Glimmingehus is a

medieval era In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and t ...

castle located at

Simrishamn Municipality Simrishamn Municipality () is a Municipalities of Sweden, municipality in Skåne County in southern Sweden. Its seat is located in the city Simrishamn. The creation of the present municipality took place during the last of the two nationwide muni ...

Scania Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

in southern

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 ...

. It is the best preserved

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

stronghold A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

in Scandinavia. It was built 1499–1506, during an era when Scania formed a vital part of

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, and contains many defensive arrangements of the era, such as

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...

s, false doors and dead-end corridors, 'murder-holes' for pouring boiling pitch over the attackers,

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...

drawbridge A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveable b ...

s and various other forms of death traps to surprise trespassers and protect the nobles against peasant uprisings. The lower part of the castle's stone walls are 2.4 meters (94 inches) thick and the upper part 1.8 meters (71 inches).

History

Construction was started in 1499 by the Danish knight

Jens Holgersen Ulfstand Jens may refer to: * Jens (given name), a list of people with the name * Jens (surname), a list of people * Jens, Switzerland, a municipality * 1719 Jens, an asteroid See also * Jensen (disambiguation) Jensen may refer to: People and fictional ...

and stone-cutter-mason and architect

Adam van Düren Adam van Düren was a master builder and stonemason active in Denmark and Sweden at the end of the fifteenth century and the first decades of the sixteenth century (he is attested from about 1487 until about 1532). Adam appears to have been of We ...

, a North German master who also worked on

Lund Cathedral Lund Cathedral () is a cathedral of the Lutheran Church of Sweden in Lund, Scania, Sweden. It is the seat of the Bishop of Lund and the main church of the Diocese of Lund. It was built as the Catholic cathedral of the archiepiscopal see of all ...

. Construction was completed in 1506. At the time of Ulfstand, the estate as whole was referred to as Stora Glimminge. (Swedish for "Grand Glimminge"). This was a way for Ulfstand to signify its status in the surrounding area of Glimminge. Glimmingehus - 2018 september - TippToppFoto - Fredrik Arvidsson -0529

Glimmingehus - 2018 september - TippToppFoto - Fredrik Arvidsson -0529

The artwork placed over the castle entrance by Jens Holgersen Ulfstand commemorate the foundation-laying year as 1499. Ulfstand was a councillor, nobleman and admiral serving under King John I of Denmark and many objects have been uncovered during archeological excavations that demonstrate the extravagant lifestyle of the knight's family at Glimmingehus up until Ulfstand's death in 1523. Some of the most expensive objects for sale in Europe during this period, such as

Venetian glass Venetian glass () is glassware made in Venice, typically on the island of Murano near the city. Traditionally it is made with a soda–lime "metal" and is typically elaborately decorated, with various "hot" glass-forming techniques, as well as ...

, painted glass from the Rhine district and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

ceramics, have been found here. Evidence of the family's wealth can also be seen inside the stone fortress, where everyday comforts for the knight's family included hot air channels in the walls and bench seats in the window recesses. Although considered comfortable for its period, it has also been argued that Glimmingehus was an expression of "Knighthood nostalgia" and not considered opulent or progressive enough even to the knight's contemporaries and especially not to later generations of the Scanian nobility. Glimmingehus is thought to have served as a residential castle for only a few generations before being transformed into a storage facility for grain. An order from King Charles XI to the administrators of the

Swedish dominion The Dominions of Sweden or ''Svenska besittningar'' ("Swedish possessions") were territories that historically came under control of the Swedish Crown, but never became fully integrated with Sweden. This generally meant that they were ruled by G ...

of Scania in 1676 to demolish the castle, in order to ensure that it would not fall into the hands of the Danish king during the

Scanian War The Scanian War (; ; ; ) was a part of the Northern Wars involving the union of Denmark–Norway, Electorate of Brandenburg, Brandenburg and Swedish Empire, Sweden. It was fought from 1675 to 1679 mainly on Scanian soil, in the former Danish ...

, could not be executed. A first attempt, in which 20 Scanian farmers were ordered to assist, proved unsuccessful. An additional force of 130 men were sent to Glimmingehus to execute the order in a second attempt. However, before they could carry out the order, a Danish-Dutch naval division arrived in Ystad, and the Swedes had to abandon the demolition attempts.

Modern usage

Throughout the 18th century the castle was used as deposit for agricultural produce and in 1924 it was donated to the Swedish state. During the years 1935–38, an extensive restoration and excavation project was carried out. Today it is administered by the

Swedish National Heritage Board The Swedish National Heritage Board (; RAÄ) is a Swedish government agency responsible for World Heritage Sites and other national heritage monuments and historical environments. It is governed by the Ministry of Culture. The goals of the agen ...

(Swedish: ''Riksantikvarieämbetet''). On site there is a

museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...

, medieval kitchen, shop and restaurant and coffee house. During summer time there are several guided tours daily. In local folklore, the castle is described as haunted by multiple

ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

s and the tradition of story telling inspired by the castle is continued in the summer events at the castle called "Bizarre stories and terrifying tales".

Gallery

File:Glimmingehus Interior.jpg, Interior File:Glimmingehus ColonnVault.jpg, Heavy vaults in lower part File:Glimmingehus Builder.jpg, Stone artwork of Jens Holgersen Ulfstand in Glimmingehus File:Glimmingehus Door.jpg, Interior door at Glimmingehus. File:Glimmingehus - KMB - 16000300021156.jpg, Entrance

References

Other sources

*Ödman von Anders (1997) ''Glimmingehus'' (Stockholm, Riksantikvarieämbetet)

External links

Glimmingehus - The Medieval Manor
at the

{{Castles in Scania Castles in Skåne County Museums in Skåne County Historic house museums in Sweden 16th-century establishments in Scania Water castles Simrishamn Municipality