Maltesholm Castle is a large manor house

Manor house

A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...

 located in Kristianstad Municipality

Kristianstad Municipality

Kristianstad Municipality is a municipality in Skåne County in southernmost Sweden. Its seat is located in the city Kristianstad....

, Scania

Scania

Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...

, in southern Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

. The castle has been passed down for generations and is now the private residence of the Baron Palmstierna. The beautiful garden is open to the public.

History

The castle

Castle

A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...

 was originally constructed between 1635 and 1638 by the high constable

Constable

A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...

 of Kristianstad

Kristianstad

Kristianstad is a city and the seat of Kristianstad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 35,711 inhabitants in 2010.-History:The city was founded in 1614 by King Christian IV of Denmark, the city's name literally means 'Town of Christian', as a planned city after the burning of the town of Vä...

, Malte Juel, during the Danish rule of Scania, but the history of the estate goes back to the Middle ages

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

 and it was owned by the Brahe

Brahe

Brahe is the name of a Scanian noble family that was influential in both Danish and Swedish history but has its family roots in Swedish origin. The first member of the family is speculated to have been Verner Braghde from Halland. Better documented is Peder Axelsen Brahe who appears in late 14th...

 family. Typical for its time, the castle was a Renaissance manor

Renaissance architecture

Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance...

 built in brick with three floors, a staircase tower with an elaborate spire, two crow-stepped gable

Crow-stepped gable

A Stepped gable, Crow-stepped gable, or Corbie step is a stair-step type of design at the top of the triangular gable-end of a building...

s and surrounded by a large moat

Moat

A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...

.

During the life of Lord Malte Ramel (d. 1752), one of the richest men in Sweden of the time, the domains were greatly expanded. His son Hans Ramel began reconstructing the castle according to the style of the late 18th century. It was completed in 1780 in the style of Swedish classical palace

Palace

A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word itself is derived from the Latin name Palātium, for Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills in Rome. In many parts of Europe, the...

; the only remains of the Renaissance castle are the moat and the year "1680" marked on the facade. Hans Ramel also constructed a 1.3 kilometre (0.807784557644749 mi) long stone road leading up to the Mansion through the undulating landscape. The road had to be even and it took almost 50 years to complete. The labourers had to bring a rock every day to the Manor for the construction and there was a grateful saying amongst the workers: If it wasn't for the Folly of a Rich man there wouldn't be bread for the Poor.

Trivia

In the garden you can find an enormous douglas fir which measures 35 metres (114.8 ft) tall and is more than 100 years old. There is also a pavilion

Pavilion (structure)

In architecture a pavilion has two main meanings.-Free-standing structure:Pavilion may refer to a free-standing structure sited a short distance from a main residence, whose architecture makes it an object of pleasure. Large or small, there is usually a connection with relaxation and pleasure in...

 by the great classical Swedish architect Carl Hårleman

Carl Hårleman

Baron Carl Hårleman was a Swedish architect.Hårleman was born in Stockholm, son of the garden architect and head of the royal parks and gardens Johan Hårleman, who hade been ennobled in 1698, and began his architectural training under Göran Josua Adelcrantz...

.