Bohus Fortress lies in
Kungälv
Kungälv () is a cities of Sweden, city and the seat of Kungälv Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It is also a part of Greater Gothenburg Metropolitan Area. It had 22,768 inhabitants in 2010. In 2021, the main Kungälv - Ytterby - ...
,
Bohuslän
Bohuslän () is a Provinces of Sweden, Swedish province in Götaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
, north east from
Hisingen
Hisingen () is the fifth-largest island of Sweden (after Gotland, Öland, Södertörn and Orust), with an area of . It is a river island, formed by the split of the Göta Älv at Bohus Fortress, Bohus, and is defined to the east and south by t ...
where the
Göta river splits into two branches ( north of
Gothenburg
Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
). It commands the surrounding area from a cliff high, with the river forming a natural moat around it. The fortress used to be situated along the old
Norwegian–
Swedish border.
Initial construction
The construction of Bohus Fortress (, ) began in 1308 under King
Haakon V Magnuson,
king of Norway
The Norwegian monarch is the head of state of Norway, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The Norwegian monarchy can trace its line back to the reign of Harald Fairhair and the previous petty king ...
from 1299 to 1319.
Håkon V also initiated construction of
Norwegian fortresses
Norwegian fortresses or fortifications have been constructed from some of the earliest recorded periods, down through the 20th century. The geography and topography of glacially carved, mountainous Norway constrain both the sea and the land rout ...
at
Akershus
Akershus () is a county in Norway, with Oslo as its administrative centre, though Oslo is not located within Akershus. Akershus has been a region in Eastern Norway with Oslo as its main city since the Middle Ages, and is named after the Akers ...
and
Vardøhus as part of a broader defensive policy. At the time
Bohuslän
Bohuslän () is a Provinces of Sweden, Swedish province in Götaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the ...
(''Båhuslen'') was Norwegian territory and served as the main Norwegian defence against Sweden,
along the coast as well as the strong point for the Bohuslän region from 1308 to 1658.
Medieval castle
According to architect
Guthorm Kavli:
Fortress

The fortress was attacked or besieged 14 times, but was never captured.
During the
Northern Seven Years' War
The Northern Seven Years' War (also known as the ''Nordic Seven Years' War'', the ''First Northern War,'' the ''Seven Years' War of the North'' or the ''Seven Years War in Scandinavia'') was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden (1523–1611), K ...
, in 1563–1570, it was seriously damaged. This occurred in 1566, when Swedish forces successfully stormed the 'Red Tower' in the northeast of the fortress. Two men from the garrison volunteered to detonate the tower's magazine, causing a massive explosion (the "
Bohus Bang") which killed hundreds of Swedish soldiers and thwarted the attack. As a reward the family of one of the volunteers received a piece of land which is still owned by his descendants.
The Norwegians rebuilt the fortress of stone and brick, and reinforced it substantially. The reconstruction immediately after the war was directed by Hans Paaske (Påske) from the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
. On 1 January 1590
James VI of Scotland
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...
and his wife
Anne of Denmark
Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I. She was List of Scottish royal consorts, Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and List of English royal consorts, Queen of Engl ...
came to Bohus. They gave Henrik Gyldenstierne, Captain of Bohus, a ring and a gold chain worth 3,000
Danish dalers. Gyldenstierne gave James a firearm and a sword.
In 1593–1604, similar to the construction then undertaken at
Akershus
Akershus () is a county in Norway, with Oslo as its administrative centre, though Oslo is not located within Akershus. Akershus has been a region in Eastern Norway with Oslo as its main city since the Middle Ages, and is named after the Akers ...
in
Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
, Bohus was upgraded to a
bastion
A bastion is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fire from the ...
fortress. A new outer fortification was raised. This construction was one of the early works of
Hans van Steenwinckel, also from the Netherlands, who later became noted for his
Dutch
Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
** Dutch people as an ethnic group ()
** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship ()
** Dutch language ()
* In specific terms, i ...
Renaissance style
Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...
design in Denmark.
As Swedish invasions continuously threatened Norwegian Båhuslen during this time period, the improvement of the fortifications went on for years. For example, starting in the summer of 1651 and until the autumn of 1652, the Dutch engineer Isaac van Geelkerck supervised the construction of two corner towers along the south façade and a new ring wall that was constructed around the
arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
building.
Loss to Sweden
Under the terms of the
Treaty of Roskilde
The Treaty of Roskilde was negotiated at Høje Taastrup Church and was concluded on 26 February ( OS) or 8 March 1658 ( NS) during the Second Northern War between Frederick III of Denmark–Norway and Karl X Gustav of Sweden in the Danish ci ...
in 1658,
Denmark–Norway
Denmark–Norway (Danish language, Danish and Norwegian language, Norwegian: ) is a term for the 16th-to-19th-century multi-national and multi-lingual real unionFeldbæk 1998:11 consisting of the Kingdom of Denmark, the Kingdom of Norway (includ ...
ceded the Danish provinces of
Scania
Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...
,
Blekinge
Blekinge () is one of the traditional Swedish provinces (), situated in the southern coast of the geographic region of Götaland, in southern Sweden. It borders Småland, Scania and the Baltic Sea. It is the country's second-smallest provin ...
and
Halland
Halland () is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap''), on the western coast of Götaland, southern Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Småland, Skåne, Scania and the sea of Kattegat. Until 1645 and the Second Treaty of Br ...
