The Skanderborg chapel is the only remaining part of the former Skanderborg castle which was definitively demolished in 1770. In 1562-63 King Frederick II rebuilt the medieval castle on Slotsholmen (an elevation in the ground that used to be a small island) to a modern fortress. Because of the financial difficulties of the Kingdom of Denmark the king chose to take up residence in Skanderborg.
Hence in 1572 a chapel was constructed in the newly established royal wing which at the same time was increased with two storeys. The castle functioned as a residence for the royal family for several years and among other things it could be mentioned that Christian IV learned seamanship as well as horsemanship in Skanderborg.
The present church consists of a long nave with a round tower with a conical, copper spire. The tower was originally one of the castle’s corner towers.Below the church in the castle’s old wine cellar a crypt has been established with four glass mosaics by the sculptor V. Foersom Hegndal. A variety of the original furniture in noble renaissance can still be seen in the church. The baptismal font from 1850 has been made after a drawing by Bindesbøll.
References:Spišskà Kapitula, a unique fortified ecclesiastical ensemble, began as a small fortified settlement overlooking Spišské Podhradie in the 12th century. It was the site of the residence of the Provost of the castle, in the no longer extant St Martin"s monastery, and later became a capitulary. This was destroyed in by Tatars in 1241-1243, but the pilgrim"s chapel, in rotunda form and dedicated to the Virgin, survived until the 18th century and the monastery until the 15th century.
The complex of buildings there is based on the Cathedral of St Martin, where building began in 1285 as a three-aisled Romanesque basilica with a chancel at the west end and a double spire. It owes its present form to successive remodellings and additions in the Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque styles.
The Provost's residence was completed in 1281 and further religious buildings were added. Frequent raids by marauding Bulgars and others led to its being fortified in the 14th century. The cathedral was rebuilt in the later 14th century. In 1776 it became the residence of the Bishop and four years later a seminary was established. In 1819 the first teacher training centre in Hungary was founded there.
The Bishop's Palace is largely Baroque, with some excellent interior decorations, like many of the religious buildings in the group. The oval ground plan of the centre of the town is due to its having been fortified in the 14th century. The various religious buildings had defensive functions in this early period. New monastery buildings were erected when the provost"s residence was rebuilt and the whole area fortified. The earlier central fortifications were removed in the 18th century.
Spišské Kapitula is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site Levoča, Spiš Castle and the associated cultural monuments.