Älvsborg Castle

Gothenburg, Sweden

Älvsborg, also Elfsborg Fortress, is a sea fortress situated on the mouth of the Göta Älv river. It served to protect Sweden's access to the Atlantic Ocean and the nearby settlement of today's Gothenburg and its four predecessors. The fortress was relocated in the 17th century, this New Älvsborg Fortress is still maintained. Of the Old Älvsborg Fortress, only few ruins are visible today in the vicinity of the Carnegie-pier. The new fortress was founded in 1621 by Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden.

In 1643, a settlement in New Sweden, North America, was named Fort Nya Elfsborg, after the Swedish fortress. This settlement was however abandoned in 1655.

References:

Wikipedia

Address

Älvsborgs fästning, Gothenburg, Sweden

See all sites in Gothenburg

Details

Founded: 1621
Category: Castles and fortifications in Sweden
Historical period: Swedish Empire (Sweden)

More Information

en.wikipedia.org
enjoysweden.se

Rating

4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

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User Reviews

Igor Fabjan (3 years ago)
Great day trip to the fortified island. The trip itself on an old ship is worth to go. There are some personnel dressed like in the times when fortress was active but unfortunately acting only in Swedish.

Michael Kusk Christensen (4 years ago)
Beautiful castle on a beautiful island with a great theatrical tour of the history of the place.

Jonas Pannee (4 years ago)
Very engaging and entertaining guides, interesting views but nothing spectacular.

Just Websites (4 years ago)
This was great fun with dramatisations of life on the island in days gone by. All done by two wonderful actors. Loved it but my God it was windy that day.

Sameer Al-Jishi (4 years ago)
Nice trip by boat to the castle

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Robert Anders

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