Carlsten, Marstrand, Sweden

Carlsten is a stone fortress built on the orders of King Carl X of Sweden following the Treaty of Roskilde, 1658 to protect the newly acquired province of Bohuslän from hostile attacks. The site of Marstrand was chosen because of its location and its access to an ice free port. Initially a square stone tower was constructed, but by 1680 it was reconstructed and replaced by a round shaped tower. Successive additions to the fortress were carried out, by the inmates sentenced to hard labour, until 1860 when it was reported finished. The fortress was decommissioned as a permanent defense installation in 1882, but remained in military use until the early 1990s.

The fortress was attacked and sieged twice falling into enemy hands. In 1677 it was conquered by Ulrik Frederick Gyldenløve, the Danish military commander in Norway and in 1719 by the Norwegian Vice-Admiral Tordenskjold. At both occasions the fortress was returned to Swedish control through negotiations and treaties.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Rhelda Arvidsson (13 months ago)
Enjoyed it, however the type was offered only in Swedish although we met multitudes of visitors from outside of Sweden who would have enjoyed an English tour, as we would have. The guide was quite unfriendly too and it seemed he fancies himself a popular attraction, which wasn't appealing at all. Lovely place with lots to see. The souvenir shop can also do with a bit more variety though, compared to when we visited Kalmar Castle where there were so many nice things to shop.

Gerell Lagerloef (13 months ago)
Castle living at it’s best. Great breakfast room buried in the castle. This is an experience stay with no real downsides

Mithun S Kumar (13 months ago)
Lovely around the castle. A place for a nice picnic swim and long walking trails.

Marco Hirose (13 months ago)
Amazing place to go with family. Good structure toilet included places to buy food.

alex chaudet (2 years ago)
Very nice island, quiet if you’re not there in the middle of the summer but still beautiful and peaceful place. You have to take a 30 seconds boat to go there (around 34krona/ person round trip) I recommend this place to everyone!

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