Bailiff and governor

In 1555, Heinrich Rantzau was appointed bailiff of Segeberg, and a year later he became governor of the Danish king. As governor, he represented the king’s interests in the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. He also conducted negotiations with foreign powers on behalf of the king. As bailiff, he was responsible for administration, jurisdiction and tax collection. His position brought him a high income, which he derived primarily from the lucrative gypsum mining at Segeberg’s Kalkberg. He had committed himself to paying a fixed annual amount to the crown, while the rest, the far greater part of his earnings, went into his own pocket.

Official residence in Segeberg

Heinrich Rantzau’s official residence was the Segeberg Castle on Kalkberg hill. He himself preferred to live in town. He had a palace built by the Little Segeberg Lake. In the more than forty years he served the Danish king, Segeberg became a centre of power. From here, he informed Copenhagen about political affairs and received distinguished guests, including princes, diplomats – and his king.

View of Segeberg around 1586, with the Siegesburg castle on the Kalkberg. Heinrich Rantzaus’s palace is located to the right below the castle on the Kleiner Segeberger See – Copper engraving from Georg Braun/Franz Hogenberg, Civitates orbis terrarum (Source: Schleswig-Holsteinische Landesbibliothek)

Schleswig-Holstein 1582 – Graphic based on data from Museum Sønderjylland and research by Detlef Dreessen (© Detlef Dreessen)

When Schleswig-Holstein was Danish

From 1460 onwards, the Danish king also ruled over Schleswig and Holstein as duke. The land was repeatedly divided among members of the dynasty, resulting in a colourful patchwork quilt. At the end of the 16th century, essentially only a royal and a ducal-Gottorf line remained, whose scattered holdings comprised the majority of the land. Some lands were administered jointly. The Segeberg district belonged to the ‘royal share’. It comprised the town and areas that today belong to the district of Segeberg.