Monday, February 08, 2010

Vindum Overgård, Mid Jutland, Viborg amt


Vindum Overgård, ab. 12 km southeast of Viborg
Vindum sogn, Middelsom herred, Viborg amt.

History:
There are traces of a noble main farm in Vindum far back in time. In 1482 fru Johanne Hansdatter Podebusk in Vindum, widow of væbner Mathias Nielsen, gave Skt. Hans Kloster in Viborg a mortgage deed on a farm in Pederstrup. Hans Mathiassen was undoubtedly a son of Mathias Nielsen and Johanne Podebusk. He is mentioned the last time in 1468, and from his children it seems that the daughter Mette Hansdater inherited the estate in Vindum. Her husband Hartvig Limbek is written to Vindum Overgaard in 1486 and 1490. Hartvig Limbek owned besides his estate in Vindum also Nebbegård; he seems to have been a very active man. He energetically intervened in unlawful felling in Vindum forest, and he closed the outflow of his water streamns that no one else could take his fish. Therefore he had in the aftertime a reputation of being an evil and stingy man, and this stinginess of course had its just cause. At his funeral it was not possible to bury his coffin in the earth, and first when they took him out of the coffin, they succeeded in having him buried. Hartvig Limbek died about 1518, but his widow Mette Hansdatter still lived in 1534, when she together with her son Claus Limbek sold Merringgård to Mogens Gjøe. Shortly after she must have died, for already in 1537 the first of several cases started between the heirs after Hartvig Limbek.


Vindum, field with Jutland horses.

One of the main persons in the feud was Jep Brun, married to a daughter's daughter of Hartvig Limbek. Shortly after his death Jep Brun had already moved to Vindum; around 1520 he participated in an exchange with bishop Erik Kaas, in which the heirs secured to get the vicarage in Vindum. In 1537 the king delivered judgment "that Jep Brun must enjoy, use and keep the main farm in Vindum, where he lives with all its estate until Jep Brun calls all Hartvig Limbek's and fru Mette's heirs to an exchange and since divides the estate rightfully." The exchange was made in 1545 and Jep Brun got the main farm in Vindum ,where he lived, with forest and besides four other farms in Vindum and some strøgods (spread estate). Another part of Vindum had via Hartvig Limbek's daugther Anna gone to Johan Bagge, who is mentioned in Vindum 1537 and 1543, their daughter Birgitte brought the farm to Mads Grøn, who for some reasons was not a part of the exchange in 1545. After Mads Grøn's death the main farm came to his son Iver Grøn, but it seems that he sold it to Agnete Friis, who wrote herself to V. in 1568. From her it seems that the farm came to her brother-in-law Mourids Brun, and the whole estate Vindum was in the ownership of the family Brun around 1600.

The result of these inheritance-feuds was that the family Brun owned the main farm Vindum and probably most of the farm-estate in the same village, and there is no doubt that Jep Brun is the real creator of the main farm. Still in 1537 Vindum village was situated in its old place, stretching from the church and eastwards. Closest to the church upon the place where Vindum Overgård is now situated, was the vicarage and the first main farm, where Jep Brun lived; the main farm was at that point hardly larger than the other farms in the village. In 1537-54 he moved Vindum village to about a half km south of the church where it is today, so that he was able to collect the earth around the main farm and take it out from the common village-unionship. After Jep Brun's death his son Mourids Brun inherited the farm, and at his death the son Hartvig Brun took over Vindum Overgård, while his brothers Mourids and Niels probably got Søgård in Vindum village and Vindum Nedergård. In 1626 Hartvig Brun bought his brothers' farms, but it seems it was too costy for him, already in 1629 he died in a big debt, and the heirs wanted to lay out Vindum main farm to the creditors. In the war 1629 the farm was completely destroyed, and the heirs were allowed to sell it. In 1632 Iver Christoffersen Lykke of Buderupholm bought the farm from Hartvig Brun's four children. He started to improve the very delapidated estate. His reconstruction of Vindum Overgård was interrupted by his death in 1648 and first his successor succeded in getting the farm on its feet again.

