Kokemäki Castle (, ) was a

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

castle in

Kokemäki Kokemäki (; ) is a town and municipality in the Satakunta Region of Finland. The town has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . Finland is constitutionally bi-lingual with a Swedish speakin ...

in the province of

Satakunta Satakunta (in both Finnish language, Finnish and Swedish language, Swedish, ; historically ''Satacundia'') is a Regions of Finland, region ( / ) of Finland, part of the former Western Finland Province. It borders the regions of Southwest Finland ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. The time of its foundation is unclear, but the castle was most likely completed in 1324–25. It was demolished in 1367 by order of King Albert, as the local residents complained of heavy taxation for the upkeep of the castle. The castle was located on the Linnaluoto Island in the river

Kokemäenjoki The Kokemäenjoki (" Kokemäki River", ) is a river in southwestern Finland. Geography The river originates at Lake Liekovesi in the Pirkanmaa region, and flows to the Gulf of Bothnia at Pori in the Satakunta region. Primary tributaries of the ...

.Salminen, Tapio: "Kumo castle, Aborch and Vreghdenborch – sources and past scholarship, a revision"
English summary, p. 70–74. Academia.edu. Retrieved 26 August 2014.

History

Kokemäki Castle was the administrative centre of Kokemäenkartano slottslän. Its function was similar to that of the castles of

Turku Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...

Häme Tavastia (; ; ; also called ''Yam'' (Ямь) or ''Yem'' (Емь) in Russian sources) is a historical province in the south of Finland. It borders Finland Proper, Satakunta, Ostrobothnia, Savonia and Uusimaa. History The province has been ...

and

Vyborg Vyborg (; , ; , ; , ) is a town and the administrative center of Vyborgsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of Vyborg Bay, northwest of St. Petersburg, east of the Finnish capital H ...

, which are still preserved today. The only known reference to Kokemäki Castle is King Albert's warrant for the demolition and relocation of the castle, dated 12 July 1367. It was probably built of

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

and equipped with a round tower. In 1364–65 Kokemäki Castle was besieged by the army of King Albert as the castle was under the rule of

Magnus IV of Sweden Magnus Eriksson (April or May 1316 – 1 December 1374) was King of Sweden from 1319 to 1364, King of Norway as Magnus VII from 1319 to 1355, and ruler of Scania from 1332 to 1360. By adversaries he has been called ''Magnus Smek'' (). Medi ...

. Archaeological excavations were made in 1885. Various items were found which were dated to the late

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

, as well as to the 13th and 14th century. After the demolition of Kokemäki Castle a new castle, Aborch, was established. Location of this castle is uncertain, since it was disbanded in the 1410s. It was probably built upstream at the same location as the later Kokemäenkartano manor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kokemaki Castle Castles in Finland Buildings and structures in Satakunta History of Satakunta Kokemäki

History

See also

References