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Founded: 13th centuryCategory: Castles and fortifications in Germany
Historical period: Habsburg Dynasty (Germany)
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Schloss Wittringen, also known as Haus Wittringen, is a moated castle in the North Rhine-Westphalian town of Gladbeck on the south-western edge of the Wittringen leisure centre. Its roots go back to the 13th century.
Once a knight's seat of the Vest Recklinghausen, it has seen many different owners over the course of its history, including the von Brabeck, von Oeffte and von Vittinghoff-Schell families. Today, the estate is owned by the town and is home to a museum and a restaurant. It has been a listed building since 1984
The stone church of Gamla Uppsala, built over the pagan temple, dates from the early 12th century. Due to fire and renovations, the present church is only a remnant of the original cathedral.
Before the arrival of Christianity in Sweden, Gamla Uppsala was the seat of Swedish kings and a ceremonial site known all over northern Europe. The settlement was home to royal palaces, a royal burial ground, and a great pagan temple. The Uppsala temple, which was described in detail by Adam of Bremen in the 1070s, housed wooden statues of the Norse gods Odin, Thor and Freyr. A golden chain hung across its gables and the inside was richly decorated with gold. The temple had priests, who sacrificed to the gods according to the needs of the people.
The first Christian cathedral was probably built in the 11th century, but finished in the 12th century. The stone building may have been preceded by a wooden church and probably by the large pagan temple.