Countess Henriette Raedel

GEDCOM Note

BIOGRAPHY Countess Henriette Raben, born 29 Jul 1811 at Aalholm, christened in Nysted Church, 1812 registered at Vallö, 1838 Stiftsdame (queens court), died 12 Feb 1882 at Vallö, buried from Frederiksberg Church. Married 3 Jul 1842 to Proprietor Georg Carl Christian Raedel of Bartofte, born 11 Nov 1808, died 15 Jan 1870.

AALHOLM CASTLE

Aalholm is one of Denmark's oldest and most interesting castles, believed to have been built in the 12th century as protection from the "Venderne". The name "Aalholm" is very descriptive, and fits the building site very well. The castle is built on a flat island; in Danish "holm", which is situated west of the town of Nysted on the island of Lolland, at the mouth of a small river, where the fresh and the salt waters of the Baltic mixes, and where the eels; "aal" in Danish, surely must have been plentiful. Aalholm is a typical water castle, having it's strength in the waters around it, and the thick walls. Before this time, fortresses were built on high cliffs and so had protection. Now it was common to find a swamp or otherwise hard to get to place, and they had to drive pillars into the ground and fill in with stones and dirt. On Aalholm castle we also find it was built on pillars. The old fortress Aalholm was not very big, and built in a peculiar long and narrow shape. The north and south outside walls measure 74 meter (80 yds.) while the east and west sides are only 35 meter (38 yds.) The two corner towers on the north, and between them the front from the middle ages have been preserved, as well as the west and a small part of the east outside wall shows brickwork from the middle ages. It is believed that the castle had 5 towers in the middle ages, and the walls in the parts that are left, are about 100" (2 1/2 meter) thick. The interior shows a large ballroom with fresco painting along the windows, and they are believed to be from about year 1400. Another room has one wall which is decorated with writings by king Frederick ll, when he visited there in 1585. In 1328 King Christoffer ll pawned Aalholm castle to the Holstein Count John the Friendly. After King Christoffer ll had destroyed law and order in most of his kingdom, he fled to Holland to seek refuge. He was captured by two German noblemen, and brought to Aalholm Castle as a prisoner. He was soon released, because they didn't think he was a very valuable prisoner. He died however, soon afterwards, in Nyköbing, Falster. Valdemar Atterdag won the castle back, and held it in the war against the Hanseatic. His daughter, Queen Margarethe, lived there often, and she added a wing to the south end of the castle named "Margarethe flöyen" (Margareth's wing). From 1364 to 1654 Aalholm was a royal property, rented out to landowners to work the estate. After that the Nysted citizens won the castle back and gave it to Count Christoffer. During the reign of King Frederick ll, he made a deal with the Baron of Aalholm, that if the Baron would finance and build an addition to the castle, he, the king, would pay for the windows. So the castle was repaired, and the two towers on the north side were built from stone taken from the Nysted monastery. And so it happened that the King was down at Aalholm to inspect the work in progress. A plaque on the wall in the north wing tells of the king's visit. During the war against Sweden, the castle was robbed of all lead in the roof and windows. So for a long time, the castle was uninhabitable, until King Frederik the 4th in 1725 sold the castle and the property to Emerentia von Levetzau, widow of Johan Otto von Raben, who in 1667 immigrated from Germany and went in the King's service. Johan Otto von Raben was of German nobility, and his family owned the castle of Stuck on the Schweriner (SÖen) Sea. He was born 22 Feb 1646. In the king's service he was steadily promoted, and in 1695 he was knighted the "White Knight". In 1697 he was named "amtman" over Frederiksborg and Kronborg Amter, and inspector over Stutteriet, Geheim råd. He died in 1719. Emerentzia von Levetzau was 23 years younger than her husband, and when he died in 1719, she was a very capable woman of 50 years. She owned a couple of other estates, namely Kærstrup and Bremersvold, Bramslökke and Egholm. In 1734, she founded the estate of Christiansholm for her grandson Christian Raben. When he was only 9 years old he became Count, and he received a good education and traveled all over Europe. His grandmother ruled the estate with a firm and capable hand. She died 11 Feb 1746 in Aalholm castle, and is buried in Nysted Church. But Count Christian Raben died in 1750, at the young age of 25, without ever having been married; so his brother, Otto Ludwig Raben, became Count. He was a good ruler, and continued to improve the conditions of the castle. Among other things. he founded a starch and powder factory in Nysted, which is one of the oldest in the country. The castle was getting old and run down in parts, so he rebuilt the east wing in the Louis XVl style. He died in 1791, 61 years old, and the estate went to his son, Frederik Christian Raben, who was only 21 years old. He was a very intelligent man, and quite ahead of his time in his botanical studies, and many other scientific endeavors. He worked on an encyclopedia, a barometer, Örsteds battery, air balloon, butterflies, herbs, etc. He founded during the years 1796 - 1835 the large and outstanding park surrounding the castle, with hundreds of rare and imported trees and shrubs. (To this day the park is a famous landmark, and open to the public on Sundays for viewing.) He also managed the estate with a capable hand. He died on a trip to Brazil in 1838, and there's statue of him in the park. He was married 5 Apr 1794 in Christianborg Castle to Amalie Gregersine Juel (born 7 Sep 1775, died 31 Mar 1813). Together they had 11 children. But when he two sons, Gregers, died in 1875, and Julius,died in 1879, both without having any sons, this family line was broken; and the estates went to Count Josias Raben Levetzau, who was a son of the youngest of the first counts four brothers. Thereby, the estates, with castles, of Beldringe and Lekkende on the island of Sjælland, were united into one huge estate with the estates on Lolland. Josias Raben Levetzau's son, Count Frederik Christoffer Otto Raben Levetzau inherited the estates in 1881. He was the Danish attache to Paris and Vienna, and was named Minister of Foreign Affairs for the years 1905 - 1908. During this very capable count's rule, the estates were well taken care of, and Aalholm castle was extensively restored. The oldest parts; West, north and east walls and the two towers were left as original, while the south wing was partly torn down and remodeled. In 1921 part of the land was donated to 30 state houses Count Frederik Christoffer Otto Raben Levetzau died in 1933, and was buried in the Kettinge cemetery. There is a statue (Oblisk) of him in the park. His youngest son, Count Johan Otto Raben Levetzau, now owns the estates and lives in Aalholm Castle.

GEDCOM Note

RESEARCH Found this in LDS Ill. Deaths - Microfische cert.# 6004312