Gripsholms hjorthage is a deer park and

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

close to

Gripsholm Castle Gripsholm Castle ( sv, Gripsholms slott) is a castle in Mariefred, Södermanland, Sweden. It is located by lake Mälaren in south central Sweden, in the municipality of Strängnäs, about 60 km west of Stockholm. Since Gustav Vasa, Gripshol ...

Södermanland County Södermanland County ( sv, Södermanlands län) is a county or '' län'' on the southeast coast of Sweden. In the local Sörmlandic dialects it is virtually universally shortened and pronounced as Sörmlands län, or simply Sörmland, which is t ...

, Sweden. The deer pasture is dominated by many old oak trees. The area has been used for grazing for a long time, and as a deer park since the end of the 19th century. It was declared a nature reserve in 2001 after the discovery of the red-listed hermit beetle in the area. It is also popular as a recreational area.

History

The area contains traces of old settlements, including a

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

and a pre-Christian burial site. Its more recent history starts with it being part of a royal estate belonging to nearby

, supplying the court with foodstuffs. The estate farm has existed since the 13th century, and since the 17th century the estate has used the area that is today Gripsholms hjorthage as

pasture Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or swine ...

. In the 1860s, King

Charles XV of Sweden Charles XV also Carl (''Carl Ludvig Eugen''); Swedish: ''Karl XV'' and Norwegian: ''Karl IV'' (3 May 1826 – 18 September 1872) was King of Sweden (''Charles XV'') and Norway, there often referred to accurately as Charles IV, from 1859 until his ...

decided to transform the area into an

English landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (french: Jardin à l'anglaise, it, Giardino all'inglese, german: Englischer Landschaftsgarten, pt, Jardim inglês, es, Jardín inglés), is a sty ...

. Winding paths were laid out, some of which still remain. They led to points of interest in the landscape, such as the cross of iron erected by the

fraternal order A fraternal order is a fraternity organised as an order, with traits alluding to religious, chivalric or pseudo-chivalric orders, guilds, or secret societies. Contemporary fraternal orders typically have secular purposes, including social, cult ...

. Around 1890 the park was transformed into a deer park, from where its current name derives ("hjorthage" in

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

means deer park). It was converted into a deer park in order to accommodate deer which were moved from the royal deer park

Hjorthagen Hjorthagen is a district in the northeastern part of central Stockholm, located near Ropsten and Lidingöbron Lidingöbron (Swedish: "The Lidingö Bridge") is the name of two existing and two historical bridges across the strait of Lilla Vär ...

in Stockholm, which was being built up and transformed into a part of the city. At the turn of the century,

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of larg ...

s were planted in the area and

greenhouse A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of Transparent ceramics, transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic condit ...

s built. Fruit production, mainly

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...

s but also

plum A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found i ...

s and

cherries A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...

, continued until 1971. It was then considered unprofitable, production ceased and the orchards were cut down. In 1997, the

castellan A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant o ...

and another official from Gripsholm Castle informed the County Governor

Bo Holmberg Bo Lindor Holmberg (17 November 1942 – 11 February 2010), born in Härnösand, Västernorrlands län, Sweden, was a Swedish politician, Governor of Södermanland, and husband of former Minister for Foreign Affairs Anna Lindh. Biography Holmbe ...

that the deer park had financial difficulties. In the following years, the county together with the

National Property Board of Sweden The National Property Board of Sweden ( sv, Statens fastighetsverk, SFV) is a Swedish State administrative authority, organised under the Ministry of Finance. SFV is responsible for managing a portion of the real property assets owned by the Stat ...

and the

Swedish National Heritage Board The Swedish National Heritage Board ( sv, Riksantikvarieämbetet; RAÄ) is a Swedish government agency responsible for World Heritage Sites and other national heritage monuments and historical environments. It is governed by the Ministry of Cult ...

tried to find a solution for the park which would maintain its high natural values and keep the deer in the park. In 2001, the area was declared as a

, which means it is protected against exploitation and should be maintained to preserve its natural values. The immediate and main reason behind the decision to declare the area a nature reserve was the discovery of hermit beetles in the area; the species is red-listed in Sweden and is a prioritised species according to the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

Habitats Directive The Habitats Directive (more formally known as Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the Conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora) is a directive adopted by the European Community in 1992 as a response to the Berne Convention. The E ...

Description

The entire nature reserve lies within the fenced-off enclosure for the

fallow deer ''Dama'' is a genus of deer in the subfamily Cervinae, commonly referred to as fallow deer. Name The name fallow is derived from the deer's pale brown colour. The Latin word ''dāma'' or ''damma'', used for roe deer, gazelles, and antelopes, ...

of the park. It is situated west of Gripsholm Castle and is part of the premises of the castle that is within the right of use of the Swedish king (though it is owned by the Swedish state). A minor part of the deer enclosure is not part of the nature reserve. The area is hilly, particularly in the north eastern and south western parts of the reserve. The majority of the area is pasture dominated by

oak trees An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

. The long continuity of grazing, initially by cattle and later by deer, has created a rich natural environment. The area provides grazing for 100 deer. The many old, sometimes dying and decaying, trees — mostly oak but also linden — also provide important habitats for several species of insects,

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

. Most of the oak trees are around 200 years old, but some are considerably older. Several red-listed species of lichen (e.g. '' Caloplaca lucifuga'', '' Parmelina tiliacea'' and '' Nephroma parile'') and insects (e.g. '' Lasius brunneus'', '' Pentaphyllus testaceus'' and '' Corticeus fasciatus'') have been found in Gripsholms hjorthage, and the area is deemed to have a high botanical and

entomological Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

value. The area is popular as a recreational area, and efforts have been made to maintain what remains of the park laid out in the 1860s, and to install new paths and benches for visitors. It is the only remaining deer enclosure adjacent to a royal castle in Sweden. The nature reserve is deemed to be of interest for research concerning species which are dependent on the presence of old-growth oak trees. Gripsholms hjorthage is part of the EU-wide

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...

network of protected areas.

References

{{Nature reserves in Södermanland County Nature reserves in Sweden Natura 2000 in Sweden Geography of Södermanland County Protected areas established in 2001 Parks in Sweden