Skansin is a historic fortress in

Tórshavn Tórshavn (; ; Danish language, Danish: ''Thorshavn''), usually locally referred to as simply Havn, is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of th ...

, the capital of the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...

. Skansin is located on a hill beside the port of Tórshavn. The fort was built in 1580 by Magnus Heinason to protect against pirate raids of the town, after he himself was nearly caught up in one such raid. The fort was expanded considerably in 1780 and went through a series of rebuilds for many years afterwards. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the fort served Britain as a military base after the

British occupation of the Faroe Islands Operation Valentine, the British occupation of the Faroe Islands during the Second World War, was implemented immediately following Operation Weserübung, the German invasion of metropolitan Denmark and Norway. It was a small component of the ...

in April 1940. Two 5.5 inch guns date from the British occupation, standing along with many older Danish cannon. One of the Faroese lighthouses, the Skansin Lighthouse (Skansin international lighthouse), towers over the fortress, pointing the way to the capital. The strategic location of the fort offers views of Tórshavn port, surrounding landscape and views out towards

Nólsoy Nólsoy (, previously also ''Nölsoy''; ; ) is an island and village in central Faroe Islands, 4km east of the capital Tórshavn in Streymoy. Description Nólsoy is the lowest of the Faroes; the highest point is Eggjarklettur (372 m) on the moun ...

island.

Gallery

File:Skansin lighthouse.jpg, Skansin lighthouse File:Skansin cannons.jpg, Old cannons at Skansin File:Skansin Lighthouse and Fort.jpg, Skansin lighthouse and fort as seen in September 2024

External links

(Source) - Forts of the Faroe Islands

Faroeislands.dk - Foto
{{coord, 62, 00, 29, N, 6, 45, 47, W, region:FO_type:landmark_source:kolossus-ruwiki, display=title Tórshavn History of the Faroe Islands Military installations of Denmark Military installations closed in the 1940s

Gallery

See also

External links