Älvsborg fortress
| Älvsborg fortress | ||
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 Engraving of Älvsborg Fortress from the work Suecia antiqua et hodierna by Erik Dahlberg . |
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| Alternative name (s): | Älvsborgs fästning; Älvsborgs slott | |
| Creation time : | before 1366 | |
| Castle type : | Uferburg | |
| Conservation status: | Renaissance ruins | |
| Place: | Gothenburg | |
| Geographical location | 57 ° 41 '24 " N , 11 ° 54' 25" E | |
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The fortress Älvsborg (Swedish Gamla Älvsborg , Älvsborgs slott or Älvsborgs fästning ; German outdated and fortress Elfsberg , Elsborg or Elfsborg ) was an important fortress at the mouth of the river Göta älv into the Kattegat . It was on the south bank of the river on the former border of the city of Gothenburg . The ruins visible today are from the Renaissance . There are no remains of the original medieval castle.
The first castle complex was mentioned in a document in 1366. The fortress and the associated land areas were owned by the Norwegian King Haakon VI at that time . been leased. In 1370 he redeemed the castle, but just seven years later it was mortgaged again by Margaret I. In 1436 the commanding officer at the time, the German Mattias van Kaalen, handed the castle over to the fighters of the Engelbrekt uprising after minor resistance . They were directed by the later King Charles VIII and did not burn the structure down, contrary to their usual approach with other castles.
Norwegian associations laid a siege ring around the fortress in 1439. After about ten weeks they had to give up the siege, as the commander of the castle, Ture Stensson, received outside support. The Danish King Christian I tried unsuccessfully to conquer the castle in 1452 and 1455. However, with the help of the Norwegian knight, Olav Nilsson, and due to other unexplained circumstances, it came into Danish hands in the last year. In further battles of the Kalmar Union , the castle changed hands several times, whereby it was burned down several times. When the Danes withdrew in 1523, they also left behind a ruin of fire.
Gustav I. Wasa had the castle carefully rebuilt, but a few years later the fortress fell into Danish hands again during the Kalmar War . King Christian IV used the property of the strategically important fortress to extort high contributions from Sweden in the Peace of Knäred. Over time, Älvsborg lost its importance, as new defenses were built nearby, which were strategically located. The first to propose demolition of the facility in 1650 was the Swedish General Plenipotentiary for Defense, Johan Wärnschiöldh. However, since the castle was considered "in good condition", it served for some time until the Swedish king finally ordered the demolition of the castle in 1660, which was completed in 1673. A large part of the facility was previously moved to a nearby facility, which was named Nya Elfsborg ( new Älvsborg ).
The ruins of Älvsborg Fortress are now protected by a roof. There are discussions about renovating this historic square.
literature
- Älvsborg fortress . In: Theodor Westrin, Ruben Gustafsson Berg, Eugen Fahlstedt (eds.): Nordisk familjebok konversationslexikon och realencyklopedi . 2nd Edition. tape 33 : Väderlek – Äänekoski . Nordisk familjeboks förlag, Stockholm 1922, Sp. 1192 (Swedish, runeberg.org ).
Individual evidence
- ^ Newly increased historical and geographic general lexicon . Brandmüller, Basel 1726–1744, p. 163 ( digitized version ).