Estonia & Sweden are renowned for their beautiful manor houses, many of which are well-preserved. The Polmans owned several throughout the centuries, including Ugglansryd, which was in the possession of the family for nearly 200 years.
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Sunnerå
Sunnerå is a manor house and small village located outside Ryssby in Ljungby municipality. It is situated at the south-eastern end of the lake Ryssbysjön. The remains of a medieval castle on Källarholmen in Sunnerå indicate the existence of a main farm at that time. The farm’s first recorded owner was the knight Knut Grundis. In 1445, he gave it as a gift to his wife, Birgitta Haraldsdotter (Snedbjälke). By 1467, ownership had passed to Gustav Olsson Stenbock, a knight and councilor, who sold it to Benkt Kaare that same year. The farm became part of the Gyllenstiernagodset in the mid-16th century.
During the reduction, these two farms were turned into stables and were held by farmers for a time. In 1728, Karl Ridderborg, a horse master, bought the various homestead parts and built a corps-de-logi. Some parts of this building remain in the main building that still exists in Sunnerå, along with a garden, park, and mill facility.
Sunnerå was owned by nobleman Johan Påhlman from 1690 (circa) to 1693. It changed owners several times, but came into the Påhlman family once again in the late 18th century. Göran Stålhammar owned the manor for over 30 years, after which it passed to Johan Magnus Påhlman and his wife Margareta Helena Stålhammar, who owned Sunnerå from 1796 to 1797.
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Ugglansryd
Småland, Sunnerbo, Ryssby
Ugglansryd was originally a farm that was owned by the church during the Middle Ages. It later passed to the Crown, and was owned by King Gustav Vasa himself in the 1550s. Ugglansryd was then leased to the Galle and Lilliesparre families, and converted into a manor, coming into the ownership of Major Jöran Polman in 1623. The Påhlman family owned it for no less than 175 years. In the late 18th century, Anders Otto Påhlman sold the manor to Baron AJ Raab, whose family held onto Ugglansryd for a century. Eventually, the manor was demolished in 1961 when it was sold by Ingvar Lindefelt Uppsala. Thus, Ryssby had lost one of its historic manor buildings.
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Väraboda
Väraboda manor in Ljungby is situated on the north-western side of Stensjön lake, diagonally opposite Ugglansyrd.
It was acquired by the Lilliesparre af Fylleskog family in 1617 and later passed down to the Påhlmans, with noblewoman Anna Christina Påhlman owning it in 1652 and her brother Johan Påhlman inheriting it in 1677. The manor remained in the Påhlman family for over a century, likely due to its convenient location near the manor most associated with the family, Ugglansyrd. Carl Gustaf Påhlman owned the estate from 1716 to 1757 until his death, and his wife, Christina Elisabeth Renner, passed away at the manor in 1769.
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Lilla Hindsekind
Near the lake Hindsen lies the very beautiful property, Hindsekind. It is partly located on the Näsudden projecting in Hindsen in the southern part of the riksintresse, or national interest.
Hindsekind manor dates back to the 13th century and on Näsudden, there are remains of what is believed to be the ruins of a medieval castle, i.e. a defense facility with a strategic location. From the road, an avenue lined with large chestnut trees leads up to the manor. The main building was erected in 1798 and renovated and built in 1897 and restored in 1990. Hindsekind was owned in the 17th century by Count Gustaf Helmer Lillje, in 1686 by his widowed countess Anna Wachtmeister, in 1702 by her son-in-law Baron Johan Palmfelt and in 1748 by his heirs, all according to the land registers.
A smaller part of the property, called Lilla Hindsekind, came into the ownership of the Galle and Lilliesparre families, passing to Anna Christina and Johan Påhlman who owned it between 1660 and 1664.
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Koluvere Castle
Koluvere Castle, located in Koluvere, Lääne, in western Estonia, is a medieval castle in Estonia that dates back to the 13th century. The castle has a rich history and has served various purposes over the years, from a fortress to a manor house. Today, it is a popular tourist attraction that offers visitors a glimpse into the past and a chance to explore the castle’s many rooms and exhibits. In the 18th century, the then-named Lohde Castle was owned by Catherine the Great, who later used it as a haven for Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, seeking protection from her abusive husband, Prince Frederick of Würtemberg. The Empress asked Wilhelm von Pohlmann to look after Augusta at Lohde. Tragically, the young duchess died at the castle under mysterious circumstances, at the age of only 23.
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Kodila
Kodila estate was first mentioned in 1436, when it belonged to the Livonian Order. The house was originally owned by the von Wrangells. Later, it has belonged to the Pohlmanns, von Tiesenhausens, von Drögemüllers, Zimmermanns, as well as the state.
In 1772, the manor was acquired by Reinhold Wilhelm von Pohlmann, where he lived until his death. It is believed that the current main building of the manor was built during his time in the 1770s. The baroque main building, located on a high plinth, is a one-story stone building with a half-pitched roof. The wall surfaces of the building are decorated with mouldings, in the middle there is a superstructure three windows wide on the face of the second floor.
