Voergaard Castle
Encyclopedia
Voergaard Castle is a moat
ed Renaissance
manor house
located 10 km north of Dronninglund
on the North Jutland island in north-western Denmark
.
it was owned by Stygge Krumpen
, Bishop of Børglum
, taken by Skipper Clement
's army of peasants and then, after the Reformation, confiscated by the Crown in 1536.
ceded the property to Karen Krabbe in exchange for Nygaard, an estate located between Vejle
and Kolding
. Krabbe's daughter, Ingeborg Skeel
, took over the property from her mother and carried out an expansion which was completed in 1588.
Over the following two centuries, Voergaard changed hands many times. Much of the land was sold.
, Danish Prime Minister
during World War II
, who owned Voergaard from 1914 to 1945.
in the Holy Roman Empire
. Chenu-Lafitte was the daughter of Jules-Émile Péan
, one of the great French surgeons of the 19th century, and owned an extensive art collection which originated both from her father and deceased husband.
The couple owned several châteaus in the area around Bordeaux
but after his wife's death, in an air raid in 1941, Oberbech-Clausen moved to Paris
and later decided to return to his native Denmark. He acquired Voergaard and, with approval from the French state, brought 12 train cars of art with him back to Denmark. He undertook a comprehensive and costly restoration of the castle which went on for several years. After his death in 1963, the castle and collections were passed to a foundation and opened to the public.
style. The east wing is flanked by two octagonal corner towers and penetrated by a gateway. Its sandstone portal was a gift from King Frederick II and originally created for Frederiksborg Castle.
, Peter Paul Rubens, Raphael
, El Greco
, Watteau and Frans Hals
.
The furniture includes pieces which have belonged to Louis XIV
and Louis XVI
.
Moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...
ed Renaissance
Renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance...
manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
located 10 km north of Dronninglund
Dronninglund
Dronninglund is a town with a population of 3,196 in Brønderslev Municipality, Region Nordjylland on the peninsula of Jutland's eastern coast in northern Denmark....
on the North Jutland island in north-western Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
.
Early history
Voergaard's recorded history goes back to 1481. At the outbreak of the Count's FeudCount's Feud
The Count's Feud , also called the Count's War, was a civil war that raged in Denmark in 1534–36 and brought about the Reformation in Denmark...
it was owned by Stygge Krumpen
Stygge Krumpen
Stygge Krumpen was a Danish clergyman and bureaucrat, who was the secretary of king Christian II of Denmark and the last catholic bishop of the Diocese of Børglum from 1533 to 1536, having been coadjutor bishop since 1519. He was the brother of Danish marshal Otte Krumpen...
, Bishop of Børglum
Børglum Abbey
Børglum Abbey was an important Premonstratensian abbey of medieval Denmark, located in Børglum parish, in the commune of Hjørring, approximately five kilometers east of Løkken in north central Jutland .- Origin :...
, taken by Skipper Clement
Skipper Clement
Klemen Andersen "Skipper Clement" was a Danish merchant, captain, privateer and leader of the peasant rebellion that was part of the civil war known as the Count's Feud .-Background:...
's army of peasants and then, after the Reformation, confiscated by the Crown in 1536.
Ingeborg Skeel's castle
In 1578, King Frederick IIFrederick II of Denmark
Frederick II was King of Denmark and Norway and duke of Schleswig from 1559 until his death.-King of Denmark:Frederick II was the son of King Christian III of Denmark and Norway and Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg. Frederick II stands as the typical renaissance ruler of Denmark. Unlike his father, he...
ceded the property to Karen Krabbe in exchange for Nygaard, an estate located between Vejle
Vejle
Vejle is a town in Denmark, in the southeast of the Jutland Peninsula at the head of Vejle Fjord, where the Vejle and Grejs Rivers and their valleys converge. It is the site of the councils of Vejle Municipality and the Region of Southern Denmark...
and Kolding
Kolding
Kolding is a Danish seaport located at the head of Kolding Fjord in Region of Southern Denmark . It is the site of the council Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre, and has numerous industrial companies, principally geared towards shipbuilding...
