Hakoinen Castle was an ancient hill fortification, but nowadays there's only some ruins left. Dated medieval, the fortification was situated on a very steep rock by lake Kernaala (Kernaalanjärvi) reminiscent of a hill fort tradition. The top of the rock is 63 meters above the water level in the lake. Today very little remains of the castle. Equally little is known about its origins. One postulation is that it was built by the Swedes as their original stronghold in the medieval Häme area.
The castle was probably built at the end of the 13th century or during the early 14th century. It has been speculated that Hakoinen might have been the fort that was attacked by invading Novgorodian forces in 1311 during the Swedish-Novgorodian Wars, as described in the Novgorod Chronicle.
Eventually Hakoinen was left out of use. Some activity seems to have remained there until 1380s. The castle rock was later a part of a large estate belonging to the bailiff of Häme Castle. According to excavations, the castle was divided into two parts. Lower defensive constructions were mostly made of wood. Constructions on the rock were made of bricks and rocks. The castle probably had one tower.
Although very little remains of the castle, the medieval flora and huge sights from the top of the hill makes Hakoinen castle hill interesting place to visit.
References:Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.