The Danish Research Centre for Manorial Studies
The Danish Research Centre for Manorial Studies is a collaboration between Gammel Estrup – The Danish Manor & Estate Museum, the National Museum of Denmark, Aarhus University and the Aarhus School of Architecture.
The centre is the research department of Gammel Estrup and provides a flow of information and knowledge that supports the museum’s many activities for the public – communication, presentation and education.
National research centre
Through letters, diaries, accounts, objects and many other forms of surviving evidence, the centre’s researchers examine the history of manors and the life associated with them. They analyse the architecture of old buildings and thereby improve the potential for their conservation. They describe the conditions experienced by the many people who were associated with the estates, and they increase knowledge of the development of rural areas. They draw up a picture of the grand life of former times, the most refined lifestyles of the past and the individuals at the top of the hierarchy, and at the centre of power, and they observe conditions for life on estates today and identify potential for future development.
The Danish Research Centre for Manorial Studies makes its research findings public via the website www.herregaardsforskning.dk, lectures, conferences, knowledge festivals, exhibitions, publications, guided tours and digital projects. The centre is a sparring partner for researchers, students, estate owners, organisations, journalists, genealogists and private individuals with an interest in the past, present and future of manors. The centre is also coordinator of the Danish network Herregårdspuljen, which functions as a meeting and discussion forum for people interested in conservation and communication of, and research into, Danish manors, as well as the Nordic manorial research network, which assembles each year at the annual conference Nordisk Slots- og Herregårdssymposium. The centre also runs the websites www.danskeherregaarde.dk and www.herregaardskortet.dk, which gather information on Danish manors and estates.
International forum for manorial research
In 2015, the international network ENCOUNTER – European Network for Country House and Estate Research was established with the Danish Research Centre for Manorial Studies as coordinator and prime mover.