Gavnø Estate
Gavnø Estate is a large agricultural and forestry estate in South Zealand near Næstved.
The associated areas are 2,800 hectares, of which agricultural land is 1,600 hectares and forest 1,000 hectares. The estate includes 130 houses, including residential and commercial leases. The estate has 45 employees. The turnover comes from agriculture (with livestock of cows), forestry, wind-energy, rental business, hunting and rental of gravel excavation rights.
The main building and castle park
The main building, Gavnø Castle, is inhabited by the titled family Reedtz-Thott; Chamberlain, Estate owner, Otto baron Reedtz-Thott, Chamberlaine, Attorney-at-Law, Helle baroness Reedtz-Thott and their children, and consists of three wings.
The construction of the castle began in 1402, when Queen Margrete 1 built one of the only two Dominican convents in Denmark. The convent church located in Gavnø’s south wing is identical to the convent church built in 1402. The north wing was built around 1650 and is listed. The construction of the east and south wings, as it appears today, has been completed around 1750 and is also listed. There is public access to parts of the castle and the church in the period April to September against an entrance fee.
The castle park was built in the 1750s. Originally, it was a French-style baroque garden with avenues and flower parterre. Around 1850, the garden was redesigned in English landscape style in which the lawns became more adjoining and the view of the castle park more unobstructed. Precisely this form with solitary distinguished trees and large lawns proved 100 years later to be ideal for the construction of a flower bulb park.
