Näs Castle (Swedish: ''Näs slottsruin'') is the

ruins Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

of a former

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 ...

at Visingsö parish in

Jönköping County Jönköping County ( sv, Jönköpings län) is a county or '' län'' in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Halland, Västra Götaland, Östergötland, Kalmar and Kronoberg. The total county population was 356,291 inhabitants in Sept ...

, Sweden. The ruins are on the southern end of the island of

Visingsö Visingsö is an island in the southern half of Lake Vättern in Sweden. Visingsö lies north of the city Jönköping and west of Gränna from which two car ferries connect the island. The island is long and wide, with a total area of . Ac ...

in the southern part of Lake

Vättern Vättern ( , ) is the second largest lake by surface area in Sweden, after Vänern, and the sixth largest lake in Europe. It is a long, finger-shaped body of fresh water in south central Sweden, to the southeast of Vänern, pointing at the tip o ...

History

The facility was built as a royal residence during the 12th century. It was constructed during the reign of King

Sverker I of Sweden Sverker I or Sverker the Elder (Old Swedish: ''Swærkir konongær gambli''), murdered 25 December 1156, was King of Sweden from about 1132 till his death. Of non-royal descent, he founded the House of Sverker, the rulers of which alternated wit ...

(1132–1156) or his son King

Karl Sverkersson Charles VII or Carl (Swedish: ''Karl Sverkersson''; c. 1130 – 12 April 1167) was ruler of Götaland, and then King of Sweden from c. 1161 to 1167, when he was assassinated in a military attack by Knut Eriksson who succeeded him as Canute I. H ...

(c. 1130–1167) who resided in Näs Castle and was assassinated on the island of Visingsö by supporters of his successor King

Knut Eriksson Old Norse: ''Knútr Eiríksson'' , birth_date = Before 1150 , death_date = 1195/96 , house = Eric , father = Eric IX "the Saint" of Sweden , mother = Christina Bjornsdatter , spouse = Cecilia Johansdotter of Sw ...

. In 1318, the castle pledged by King Birger Magnusson (1280–1321) to his brother-in-law King

Eric VI of Denmark Eric VI Menved (1274 – 13 November 1319) was King of Denmark (1286–1319). A son of King Eric V and Agnes of Brandenburg, he became king in 1286 at age 12, when his father was murdered on 22 November by unknown assailants. On account of his ag ...

. The castle was burned down after fighting the same year while Birger was in exile.

References

Buildings and structures in Jönköping County Ruined castles in Sweden Royal residences in Sweden {{Sweden-castle-stub

History

See also

References