Once Upon a Time: Gripsholm Castle
Facts for History and Travel Addicts
On the shores of Lake Mälaren, Gripsholm Castle towers powerfully and fairytale-like over the idyllic small town of Mariefred in Södermanland. Gripsholm is known as Gustav Vasa’s castle, as it was he who built the castle here in 1537.
As if there was any in Sweden that did not belong to him. Anyway! This is how The Royal Palaces (Kungliga Slotten) opens the presentation of Gripsholm Castle, one of the most beautiful and important castles in Sweden inherited from Gustav Vasa. School essay much?
Quick Historical Overview
- The construction started as a fortress in 1370,
- sold to Queen Margaret the I in 1404,
- acquired by Sten Sture the Elder in 1472 by an exchange of properties,
- donated to a convent for males of the order of the Carthusians in 1498,
- and finally, in 1526, the Carthusian Abbey was dissolved by King Gustav I and the history of today’s Gripsholmsslott has begun.
Real Estate done right. Since then, the castle belonged to the Vasas and generations on contributed to the actual Gripsholm Castle. What we see today is a Renaissance architectural style by architect Henrik von Cöllen. But several extra elements have been added and taken off again and again over the years.
Now I invite you to find out whose castle are we talking about and what’s the thing with so-called Vasa:
Gustav Vasa (born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family) was the founder and king of modern Sweden. He desired reformation and had plenty of ideas and the courage to put them into practice. Like blood battles for liberation, hereditary monarchy, first royal orchestra, and so on. And the castles? Well, he comes from a wealthy royal family, and each member of the family comes from a wealthy royal family, and each member of each member’s family comes from… Basically with so many rich relatives and Vasa as heir and future king, it is nearly impossible to find an imposing building on a splendid land that would not become his property. Plus, he seemed to be the type that kicks every kid on the playground and takes their toys. And this is not far from what he did to every single man that used to have a word to say before his reign. Spicy?
Fairytales in a Fairy Place
You can’t make history in a basic place, can you? No ditches to place the crocodiles? Dig some. No fancy botanical gardens for ladies to walk in? Plant some. When you have mountains of gold and hundreds of people in your service, it is easy to build up your dream castle. You don’t even have to think about it. You pay experts to guess what you want and behead them if the result is not impressive. So, let’s meet Gripsholm and guess if anybody lost his head. Buckle up!
The Old Train Station
Definitely cannot miss this one, and I am not saying this because it is absolutely lovely (though it is), but because it is right before the castle. The station is now a little museum you can visit for free, fall in love with, and take a tour with the historical train. See for yourself:
The Royal Gardens
As you move further, closer to the castle, you step into Heaven on Earth. Swedes take extensive care of their heritage and you can see this everywhere, especially in historical areas. Take a look and imagine yourself there walking your royal butt around every single day:
The Courtyard
Multiple layers of time and events, bricks and paint. As you already know, kings always loved adding something to their castles. Fair enough, you would do that too if you had a castle that went through wars, murders, Middle Ages, or simply didn’t get along with your elders’ tastes. At the Gripsholm’s, you cannot spot the differences a mile off but a second time around the castle will make a difference. Let’s put our eagle eyes on and take a look at the following picture:
What could you notice? If any of the following, then you have great attention:
- different rooftop — like every other inconsistent detail, the difference comes from a later restoration or addition.
- bricks vs. paint — the mid-right side of the building is the ‘original’, and the left side is a later addition. In fact, this is what happens when you start a job with someone and replace him in the middle of the journey. Kidding.
- different window frames — same old story.
Another element that takes your breath away is the oriel, rebuilt around the 1890s. The 3rd floor has been added eventually and now the oriel is lower but proudly marks the previous height of the construction.
In the Middle of History
There is much more to mention regarding the construction of the castle, as it seemed like an endless lego game for centuries. And the chambers make no exception either. Everything is well preserved: the paintings, the fabrics, the furniture, the smell.
We had no guide or info points during the visit, but we bought a brochure at the entrance to read from. Each chamber was numbered so it was easy to follow the right info as you walked through. Here’s a summary:
- On the first floor, we have the Vasa Apartments.
- Some decorations have been reproduced at the end of the 19th century as imagined to look like around the 16th century. Ever since wooden panels and ceilings have been added in most of the rooms.
- The children of the royal family had their chambers here.
- Paintings of the members of the dynasty cover most of the walls.
- Gripsholm Castle is in fact the home of the Swedish National Portrait Gallery, custody of The National Museum of Fine arts.
Enough talking, let’s see some pictures!
The second and third floors are something close to a business lounge and cultural centre. Here is where guests had their chambers, where ladies at the court gathered to celebrate or gossip, where the king and his advisors shared ideas and made plans and strategies. Also, we could find here the theatre, the study rooms, and the king’s ‘office’.
Lion of Gripsholm Castle
As we reach the end of the tour (the tower, more precisely), we step into a parallel universe. All the posh stuff we have observed by this time have vanished, and everything started to feel more barbarian. Here we have:
- a few battle flags (pictures below) with some sort of tribal human representations on them,
- armour and weapons,
- the cells where the prisoners were held,
- a museum of contemporary art and portraits of the royals up until now,
- a widely known symbol of the castle.
Curious? Keep reading!
The Lion of King Frederick I! Wow, a lion. Yes, you spoiled ‘I’ve seen it all’ people!
One of the first lions ever seen in Scandinavia belonged to King Frederick I, and it was offered as a gift along with other rare animals at that time, and a freed slave to become their keeper. The lion lived in a cage far from the court, and time after its death, the king asked for it to be stuffed and mounted. Bad decision in a time when a lion was such an abstract creature to imagine, and there was not so much of it left to use! Let’s laugh together:
Now that we’ve laughed enough to feel guilty, we should know this badly-stuffed lion is widely mocked. It also has a Facebook page (Lejonet på Gripsholms Slott). But we are understanding people and admit it is hard to make something look like a thing you’ve never seen. Good job Mr Taxidermist, you’ve entertained generations ever since!
:)
Okay, so this story opens a series of castle tours, as I have visited many and each one of them has a story worth telling.
Go to The Travelrr to see other adventures and the video of the Gripsholm’s tour!