. Krabbe's daughter, Ingeborg Skeel
Ingeborg Skeel
Ingeborg Skeel was a Danish noblewoman, a major land owner and a county sheriff in the Vendsyssel region of northern Jutland. She resided at Voergaard, a large estate which she expanded into a fine Renaissance castle from 1588 to 1591. A talented business women, she personally managed her estates...
, took over the property from her mother and carried out an expansion which was completed in 1588.
Over the following two centuries, Voergaard changed hands many times. Much of the land was sold.
Scavenius era
In 1872 it was purchased by Peder Brønnum Scavenius, a politician and land owner, who re-acquired much of the land which had previously been sold. At the time of his death in 1914, the estate covered 1,944.4 ha of land, making it one of the largest in Denmark at the time. The next owner was his son, Erik ScaveniusErik Scavenius
Erik Julius Christian Scavenius was the Danish foreign minister 1909–1910, 1913–1920 and 1940–1943, and prime minister from 1942 to 1943. His cabinet resigned in 1943 and suspended operations...
, Danish Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Denmark
The Prime Minister of Denmark is the head of government in Danish politics. The Prime Minister is traditionally the leader of a political coalition in the Folketing and presides over the cabinet....
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, who owned Voergaard from 1914 to 1945.
An art venue
In 1955 Voergaard was acquired by Ejnar Oberbech-Clausen, a Dane who had lived in France since 1906 where he had become a count through his marriage with Marie Henriette Chenu-Lafitte, the widow of his former employer, and an Imperial CountImperial Count
Imperial Count was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. On the one hand, it was used to designate the holders of a imperial county, that is, a county that was a fief directly from the emperor, rather than from a duke; on the other hand, the owner of the title of "Count" could be elevated to...
in the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. Chenu-Lafitte was the daughter of Jules-Émile Péan
Jules-Émile Péan
Jules-Émile Péan was one of the great French surgeons of the 19th century.Péan was born in 1830 in Marboué, four kilometers to the north of Châteaudun, the son of a miller. He studied at the college of Chartres and then studied medicine in Paris under Auguste Nélaton. He was appointed a doctor in...
, one of the great French surgeons of the 19th century, and owned an extensive art collection which originated both from her father and deceased husband.
The couple owned several châteaus in the area around Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
but after his wife's death, in an air raid in 1941, Oberbech-Clausen moved to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and later decided to return to his native Denmark. He acquired Voergaard and, with approval from the French state, brought 12 train cars of art with him back to Denmark. He undertook a comprehensive and costly restoration of the castle which went on for several years. After his death in 1963, the castle and collections were passed to a foundation and opened to the public.
Architecture
Voergaard is a two-winged, L-shaped castle built in red brick in the RenaissanceRenaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance...
style. The east wing is flanked by two octagonal corner towers and penetrated by a gateway. Its sandstone portal was a gift from King Frederick II and originally created for Frederiksborg Castle.
Art collection
The art collection contains works attributed to Francisco GoyaFrancisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
, Peter Paul Rubens, Raphael
Raphael
Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino , better known simply as Raphael, was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form and ease of composition and for its visual achievement of the Neoplatonic ideal of human grandeur...
, El Greco
El Greco
El Greco was a painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El Greco" was a nickname, a reference to his ethnic Greek origin, and the artist normally signed his paintings with his full birth name in Greek letters, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος .El Greco was born on Crete, which was at...
, Watteau and Frans Hals
Frans Hals
Frans Hals was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He is notable for his loose painterly brushwork, and helped introduce this lively style of painting into Dutch art. Hals was also instrumental in the evolution of 17th century group portraiture.-Biography:Hals was born in 1580 or 1581, in Antwerp...
.
The furniture includes pieces which have belonged to Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
and Louis XVI
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
.