Skaføgård, Østjylland

Skaføgård, 28 km northeast of Århus

From the very beginning Skaføgård was a small village Skaby ( *1465 Schabbye, 1498 skaby) with two farms, owned in 1492 and 1499 by hr. Erik Ottesen (Rosenkrantz) of Bjørnholm. He lay out this and more estate in 1496 to his late son Holger's children. Holger's grandson was rigsråd (councellor of state) Jørgen Ottesen Rosenkrantz (+ 1596), who from this estate established Skaføgård manor, to which he was signed for the first time in 1551. He was the building owner of the present Skaføgård. (built 1579-82) After his death the farm came to his widow Dorte Lange (+1613), then to his son the famous Holger Rosenkrantz (+1642) and his son rigsråd Gunde Rosenkrantz (+ 1675), who in 1647 sold S. to Steen Bille (+1672). He handed over in 1666 the farm to his son-in-law grev Henrik Ditlev Holck (+1681), whose widow Mette Bille in 1708 conveyed S. to her son-in-law Pros Mund (+1710), who in 1709 gave her authority to sell the farm again, and she sold it in 1710 to Thomas Nicolai Behr (+1749), who in 1747 willed it to his son Niels Behr (+ 1778). Owners Secher, Scavenius Estrup. Owner in 1939: Niels Rudolph Estrup of Fjeld. -


The main building is listed in class A. It was built 1580-82 by Jørgen Ottesen Rosenkrantz. The three-winged plan which has many parallels to the contemporary royal and noble castles, did more than these fetch its ideals directly from France. It is a pretty and harmonic building without the turbulent Netherland Renaissance. In the interior of Skaføgård is still found the very large cupboard, which is considered the most magnificent piece of Renaissance furniture in Denmark, ascribed to the carver Mikkel van Groningen, whose most wellknown work is the pulpit in Århus Cathedral . The main building is surrounded by moats. The three-winged farm building is also listed in class A and surrounded by only partly preserved moats.



Farm buildings from 1579

The solitary manor Skaføgård is together with Rosenholm manor the prettiest Renaissance building on Djursland. Rosenholm is situated only a few km south west of Skaføgård.

photo: grethe bachmann