Top Historic Sights in Arboga, Sweden
Explore the historic highlights of Arboga
Arboga Town Hall
The town hall was originally built as a church in the 15th Century. During the reformation in the 16th Century Gustav Vasa gave the church to the people of Arboga and its new purpose was to be the town hall. However the king used the house as his own private residence instead. His daughter, Cecilia, Countess of Arboga, also lived here in 1570. From 1640 to the present day Arboga’s town council has had offices here. The ...The Church of the Holy Trinity
The Church of the Holy Trinity (Heliga Trefaldighets Kyrka) was built in the 13th century; the earliest plans were of a monastery for an order of Franciscan monks which had settled in Arboga. Early in the 16th century Gustav Vasa started Reformation in Sweden and the monastery was opened as a church for the people of Arboga. During renovations in the 17th century a church tower was added to the building. Among the artifa ...Arboga Museum
In 1846 the merchant Anders Öhrström built a lavish residence for himself and his family – The Öhrström estate (Öhrströms gård) on Nygatan has been meticulously renovated and its period rooms and features are a true asset to Arboga. The estate is now home to Arboga Museum. The museum also houses a large photographic archive and library in addition to modern facilities for exhibit ...St. Nicholas' Church
St. Nicholas’ Church (Sankt Nicolai kyrka) date from the 12th century and is the oldest in the Arborga area. It has been rebuilt several times. Originally single-nave church was extended to three-nave already in the 1200’s. The richly decorated altar is made in Lübeck in 1510. The pulpit date from 1788.Halvardsborg
Halvardsborg was an ancient stronghold in Arboga. It was built probably between 400-550 AD. It consisted of 520m long and even 3m high stone wall. There are some remains of the wall today.Jädersbruk
There has been an ironworks in Jädersbruk since Middle Ages. It was originally owned by Julita Abbey. After Reformation Jädersbruk was confiscated to the Crown. King Gustav Vasa set up there the first arms manufactory “Arboga faktori, Jäders Bruk” to decrease the dependence of foreign weapons. Weapons fere forged until the end of 17th century when the ironworks gradually started manufacturing o ...Götlunda Church
Götlunda Church was opened after large reconstruction in 1747. The tower and foundations originate from the medieval church built in the 14th century. The limestone font was made in 1661 and pulpit in 1764. The organs date back to 1890.Säterbo Church
The stone church of Säterbo was originally built in the 1100’s. The tower was added probably in the 13th century and sacristy in 15th century. The triumphal crucifix date from the beginning of 13th century. The pulpit was made in 1796.Medåker Church
Medåker Church was probably built in the late 13th century. The vestry and porch were added during the 1300’s. The church was widened to the north around 1490. The tower and tall, slender spire date back to 1652. The limestone fonts were made in the 13th century and the altar in the late 15th century. The pulpit was carved in 1627.Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings
Historic Site of the week
Cochem Castle
The original Cochem Castle, perched prominently on a hill above the Moselle River, served to collect tolls from passing ships. Modern research dates its origins to around 1100. Before its destruction by the French in 1689, the castle had a long and fascinating history. It changed hands numerous times and, like most castles, also changed its form over the centuries.
In 1151 King Konrad III ended a dispute over who should inherit Cochem Castle by laying siege to it and taking possession of it himself. That same year it became an official Imperial Castle (Reichsburg) subject to imperial authority. In 1282 it was Habsburg King Rudolf’s turn, when he conquered the Reichsburg Cochem and took it over. But just 12 years later, in 1294, the newest owner, King Adolf of Nassau pawned the castle, the town of Cochem and the surrounding region in order to finance his coronation. Adolf’s successor, Albrecht I, was unable to redeem the pledge and was forced to grant the castle to the archbishop in nearby Trier and the Electorate of Trier, which then administered the Reichsburg continuously, except for a brief interruption when Trier’s Archbishop Balduin of Luxembourg had to pawn the castle to a countess. But he got it back a year later.
The Electorate of Trier and its nobility became wealthy and powerful in large part due to the income from Cochem Castle and the rights to shipping tolls on the Moselle. Not until 1419 did the castle and its tolls come under the administration of civil bailiffs (Amtsmänner). While under the control of the bishops and electors in Trier from the 14th to the 16th century, the castle was expanded several times.
In 1688 the French invaded the Rhine and Moselle regions of the Palatinate, which included Cochem and its castle. French troops conquered the Reichsburg and then laid waste not only to the castle but also to Cochem and most of the other surrounding towns in a scorched-earth campaign. Between that time and the Congress of Vienna, the Palatinate and Cochem went back and forth between France and Prussia. In 1815 the western Palatinate and Cochem finally became part of Prussia once and for all.
Louis Jacques Ravené (1823-1879) did not live to see the completion of his renovated castle, but it was completed by his son Louis Auguste Ravené (1866-1944). Louis Auguste was only two years old when construction work at the old ruins above Cochem began in 1868, but most of the new castle took shape from 1874 to 1877, based on designs by Berlin architects. After the death of his father in 1879, Louis Auguste supervised the final stages of construction, mostly involving work on the castle’s interior. The castle was finally completed in 1890. Louis Auguste, like his father, a lover of art, filled the castle with an extensive art collection, most of which was lost during the Second World War.
In 1942, during the Nazi years, Ravené was forced to sell the family castle to the Prussian Ministry of Justice, which turned it into a law school run by the Nazi government. Following the end of the war, the castle became the property of the new state of Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate). In 1978 the city of Cochem bought the castle for 664,000 marks.