Bluetooth's Borgeby Castle: Destroyed And Rebuilt For 1000 Years

Borgeby Castle in the Scania Country, in southern Sweden, was originally built in around 980 AD by Harald Gormsson (also known as Harald Bluetooth), an early Norwegian and Danish King. The Borgeby Castle site was originally a ringfort and Harald is well known for these types of constructions, called trelleborg, although Borgeby is smaller than the others. It is one of the oldest castles in the area and additions to the original fort were ongoing for centuries.

During the Viking times, waterways were the easiest and fastest transport routes to use and with Borgeby being built on the Kävlinge River, the largest river in Scania, the castle had a strategic advantage and controlled trade along both the river and on land.

The residence of the Archbishop of Lund

Unlike many other ring fortresses, Borgeby remained in use and was replaced piece by piece through the wars and centuries. The castle has had a fierce history. 

King Harald needed fortifications that could accommodate soldiers and act as administrative centers, after uniting the Danish empire and introducing the new religion of Christianity.