and the nephew of Anne Lykke (1595–16 ...

* (1661–1670) The Crown * (1670)

* (1670) Ditlev von Rumohr * (1670–1682) Hans lensgreve Schack * (1682–1688)

Otto Diderik lensgreve Schack Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', '' Odo'', '' Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded fro ...

* (1688–1689)

Sophie Dorothea Marschall Sophie is a feminine given name, another version of Sophia, from the Greek word for "wisdom". People with the name Born in the Middle Ages * Sophie, Countess of Bar (c. 1004 or 1018–1093), sovereign Countess of Bar and lady of Mousson * Sophi ...

, gift Schack * (1689–1699) Adam Levin greve Knuth * (1699–1703)

Christian Gyldenløve Christian Gyldenløve, Landgrave of Samsøe (Copenhagen, 28 February 1674 – Odense, 16 July 1703), was a Danish nobleman and military officer. He was one of five illegitimate children fathered by Christian V of Denmark with Sophie Amalie Moth. ...

, Count of Samsøe * (1703–1754)

Dorothea Krag Dorothea Krag (27September 167510October 1754) was a Danish Postmaster General and noble. Dorothea was married first to count Jens Juel in 1694, and second to the king's illegitimate half brother Christian Gyldenløve in 1701. As the widow of C ...

gift (1) Juel (2) Gyldenløve (3) von Ahlefeldt * (1754–1755) Dorothea Krags dødsbo * (1755-) Gisselfeld Adelige Jomfrukloster i Sjælland

References

External links

Official website
(in Danish) {{Authority control Manor houses in Faxe Municipality Listed buildings and structures in Faxe Municipality Buildings and structures of the Gøye family Oxe family Buildings and structures of the Lykke family Buildings and structures of the Danneskiold-Samsøe family