Kärnan
The Kärnan ( Danish : Kernen ) is a medieval tower in the Swedish city of Helsingborg . It is 35 meters high and is also elevated on a rock above the historic city center.
The tower represents the rest of a former fortress. This was surrounded by 4.5 meter thick circular walls and earth walls. Today the building is a listed building .
history
There are hypotheses that are not fully supported by archaeological evidence that it's been the time of the Vikings on the hill a simple fortification country borrow was that the shipping traffic between Zealand and Scania monitored.
Danish time
Around 1150, under Waldemar I, a sandstone castle was built on the site of the current tower. Around 1225 the originally round main tower was replaced by a square one. The current brick tower was built around 1320. The contract to build it may have come from Erik VI. who celebrated his wedding in the castle in 1296. Then the complex developed into one of the most important fortresses in Denmark. Many kings, including Christoph III. who died here in 1448 ruled from here. The castle was also an important instrument of power for the collection of the sound tariff .
Only four meters from the central tower was a curtain wall with protective passages on three floors. From an entrance tower in the west, a drawbridge led to the lower part of the main castle. North of the inner curtain wall was an elongated building that was probably used for celebrations and other gatherings. Around the central castle complex there was another circular wall made of sandstone and bricks, which was provided with 14 defense towers, 500 meters away. Further outside, a moat was connected, which was 15 m deep at its deepest point. Across the moat was from the east, where there was a gate with a drawbridge.
Swedish time
With the Peace of Roskilde in 1658, the castle, along with the surrounding region, came to Sweden, where it remained except for a brief period of occupation during the Skåne War , during which the Danes raised a huge (17 meters long, 7 meters wide) Danish flag . After this war, the Swedish King Charles XI. the destruction of the fortress. The reason for this was the decline in the military importance of Helsingborg, whose strategic position was taken over by Kristianstad . The king also feared that any intruders would use the castle as a base for further campaigns.
After a year, the plant was leveled. The only object that was saved for posterity was the medieval Kärnan tower. From this point on, the tower should serve as a symbol for seafaring. In addition, a Swedish flag was hoisted high above Helsingborg, which should clearly show that Skåne will belong to the Kingdom of Sweden for "eternity". All ships that passed the Øresund had the duty to fire a gun salute in honor of the Swedish flag on the tower .
After more than 200 years of deterioration, the tower was in ruins before the restoration in 1893/94. The restoration also brought slight changes in style. In 1903 the large staircase to the Stortorget square was built .
Others
In 2015, a roller coaster called Der Schwur des Kärnan was opened in the Hansa Park in Sierksdorf . Here, the tower was reproduced true to detail, but with a height of 79 m, more than twice as high as the original. In addition, the Hansa-Park has given itself a new coat of arms in 2015, the central shield element of which is the Kärnan.
gallery
Exterior view of the Kärnan at the end of the 19th century
Cross-section of the Kärnan at the end of the 19th century
Shell of the Kärnan replica in Hansa-Park Sierksdorf
Web links
Coordinates: 56 ° 2 ′ 53 ″ N , 12 ° 41 ′ 55 ″ E