The House of Ahlefeldt is an ancient German noble family with branches in Germany and across Scandinavia, most notably in Denmark, and subsequently in Sweden and Norway. It has identical coat of arms with the von Rumohr, von Bosendahl and von RastorpGerman noble families, which indicates that they have descended from one House.[1]
According to the legend, the family descended from "Hunold" Hunoldus comes de Schwabeck, whose great-grandson Konrad (Conradus baron de Alhefeld) 1152 participated in the murder of Herman II, Count of Winzenburg, and then, in 1153, he went to serve King Sven III.[2] In 1154 Konrad was overthrown, and he and his family had to flee from Denmark. However, written of records and evidence of these events are unavailable.
Origins
The family originated in Westensee, near Kiel, Germany. The earliest known ancestor is Benedictus de Prodole (d. circa 1340) from Perdöl, whose son and grandsons served King Waldemar of Denmark and received significant pawn fiefs and properties in Denmark. Descendants of his brother, Scacco de Prodole, also known as Scacco de Rumore were members of the House of Rumohr. Two other German noble houses belonged to the same genus and had identical coat of arms: von Bosendahl and von Rastorp, but both went extinct, the first in 1535 and the latter in 1749.
In Duchy of Schleswig the family inherited estates Søgård, Nør, Königsförde-Lindau, Sakstorp and Gelting. In Holstein, Bossee, Lehmkulen, Wittmold, Deutsch-Nienhof, Emkendorf, Kl. Nordsee, Haseldorf and Fresenburg. Godske von Ahlefeldt (d. 1541) was the last CatholicBishop of Schleswig.[3]
Imperial Counts of Rixingen
Coat of arms of the Rixingen Lordship and later Imperial countyVariant Coat of Arms of the Ahlefeldt family
His kinsman, High royal councillor Burchard von Ahlefeldt received in 1672 letters patent as Danish count and the position of Lensgrave. He inherited the county of Langeland which was later inherited by his cousins, Imperial Counts von Ahlefeldt.
One of his grandsons, Count Christian von Ahlefeldt inherited the county of Laurvig in Norway, one of the two official counties ever in that country (the other was Jarlsberg, which belonged to the House of Wedel). In 1785 he received the royal licence to himself and his descendants to bear the name Ahlefeldt-Laurvig and later Ahlefeldt-Laurvig-Bille.
German line (Ahlefeldt von Dehn)
Coat of arms of Barons Ahlefeldt von Dehn, the German family branch established in 1783
The Ahlefeldt von Dehn line was formally established in 1783.[citation needed] Carl Friedrich Ulrich von Ahlefeldt (1750–1829), a member of the Ahlefeldt family, married Sophie Charlotte Friederike von Dehn in 1776.[citation needed] The marriage resulted in a combined name and coat of arms, and Carl Friedrich Ulrich became the first member of the Ahlefeldt von Dehn line.[citation needed] The estate associated with this branch was Gut Ludwigsburg in Schleswig-Holstein.[citation needed]
The family became part of the nobility of the Kingdom of Prussia and was formally recognized by Prussian nobility authorities in 1913, confirming their baronial status as a distinct line.[citation needed] Even after the dissolution of the original fideicommiss (estate trust) in 1949, the family retained the name Ahlefeldt von Dehn, demonstrating the persistence of noble identity beyond estate ownership.[citation needed]
The family uses a combined coat of arms representing both the Ahlefeldt and von Dehn heritage. The arms of the branch date from the establishment of the union in 1783.[5]
Holdings
The Ahlefeldt family accumulated large holdings of land on the territories of today's Germany, France and Denmark:
↑"File:Ahlefeldt Baron von Dehn Wappen 1783". Wikimedia Commons. Retrieved 30 November 2025. Coat of arms of the Ahlefeldt von Dehn family, established in 1783, combining the Ahlefeldt and von Dehn heraldic symbols.
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