The next owner was rigsmarsk Anders Bille. He started to build a new Vindum Overgård, it is probable that a part of the carved granite boulders came from Faldborg church, which he was allowed to demolish. East of the church he built a farm-plan of three wings. The southern and northern wing still have his and his wife's names upon the western gable. A tower, which was placed at the southern wing, has disappeared. The present red main building is the southern wing of Anders Bille's plan, which shortly after his death was furnished into habitation.It was in one storey with corbiestep gables. It is connected to a side wing towards the garden. Anders Bille also built a three winged main building north of the church, but it was a half-timbered building.


at Tange sø

After Anders Billes death in 1657 Vindum Overgård was inherited by his daughter Elisa Bille, who was married to Jørgen Skeel of Broholm and Arreskov. At his death in 1696 the farm went to his four sons, of whom Anders Skeel out-bought the others in 1698, but already in 1700 he exchanged it with Mullerup to proviantskriver Christen L. Krarup (+ 1711). In the ownership of the family Skeel the farm came into a miserable state. In 1677 it was said that "the building was broken down except a small piece with a chimney. There were no horses or cattle, since the master only had one hired help". Christen Krarup lived at the farm in the short period he owned it. He sold it already in 1708 to major Janus de Friedenreich of Palstrup, and with this Vindum Overgård became a part of a large estate, which this very active landowner collected in Middelsom and Lysgård herred. After his death in 1755 the farm was in the ownership of his widow Anna Margrethe de Linde until her death in 1759, when it came to the son-in-law generalløjtnant Carl Gotfried Irminger.

He was born in Dresden in 1686 as the son of a goldsmith from Zürich. In 1709 he was in the Danish troups in English-Dutch service in Brabrant, and when the regiment returned to Denmark he followed and continued his military career in the Danish army, where he in 1758 became generalløjtnant. In 1723 he was married to Janus de Friedenreich's daughter Mette Dorothea, who after his death kept Vindum Overgård until 1779, when she together with her children conveyed it to kancelliråd Hans Eilersen Steenfeldt for 38.000 rigsdaler.

In 1787 a son of Hans Steenfeldt, Mathias, sold Vindum Overgård to Thomas Thomsen of Østergård. He sold V.O in 1794 to Jean Arnold Fischer of Allinggård. In 1804-06 V.O. was owned by captain Niels Secher of Trudsholm, and after him it came into the hands of two of that period's most wellknown "manor-slaughters", first generalkrigskommissær Johan Conrad Schuchard, who in 1815 got permission to outparcel the main farm - and after him in 1819 his stepson justitsråd Hans Jørgen Ring Fønss of Ørslev kloster. Those two sold all the farmer-estate and diminished the main farm with a very comprehensive outparcelling. From 1827 Vindum Overgård went from hand to hand, and first in 1868, when Herman J.C. Rendtorff became the owner, the many owner-changes ended, but in 1887 Vindum Overgård was sold on auction to mortgagee P.Jensen, and in 1900 the wellknown Randers-merchant Johan Martin Christoffer Ankerstjerne, one of that period's commercial prominent figures, became owner of Vindum Overgård. He sold it in 1912 to Heinrich C.J.H.Rømer-Bruhn, in whose time the main building was repaired and the farm-buildings burnt down in 1941. In 1943 Vindum Overgård was sold to Aage de Neergaard, who rebuilt the farm-buildings and renovated the main building, which got a conservatory with a terrace to the south.

Source: Danske slotte og herregårde, bd. 13, Midtjylland, 1966, Vindum Overgaard af mag.art. Svend Engelund.

Today:
Vindum Overgård has a pretty situation 3 km north of Tange sø at Bjerringbro; it has an all-round plant-cultivation and special crops upon 330 hectare, which belongs to the farm today. Furthermore the farm carries out extern assignments in fieldwork and Christmas tree production. Vindum Overgård is owned by the same family of 3 generations. (de Neergaard).
Vindum Church lies as the 4th wing of the estate. In the old days the road crossed between the farm and the church. Vindum forest is about 500 m north of the estate.



photo Vindum Overgård 2003: grethe bachmann

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