Museum der Grafschaft Rantzau

About the museum

The Museum der Grafschaft Rantzau has existed since 1910 and belongs to the town of Barmstedt. It is located on the Schlossinsel (castle island) in the Rantzauer See, where the residence of the free imperial County of Rantzau stood from 1650 to 1726; after the murder of the imperial count in 1721, the county fell to the Danish crown, which had it administered by administrators until 1864.

The exhibition building is the former district court, built in 1863, which served as a court until the 1970s; the neighboring castle prison was in operation until 1927. Since 1979, the museum has shown the history of the region here on about 200 square meters.

The museum has always been run by volunteers. After long-time director Jochen Proll withdrew in autumn 2017, a museum group reopened the museum at Pentecost 2018 on the initiative of the Geschichtswerkstatt Barmstedt; since May 2020, the newly founded association Museum der Grafschaft Rantzau has been the town's contractual partner. Almost 50 volunteers look after visitors, school projects, special exhibitions, and inventory work.

The collection consists mostly of donations from Barmstedt citizens. The focus is on agriculture and crafts, above all shoemaking, which earned Barmstedt the nickname Schusterstadt (shoemakers' town) in the 19th century. In 2026 a newly designed room on the textile and costume collection was added.

Highlights

• Location on the Schlossinsel in the Rantzauer See
• Fully equipped shoemaker's workshop from the time before electricity
• Agricultural tools and crafts from southern Holstein
• Textile room with embroidered bonnets and Beiderwand skirts
• Virtual tours of the museum and Schlossinsel

Permanent exhibitions

• Alltag und Handwerk in der Grafschaft Rantzau – Everyday objects, agricultural tools, and the history of Barmstedt's shoemaking trade with a complete historic shoemaker's workshop.
• Textil – Newly designed room with donated clothing, costume pieces, christening items, and blueprint utensils from Barmstedt and the surrounding area, complemented by videos.

Founded

1910

Operated by

Stadt Barmstedt (Betrieb durch den Verein Museum der Grafschaft Rantzau e.V.)

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Donations are welcome.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Small museum shop with publications on regional history.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Plan your visit