Ekenäs Castle
The Ekenäs Castle is located in the Swedish municipality of Linköping , which for historical province Östergötland belongs. It was built on a rock at the northern end of Lake Teden.
history
In the late Middle Ages the area around Ekenäs belonged to the Dag och Natt family (day and night), the younger Sture family. At the beginning of the 16th century a Johan Ulf af Horsnäs can be found in the books as the owner. His brother, Gudmund Pedersson, inherited the castle. He was related to the Banér family through his marriage to Märta Christerdotter . The next owner of Ekenäs was Axel Nilsson Banér in 1541, who came from the same sex.
In 1562 it was owned by the Sture family. Count Svante Sture the Younger, who was killed by Erik XIV in Uppsala in 1567 , built the first country house on the site, some of the foundation walls of which are still preserved in the basement of today's castle. The castle-like construction began in the later half of the 16th century under Gustaf Banér (* 1547; † 1600).
Between 1630 and 1640, the palace was given its present-day form in the Renaissance style by the Imperial Councilor Peder Banér (* 1588; † 1644). After his death in 1644, his son Claes Banér continued the work. The castle remained in the possession of the Banér family until 1683. Charles XI. carried out the so-called reduction at that time, in the course of which many possessions of the nobility had to be returned to the crown. Gustaf Banér handed the castle over to Isak Breant to settle a claim. His son, now part of the Swedish nobility under the name de Briant, sold the castle in 1687 to Count Mauritz Vellingk (* 1651; † 1727), who owned it until his death in 1727. His daughter Ulrika Christina had married the Lieutenant General Baron Johan Mauritz Banér, whereby the castle returned to the possession of the Banér family. Johan Banér died in 1817 and bequeathed it to Svante Banér.
It remained in the possession of this family until 1879, when Baron Johan Gustaf Eskil Banér sold it to Count Filip Otto Leonard Klingspor (* 1845). He lived in the castle with his wife Ida Maria (née Sjögreen), whom he married in 1871, for over 20 years.
The castle was inhabited until 1934. The last resident, Matilde Klingspor (* 1882; † 1965), last only used two rooms. When moving out, the lock was completely cleared. Only a picture gallery of portraits of Swedish kings from Gustav Wasa to the first king of the House of Bernadotte, Karl XIV. Johann , later returned as an original on loan.
In 1939 the castle passed to Anders Bergengren. The current owner is Wilhelm Bergengren.
After several decades of decay, the castle is now furnished again and shows furnishings from the centuries in which the building was inhabited.
Today the building is the setting for guided tours and haunted walks . For example, it is reported that a servant was walled up in the so-called “Nisse håla” (Nisse hole) in the cellar . The castle has been Byggnadsminne since 1974 and a knight festival is held here every year .
architecture
The castle rises above the lake with white high walls and a steep roof. After the lake subsided, the moat has now been drained. The entrance, which is located by one of the two corner towers, is reached via a fixed bridge. At the back of the castle is the stairwell, which in turn is crowned by a tower. An old legend reports that a great misfortune will afflict the castle if the walls are broken open to a hidden room in the tower near the lake. This is not surprising as it is a load-bearing wall.
Web links
- Ekenäs slott. Retrieved December 27, 2015 (Swedish, with information in German).
- Ekenäs, Sverige. In: slottsguiden.info. Retrieved December 27, 2015 (Swedish).
Coordinates: 58 ° 22 ′ 55.5 ″ N , 15 ° 56 ′ 45.5 ″ E