The Oslo Kongsgård estate (

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

: ''Oslo kongsgård'') was a royal residence and fortified

Kongsgård Kongsgård (Swedish:''Kungsgård'') is a residence, estate, or farmland that has belonged or still belongs to the Scandinavian monarchs or royal families. History During the Viking Age and early Middle Ages, the nations of Scandinavia were organ ...

estate located in the

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, Norway. The ruins of the former estate and its buildings can today been seen in

Middelalderparken The Medieval Park ( no, Middelalderparken) is located in the borough of Gamle Oslo in Oslo, Norway. The park was opened in the year 2000 at Sørenga in what was once the southern part of the medieval city of Oslo. The park is located within an ...

in the

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...

of Oslo.

History

The oldest parts of the estate that have been excavated are barricade walls built in a classic

motte-and-bailey A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy to ...

style. These walls likely date from the years between 1040 and 1060, a time when Norway was ruled by King

Harald Hardrada Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' (; modern no, Hardråde, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler") in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 t ...

. The estate was located close to St Mary's Church and later expanded during the reign of King

Haakon Haakonsson Haakon IV Haakonsson ( – 16 December 1263; Old Norse: ''Hákon Hákonarson'' ; Norwegian: ''Håkon Håkonsson''), sometimes called Haakon the Old in contrast to his namesake son, was King of Norway from 1217 to 1263. His reign lasted for 46 y ...

, who built larger and stronger walls, transforming the estate into a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

-like structure. The estate eventually became a royal residential palace with towers, a Haakon's hall-inspired great hall and the largest medieval

log house A log house, or log building, is a structure built with horizontal logs interlocked at the corners by notching. Logs may be round, squared or hewn to other shapes, either handcrafted or milled. The term " log cabin" generally refers to a sm ...

s recorded in Norway. The location of the estate played a significant role when King

Haakon V Haakon V Magnusson (10 April 1270 – 8 May 1319) ( non, Hákon Magnússon; no, Håkon Magnusson, label=Modern Norwegian) was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319. Biography Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, Kin ...

decided to gradually moved the capital of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

from

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

. The estate eventually lost its status and role as a regional administrative center to

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...

and became the residence of the

Chancellor of Norway The Chancellor of Norway (modern Norwegian: ''Norges rikes kansler'', "Chancellor of Norway's Realm") was the most important aide of the King of Norway during the Middle Ages, and during the Denmark-Norway, Union with Denmark. He issued laws and r ...

in the late Middle Ages.

References

External links

Kongsgården, Gamle Oslo (Official website of Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage)
{{Castles in Norway Royal residences in Norway Medieval Norway Archaeological sites in Norway Oslo Old Town History of Oslo Castles in Norway Palaces in Norway