Egeskov
A Renaissance water castle on oak piles in a lake in southern Funen, with gardens, mazes and museums of cars and machines.
- Founded
- 1554
- Founded by
- Frands Brockenhuus
- Address
- Kværndrup, Funen
Pictures © Egeskov, from egeskov.dk.
Why it is renowned
Egeskov is the best-preserved Renaissance water castle in Denmark.1 A full-size replica was built in Hokkaidō, Japan, in 1986, with the owners' permission.1 Its fuchsia garden is one of the largest in Europe, its bamboo maze the largest in the world, and Piet Hein designed the three-metre sundial in the park.1 Lonely Planet counts a day at Egeskov among the top things to do in and around Odense, for its thirteen furnished rooms, its gardens and the vintage cars in the old barns.2
The story
Egeskov is first mentioned in 1405; Frands Brockenhuus built the present castle in 1554, in the unrest after the Count's Feud and the Reformation.1 It stands on oak piles in a small lake, and its two houses are joined by a double wall more than a metre thick that holds secret stairs and a well.1 The Bille-Brahe family bought it in 1784, and since 1882 it has belonged to the counts Ahlefeldt-Laurvig-Bille, who still live there.13
What to know it by
Sources
- Egeskov Castle, Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org, read 28 September 2026.
- 9 top things you should do in and near Odense, Denmark, Lonely Planet. lonelyplanet.com, read 1 October 2026.
- Egeskov. egeskov.dk, read 28 September 2026.
Checked 1 October 2026, against the maker's own pages.