The Oslo Kongsgård estate ( Norwegian: ''Oslo kongsgård'') was a royal residence and fortified Kongsgård estate located in the

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 ...

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

Middelalderparken The Medieval Park () 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 area which also inclu ...

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. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

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 eas ...

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'' in the sagas, was List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 1046 to 1066. He unsuccessfully claimed the Monarchy of Denma ...

. The estate was located close to St Mary's Church and later expanded during the reign of King Haakon Haakonsson, who built larger and stronger walls, transforming the estate into a

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

-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 smal ...

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) (; ) was King of Norway from 1299 until 1319. Biography Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, King of Norway, and his wife Ingeborg of Denmark. Through his mother ...

decided to gradually move the capital of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

from

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

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

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress (, ) or Akershus Castle ( ) 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 has been the namesake and centre of the ...

and became the residence of the Chancellor of Norway 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 history of Norway Archaeological sites in Norway Oslo Old Town History of Oslo Castles in Norway Palaces in Norway