Ängsö Castle (; older spelling Engsö Castle) is a

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, located near

Västerås Västerås () is a city in central Sweden on the shore of Mälaren, Lake Mälaren in the province of Västmanland, west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 158,653, over 100,000 mo ...

Building

The castle is on the island of Ängsö in lake

Mälaren Mälaren ( , , or ), historically referred to as Lake Malar in English, is the third-largest freshwater lake in Sweden (after Vänern and Vättern). Its area is and its greatest depth is 64 m (210 ft). Mälaren spans from east to west. The l ...

. The castle is a cubical building in four stores made by stone and bricks. The lower parts is preserved from the Middle Ages. It was redecorated and expanded in the 1630s. The 4th storey as well as the roof is from the expansion of

Carl Hårleman Baron Carl Hårleman (27 August 1700 – 9 February 1753) was a Sweden, Swedish architect. Biography Hårleman was born in Stockholm, son of the garden architect and head of the royal parks and gardens Johan Hårleman, who had been Ennoblemen ...

from 1740 to 1741. It gained its current appearance in the 1740s.

History

It was first named as "Engsev" in a

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

by king

Canute I of Sweden Knut Eriksson (; born before 1150 – died 1195/96), also known as Canute I, was King of Sweden from 1173 until his death (rival king since 1167). He was a son of King Erik the Saint and Queen Christina, who was a granddaughter of the Swedish k ...

(r. 1167–1196), in which he stated that he had inherited the property after his father

Eric IX of Sweden Saint Erik ( 1125 - 18 May 1160), also called Eric IX or Erik Jedvardsson was King of Sweden from 1156 until his death in 1160. The ''Roman Martyrology'' of the Catholic Church names him as a saint memorialized on 18 May. He was the founder of ...

.Ängsö: Ett gods som har tillhört Erik den helige”, Lars Gahrn och Staffan Fridell, 2010 Until 1272, it was owned by the

Riseberga Abbey Riseberga Abbey (), was a Cistercian nunnery in Sweden, in operation from circa 1180 until 1534. It was located near Fjugesta in Närke. It had the right to appoint the vicar of the Edsberg parish, which was under the jurisdiction of the abbey. ...

, and then taken over by

Gregers Birgersson Gregers Birgersson (died 15 January 1276) Greger/Gregory/Gregorius was a Swedish knight, a major landowner and an illegitimate son of Birger Jarl of the House of Bjälbo (also known as the House of Folkung). He was born out of wedlock by an unkn ...

. From 1475 until 1710, it was owned by the

Sparre family Sparre (variously spelled ''Sperra'', ''Sper'', ''Spar'') is a Scandinavian surnameoriginally borne by a nobility, noble familyand can refer to: * Aage Jepsen Sparre, Danish priest * Arvid Gustavsson Sparre (1245–1317), Lord of Ekholmen, Sweden ...

. The current castle was built as a fortress by ''

riksråd Riksrådet (in Norwegian and Swedish) or Rigsrådet (in Danish or English: the Council of the Realm and the Council of the State – sometimes translated as the "Privy Council") is the name of the councils of the Scandinavian countries that ...

'' Bengt Fadersson Sparre in the 1480s. In 1522, Ängsö Castle was taken after a siege by king

Gustav Vasa Gustav Eriksson Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), also known as Gustav I, was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560. He was previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm (''Reichsverweser#Sweden, Riksföreståndare'') fr ...

, since its owner, Fadersson's son Knut Bengtsson, sided with

Christian II of Denmark A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

. However, in 1538 it was given by the king to Bengtsson's daughter Hillevi Knutsdotter, who was married to

Arvid Trolle Arvid Birgersson, Lord of Bergkvara (c. 1440 – 20 February 1505) was a Swedish magnate and politician in the last decades of Middle Ages. He was justiciar of Östergötland and then of Tiohärad, as well as a Lord High Councillor of Sweden, an ...

. In 1710, the castle was taken over by

Carl Piper Count Carl Piper (July 29, 1647, Stockholm – May 29, 1716, Schlüsselburg) was a Swedish statesman. He entered the foreign office after completing his academical course at Uppsala, accompanied Bengt Gabrielsson Oxenstierna on his embassage ...

and

Christina Piper Christina Piper (; 1 January 1673 – 25 March 1752) was a Swedish countess, landowner and entrepreneur who was married to the statesman and military count Carl Piper. During the tenure of her spouse in office, she played a considerable pol ...

. Ängsö Castle was owned by the Piper family from 1710 until 1971, and is now owned by the Westmanna foundation. The castle building itself was made into a museum in 1959 and was made a listed building in 1965. It is currently opened to visitors during the summers.

References

External links

* Castles in Västmanland County Västmanland Tourist attractions in Västmanland County Västerås Municipality {{Sweden-castle-stub

Building

History

See also

References

External links