Torkilstrup Windmill dates from 1743 and is one of the country's few post mills which still stand on their original site. Standing on a hill to the south of the village, the grain mill dates back to c. 1650. Hans Mortensen acquired it in 1726, operating it for the next 44 years. In 1743, he rebuilt the mill, recording the date on an interior beam around a heart containing his initials (HMSM) together with those of his wife (AMPD) Anna Margrethe Pedersdatter. Mortensen must have been a thrifty individual. On his death at the age of 65, in addition to a chiming clock, an iron stove, a four-poster bed, a Bible and a German prayerbook, he left an amount of over 793 rigsdaler, an exceptionally high amount of money for a farmer of his day. The mill remained in operation until 1945.
The rectangular mill stands on a fieldstone foundation. The wooden body of the mill is faced with shingles. The boat-shaped roof is also covered with shingles. It has latticed vanes with a span of 18 m, designed to be covered with sailcloth. The mill can be rotated by means of a manually operated yaw. For a period, a bakery was attached to the mill. The workings of the mill have been preserved and include grinders, an oat roller, a drum sieve, a cap wheel, a crown drive and a vane shaft.
Equipped with tables and benches for picnics, the area around the mill can be freely accessed. The mill itself is open to visitors on Ascension Day from 10 am to noon, on the third Sunday in June (Danish mill day) from 10 am to 2 pm, and on the day the harvest festival is celebrated in Torkilstrup Church. It can also be visited by appointment.
References:The Walls of Constantinople are a series of defensive stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople (today Istanbul) since its founding as the new capital of the Roman Empire by Constantine the Great. With numerous additions and modifications during their history, they were the last great fortification system of antiquity, and one of the most complex and elaborate systems ever built. They were also the largest and strongest fortification in both the ancient and medieval world.
Initially built by Constantine the Great, the walls surrounded the new city on all sides, protecting it against attack from both sea and land. As the city grew, the famous double line of the Theodosian Walls was built in the 5th century. Although the other sections of the walls were less elaborate, they were, when well-manned, almost impregnable for any medieval besieger.