ABSTRACT

The eighteenth-century country estate was a political space, and this was particularly true for the estate of Brahetrolleborg in 1780s and 1790s absolutist Denmark. This article explores the agency of Brahetrolleborg’s social hostess, Sybille Reventlow, and her sister, Charlotte Schimmelmann, focusing on the politically charged years of 1789–90 and the two women’s engagement in the political project of their court faction, the ‘reform circle’. Taking Elaine Chalus’ concept of ‘political sociability’ as my point of departure, I argue that the estate’s female head of household, Sybille Reventlow, managed people and social situations for political ends at Brahetrolleborg; receiving and entertaining school inspectors, members of the court and the royal family as guests at the manor. Sybille Reventlow’s correspondence shows that she cooperated with Charlotte Schimmelmann to suppress a petition from the peasants at Brahetrolleborg, calling on the Foreign Minister to stop the complaint. The concluding analysis demonstrates that Charlotte Schimmelmann, during one of her summer visits to Brahetrolleborg, discussed the composition of a new School Commission, and the funding of Brahetrolleborg’s schools, with Sybille Reventlow’s husband, Ludvig Reventlow, acting as an intermediary between her brother-in-law and her husband, the Finance Minister of the reform reign.

摘要

18 世纪的乡村庄园是一个政治空间，对于 1780 年代和 1790 年代专制主义丹麦的 Brahetrolleborg 庄园来说尤其如此。本文探讨了 Brahetrolleborg 的社交女主人 Sybille Reventlow 和她的妹妹 Charlotte Schimmelmann 的代理权，重点关注 1789-90 年间充满政治色彩的年代以及两位女性参与其宫廷派系“改革圈”的政治项目。以 Elaine Chalus 的“政治社交性”概念作为我的出发点，我认为该庄园的女性户主 Sybille Reventlow 在 Brahetrolleborg 为政治目的管理人员和社会局势；在庄园接待和招待校监、宫廷成员和皇室成员。Sybille Reventlow 的信件显示，她与 Charlotte Schimmelmann 合作镇压了 Brahetrolleborg 农民的请愿，呼吁外交部长停止投诉。结论性分析表明，夏洛特·施梅尔曼在夏季访问布拉赫特罗勒堡期间，与西比尔·雷文特洛 (Sybille Reventlow) 的丈夫路德维格·雷文特罗 (Ludvig Reventlow) 讨论了新学校委员会的组成以及布拉赫特罗勒堡学校的资金问题，后者充当她的兄弟姐妹之间的中介。婆婆和她的丈夫，改革时期的财政部长。