Penningby Castle

Norrtälje, Sweden

Penningby Castle is one of the most well-preserved castles from the early Vasa era. Penningby Manor is first mentioned in the 1330s. To the northeast is an overgrown ruin castle with a moat, which may be the remains of a predecessor to the castle. Its earliest owners included Lord Tord Bonde, burgrave of Raasepori and margrave of Viipuri castles. In late 15th century, a fortress was built by its owners, initiated by Lady Birgitta Tordsdotter Bonde, daughter of Tord Karlsson (Bonde), Lord High Constable of Sweden. The medieval castle was a so-called twin house unusual in its placement near the sea coast.

The immense tower was erected just before 1550s under Lord Lars Turesson, Tre Rosor. In his time, the eastern façade got a new entrance. Later, the sea tower got its round salon, arguably the most beautiful room in the castle.

In 1805 countess Maria Juliana von Rosen had the castle garden recreated in a so-called English style. In 1831, a fire destroyed the interiors of the castle, but parts of it, for example the ceiling, were restored, and the tower was modified. A section of the medieval walls are yet left. A restoration was carried out from 1951 to 1953. Penningby castle was declared a national cultural heritage (byggnadsminne) in 1980. Today the castle is not inhabited, but visitors may have access to it in summer season.

Olof Persson Stille, one of the early settlers in New Sweden, was employed on the Penningby Manor. In 1641 Olof Stillé, a millwright by trade, was the original owner of the area which is today Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Stillé was one of the four commissaries or magistrates appointed to administer justice among local inhabitants, and thus became a judge of the first court on the banks of the Delaware River.

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Address

276, Norrtälje, Sweden
See all sites in Norrtälje

Details

Founded: 15th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Sweden
Historical period: Kalmar Union (Sweden)

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

3.8/5 (based on Google user reviews)

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Norrtälje Church (8,8 km)
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Bogesund Castle (38,8 km)
Tyresö Church (53,7 km)
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User Reviews

Marianne Schröder (11 months ago)
Värt ett besök, även om man bara tittar på utsidan! Syns att det är från "Vasatiden"!
Maria Sandström (11 months ago)
Fascinerande slott med lång historia. Den långa guidade turen var väldigt bra :-)
Andreas Turku (11 months ago)
Trevlig guide, lite ytlig beskrivning av 600 års historia på en timme. Värt pengarna ändå!
Roger Siegenthaler (11 months ago)
Interesting history, nice lands around it but very small in comparison to others. Privately owned but had a great tour guide (check for Ingrid).
Noa González Borrajo (14 months ago)
Nice place, but it seems that it is just opened in July. Thats a pity as it seems beautiful.
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Moszna Castle

The Moszna Castle is one of the best known monuments in the western part of Upper Silesia. The history of this building begins in the 17th century, although much older cellars were found in the gardens during excavations carried out at the beginning of the 20th century. Some of the investigators, including H. Barthel, claimed that those cellars could have been remnants of a presumed Templar castle, but their theory has never been proved. After World War II, further excavations discovered a medieval palisade.

The central part of the castle is an old baroque palace which was partially destroyed by fire on the night of April 2, 1896 and was reconstructed in the same year in its original form by Franz Hubert von Tiele-Winckler. The reconstruction works involved an extension of the residence. The eastern Neogothic-styled wing of the building was built by 1900, along with an adjacent orangery. In 1912-1914, the western wing was built in the Neo-Renaissance style. The architectural form of the castle contains a wide variety of styles, thus it can be generally defined as eclectic.

The height of the building, as well as its numerous turrets and spires, give the impression of verticalism. The whole castle has exactly ninety-nine turrets. Inside, it contains 365 rooms. The castle was twice visited by the German Emperor Wilhelm II. His participation in hunting during his stay at the castle was documented in a hand-written chronicle in 1911 as well as in the following year. The castle in Moszna was the residence of a Silesian family Tiele-Winckler who were industrial magnates, from 1866 until the spring of 1945 when they were forced to move to Germany and the castle was occupied by the Red Army. The period of the Soviet control caused significant damage to the castle's internal fittings in comparison to the minor damage caused by WWII.

After World War II the castle did not have a permanent owner and was the home of various institutions until 1972 when it became a convalescent home. Later it became a Public Health Care Centre for Therapies of Neuroses. Nowadays it can be visited by tourists since the health institution has moved to another building in the neighbourhood. The castle also has a chapel which is used as a concert hall. Since 1998 the castle housed a gallery in which works of various artists are presented at regular exhibitions.

Apart from the castle itself, the entire complex includes a park which has no precise boundaries and includes nearby fields, meadows and a forest. Only the main axis of the park can be characterised as geometrical. Starting from the gate, it leads along the oak and then horse-chestnut avenues, towards the castle. Further on, the park passes into an avenue of lime trees with symmetrical canals running along both sides of the path, lined with a few varieties of rhododendrons. The axis of the park terminates at the base of a former monument of Hubert von Tiele-Winckler. On the eastern side of the avenue there is a pond with an islet referred to by the owners as Easter Island. The islet is planted with needle-leaved shrubs and can be reached by a Chinese-styled bridge. The garden, as part of the whole park complex was restored slightly earlier than the castle itself. Preserved documents of 1868 state that the improvement in the garden's aesthetic quality was undertaken by Hubert von Tiele-Winckler.

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