Tirsbaek Estate

Take a nice walk and discover Tirsbæk Gods, an old castle with both a moat and a Renaissance garden close to water and forest.

Tirsbæk Gods is also called Tirsbæk Slot and is located on the north side of Vejle Fjord between high wooded slopes close to the fjord. There is no public access to the castle, but every year a Christmas market is held with access to the courtyard and some of the former farm buildings. There is public access to the castle's Renaissance garden during the summer months.

 

History of the castle

The main building dates back to 1550 and is surrounded by moats. The name Tirsbæk - formerly Thyrsbæk - comes from the god Odin's son Tyr. It is believed that there used to be a temple where Tirsbæk is today, and that Queen Thyra had the temple converted into a castle when Christianity triumphed.

The current three-winged main building was built on a medieval rampart by Iver Lunge. The north and east wings of Tirsbæk Castle date from around 1550, while the tower and west wing were added in 1577. The complex was thoroughly transformed in the mid-1700th century, when the large park was also laid out as a terraced Renaissance garden east of the castle. The park was completed in 1745, including a vineyard - the oldest existing in Denmark.

Many families have owned Tirsbæk Castle over the years, and it is said that the castle is haunted. The "grey lady" - the beautiful shoemaker's daughter from Horsens, Maren Loss - is said to be returning as punishment for killing her husband, the landowner Christen Linde. He died under mysterious circumstances in the 1750s after only a few years of marriage. The widow remarried the handsome bailiff Jørgen Hvas, who bought himself a noble title and the name Hvas de Lindenpalm.

HC Andersen visited Tirsbæk Castle in 1830. He wrote in his diary:

"The farm is quite antique with loopholes, moats and drawbridge and with a large tower where I saw a terrible dungeon, where there were still large iron rings in the wall."

The estate has been in the current owner's family, the Algreen-Ussing family, since 1912. The family, who also reside in the castle, runs the property as a combined agricultural and forestry farm, as well as renting out houses to private individuals and companies. The former stables have been converted into an exclusive corporate restaurant, Restaurant Slotsstalden.

 

Surroundings of the castle

There are plenty of opportunities for a walk on the castle's large grounds. Tirsbæk includes almost 400 hectares of fields, meadows and forests. In addition, the castle has 12 hectares of parkland, 13 residential houses, a former blacksmith's shop, a bakery and two watermills.

The castle is located a short distance from Tirsbæk Beach. Here you can park your car, enjoy an ice cream from Tirsbæk Beach Kiosk or jump into the water. Read about what Tirsbæk Strand offers.

There is also a three-kilometer route that goes through forest, beach and castle meadow past the castle. The trip takes about an hour. Please note that the route is not marked. You can find the route around Tirsbæk here.

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