(the latter was agreed to belong to Sweden for a period of 30 years after the Peace of Brömsebro, but was given to Sweden permanently in the treaty of Roskilde) and the Norwegian provinces
Trøndelag
Trøndelag (; or is a county and coextensive with the Trøndelag region (also known as ''Midt-Norge'' or ''Midt-Noreg,'' "Mid-Norway") in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County (); in 1804 the county was ...
and
Bohuslän
Bohuslän () is a Provinces of Sweden, Swedish province in Götaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the ...
(including the Bohus Fortress).
Last Siege
After an
unsuccessful attempt to recapture the fortress in 1676, a Norwegian army under the command of
Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve
Ulrik Frederik Gyldenløve, Landgrave of Laurvig (20 July 1638 – 17 April 1704) was the illegitimate son of Frederick III of Denmark-Norway. A good relationship to his half brother, Christian V, secured him a position as one of the leading stat ...
returned in June 1678 and
besieged it again. Some 850 defenders faced 16.000 attackers, who fired 20-30.000 iron gun shots, 2265 "bombs" with chemical and biological content, 384 explosive grenades, 384 "great stone boulders", 161 glowing fire shots, 79 sacks filled with grenades and 600 "great mortar rounds". Also a number of mines was exploded under the outer walls. After six weeks of constant battering, the fortress was saved by an approaching Swedish detachment. At this time, there was 400 survivors in the fortress, 300 dead, and 120 wounded "who had their arms and legs shot off". The fortress itself was almost completely ruined and the repairs went on for some 50–70 years, but with small financial support and only the most important work was done.
After Denmark–Norway ceded the territory which included Bohus Fortress,
Fredriksten
Fredriksten is a fortress in the city of Halden in Norway.
History
This Fortresses was constructed by Denmark-Norway in the 17th century as a replacement for the border fortress at Bohus, which had been lost when the province of Bohuslän was ...
Fortress was constructed in
Fredrikshald on the newly established Norwegian-Swedish border.
Since the Bohus Fortress no longer lay on the border, it was of small use to Sweden,
which relied on the existing
New Älvsborg
New Älvsborg, so-called to distinguish it from the earlier fortress at Old Älvsborg, is a Coastal defence and fortification#Sea forts, sea fort on the island of Kyrkogårdsholmen within the urban area of modern Gothenburg, Sweden. Situated near ...
at
Gothenburg
Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
and the new
Carlsten Fortress built at
Marstrand
Marstrand () is a seaside locality situated in Kungälv Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 1,320 inhabitants in 2010. The town got its name from its location on the island of Marstrand. Despite its small population, for histo ...
.
Prison
Instead the fortress was used as a prison. The most noted prisoner was the radical
pietist
Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christianity, Christian life.
Although the movement is ali ...
Thomas Leopold, who spent 42 years of his life behind bars, 32 of those at Bohus, for his alleged heresies. His stone-clad cell still exists in the castle.
In the tower Fars Hatt, the original dungeon is still visible from above. A report from the 18th century states this as "a great depth, which has a floor of an iron net, upon which the delinquent has to walk and sleep. The floor accepts all their faeces, but then returns an unbearable stench, that soon makes the poor prisoner confess whatever crime he has committed". In those days, you were only put in prison until you confessed - then you got your immediate punishment: fine, shame, dismembering or death. Today the floor is more forgiving, but it still gives you a hint on what it might have been to sit "in the tower".
In the tower of Sven Hall, an old medieval dungeon has also been discovered, but it is hardly visible today. Probably it was no better than the one mentioned above, since evidence suggest that it was along the sewer exit from the fortress. Today it can be reached only by professionals, and is not visible except from the small daylight opening.
Modern times
At the end of the 18th century, it was decided that the now unused fortress should be demolished. Demolition crews worked at the fortress for two months, after that the money allocated for the job had run out. Residents of the nearby town of
Kungälv
Kungälv () is a cities of Sweden, city and the seat of Kungälv Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It is also a part of Greater Gothenburg Metropolitan Area. It had 22,768 inhabitants in 2010. In 2021, the main Kungälv - Ytterby - ...
used the dressed stone from the fortress to build houses.
However, much of the fortress is still intact, including the large northern tower, ''Fars hatt'' ("Father's hat"). , the fortress is a museum open to visitors during summer.
See also
*
Siege of Bohus fortress (1678)
References
External links
*
{{coord, 57, 51, 42, N, 11, 59, 58, E, region:SE_type:landmark, display=title
Buildings and structures completed in 1308
Buildings and structures completed in the 14th century
Buildings and structures completed in the 17th century
Castles in Västra Götaland County
Forts in Sweden
Bahus
Bohus
Bohus Fortress lies in Kungälv, Bohuslän, Sweden, north east from Hisingen where the Göta river splits into two branches ( north of Gothenburg). It commands the surrounding area from a cliff high, with the river forming a natural moat aroun ...
Museums in Västra Götaland County
Military and war museums in Sweden
17th-century fortifications
14th-century fortifications
Buildings and structures in Kungälv Municipality