Gelting Manor

The history of Gelting Estate dates back to 1231 when it was mentioned as “Gyælting” in the Liber census Daniae, a Danish tax document, and was at that time owned by the Danish king. In 1494, the estate passed into the possession of the knightly family von Ahlefeldt, who received it in exchange for other lands. Even then, the current east wing with its distinctive round tower existed. In the 17th century, under the Ahlefeldts, the west wing of the manor house was added. After bankruptcy and inheritance disputes, the estate reverted to the Danish crown in 1712. An initial attempt to sell it failed, but after renovations and the construction of a new gatehouse in 1754, the merchant Sönke Ingwersen acquired the property in 1758. He was ennobled by Danish King Frederick V in 1759 and henceforth called himself “Baron von Geltingen”. Ingwersen, who had made his fortune with the East India Company, expanded the estate and redesigned the manor house around 1770 in the Dutch style, creating the two-story central building. He also had a theater and a French garden laid out.