Details
Founded: 12th centuryCategory: Miscellaneous historic sites in Sweden
Historical period: Consolidation (Sweden)
Interesting Sites Nearby
User Reviews
Ruins of Aose Castle are located close to the port of Åhus. This fortress, probably built in the 12th century and again in 1286, was protected by a high wall and a moat spanned by a drawbridge. It was destroyed in 1569 by Duke Karl, later to become King Karl IX of Sweden, and the ruins were gradually covered by drifting sand before being excavated in the late 1800s. It has always been widely assumed that the castle was built on the orders of Archbishop Eskil, but recent excavations have revealed new evidence that suggests that Canute the Great, King of Denmark and England, was the first lord of Aose Castle.
References:The stone church of Gamla Uppsala, built over the pagan temple, dates from the early 12th century. Due to fire and renovations, the present church is only a remnant of the original cathedral.
Before the arrival of Christianity in Sweden, Gamla Uppsala was the seat of Swedish kings and a ceremonial site known all over northern Europe. The settlement was home to royal palaces, a royal burial ground, and a great pagan temple. The Uppsala temple, which was described in detail by Adam of Bremen in the 1070s, housed wooden statues of the Norse gods Odin, Thor and Freyr. A golden chain hung across its gables and the inside was richly decorated with gold. The temple had priests, who sacrificed to the gods according to the needs of the people.
The first Christian cathedral was probably built in the 11th century, but finished in the 12th century. The stone building may have been preceded by a wooden church and probably by the large pagan temple.