Since 1999, the house has been in private ownership.
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Tuttomäggi
Tuttomäggi manor was established by Jacob von Lunden as a court estate in a village under Leal Castle, through a pledge to him by King John III of Sweden in 1582. It was associated with the von Gersdorffs and Edler von Rennenkampffs families for a long period. The Baroque two-storey main building was constructed either at the beginning of the 18th century or late 17th century. It is currently privately owned.
Tuttomäggi was transferred to Jürgen Polman and confirmed to him in 1616, but he was not able to hold on to it for long. It was passed to Salomon Adam, whose family it still ends of the 17th century. In 1628, Jürgen’s son, Jöran Polman the Younger made an unsuccessful request for the manor, but he did not receive it.
Historically, the manor was located in Karuse Parish in Läänemaa County. The present-day administrative distribution is Lihula Municipality in Läänemaa County.
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Ågården
Ågården is a manor in Lidköping Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. The current main building is a well-preserved two-story Carolingian red-stained log building. This was built after an older stone house from 1492 was burned down by the Danes during the Kalmar War at the beginning of the 17th century.
Ågården has a long history, built in 1492 by Riksrädet Sigge Larson Sparre af Rossvik. It gradually came to members of the Krumme, Baät, Manesköld af Seglinge, Kafle and Kagg families. Baron Johan Kagg sold Agär-den at the beginning of the 18th century to the Wingeflycht family, and in 1746 the estate came to Major General and Governor Lorentz Christoffer Stobée, who died in 1756. His widow, Catharina Margareta Loos, remarried in 1762 to Court Marshal Axel Magnus Stiernsparre.
Stiernsparre turned Ågården into a fideikommiss to be inherited by the family. He made the proviso that if the Stiernsparre family died out, which was to be expected, the new owners would be obliged to add the name Stiernsparre to their own name. The trust passed through the Silfversparre and Påhlman families. The last owner was Axel Erik Gabriel Påhlman-Stiernsparre, who died in 1979. Thus, a branch of the family is known as Påhlman-Stiernsparre.
It is remarkable that for over 500 years of Ågården’s history, all of its nineteen owners belonged to the Swedish nobility, representing thirteen families, of which only three — Sparre, Silversparre and Påhlman — still survive.
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Tre Kronor Castle
Tre Kronor, located in Stockholm, was the original palace on the same site as the current Royal Palace. The medieval castle was built in the 13th century and served as the residence of Swedish monarchs for over four centuries until it was destroyed in a devastating fire in 1697. Tragically, the fire destroyed most of Sweden’s national library and royal archives. In 1650, Queen Kristina knighted the Polman brothers — Johan and Gustaf — who were introduced as family no. 501.
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Piigandi
Piigandi manor, which was established in the 16th century, was long associated with the von Ungern-Sternbergs. Located in the Kannapäh parish of Estonia, which comprised a total of 20 manors, Piigandi was a “knight manor” established in the 16th century and is today a residential building. Only the left end of the 19th century long stone main building has remained up to the present day.
In 1598, Jürgen Polman bought the manor with a loan from King Karl IX, but he couldn’t hold on to it for long, and it was confiscated.
Historically, the manor was located in Kanepi Parish in Võrumaa County. The present-day administrative distribution is Kanepi Municipality in Põlvamaa County.
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Öötla
Öötla has a long history with the Polman family. Oethel estate, founded in the 17th century, changed hands many times; it belonged to the von Stackelbergs for a long period. The two-storey Baroque main building was constructed in the 1760s and made a little longer in the second half of the 19th century. This main building was perhaps a later addition, or perhaps the original building burned down because a manor existed there well before the 1760s. It came into the ownership of Jürgen Polman in 1624 as a grant, and in 1631 as a donation from King Gustavus Adolphus. Polman’s widow Gertrud was allowed to keep Oethel when he died.
Historically, the manor was located in Peetri Parish in Järvamaa County. The present-day administrative distribution is Kareda Municipality in Järvamaa County.
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Prästeboda
Prästeboda manor lies on the slope down towards the river of the same name. A 400-meter-long avenue runs to the farm, dividing the production lands into two parts. As a result of the dense forests and landscape, this area is now a nature reserve.
Numerous finds from the Stone Age have shown that people have lived here in prehistoric times. In 1575, Prästeboda was listed as kronotorp and was then “completely deserted”. In 1607, it was stated that it was “built on the crown’s property some years ago”. In 1624, it was donated to Major Jöran Påhlman, who made it a barn estate under his manor Kvänjarp Södregård. In 1683 the property was taken back by the crown and was assigned to the county clerk in Sunnerbo, first as a place of residence, then as the salary home. This was probably the result of the Great Reduction of 1680.
Around 1720, Prästeboda was bought for 50 dal silver coins by the rust holder Johan Israelsson in Ramskog. The manors Luddö and Sjöatorp belonged to the property for a long time.
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