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Turku Castle, in the upper left hand corner of the picture, as seen from aboard a Viking Line ferry in Turku Harbor. When construction of Turku Castle in the year 1280, the castle was on an island, at the mouth of the Aura River, which is seen to the right. The land mass of Finland, along the Gulf of Finland, rises 30 cm (11.8 inches) every hundred years, and on the Gulf of Bothnia by as much as 90 cm. |
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A model showing the construction of Turku Castle. In the early 14th century an enclosed defensive fortress was built. The only entrance into the castle was by means of a gateway in the east tower, seen to the right in this picture. This fortress was 65 meters long (214 feet) and 30 meters wide (98 feet). |
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Turku Castle, as seen from the west side in the summer. Work on the castle continued in the 14th century, after it had withstood a siege during 1364 and 1365. The German prince Albrekt von Mecklenburg encamped with his army outside the walls of the castle in the course of a bloody struggle for the Swedish throne. |
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The west side of the castle on a cold winter day in February. During the 15th century, the castle was the center of several major events. |
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The defense tower on the west side of the castle. The 16th century was marked by six major sieges, and a long series of important visits. Gustavus Vasa spent the winter of 1555-56 at the castle, along with his son Johan, who at the age of 18 was proclaimed Duke of Finland. During this time the defenses of the castle were removed from the topmost floor to shooting galleries thrown up around the castle. |
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The entrance to the castle through the defensive wall on the east side of the castle. |
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Inside of the castle courtyard, looking from the east towards the main castle structure. This is the eastern facade of the stronghold and the yard of the bailey. |
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Mural decorations which were added, in 1589, to the Great Staircase Tower. These murals were the work of Erik Palsson, a Lieto painter, who received as payment two barrels or rye and one pair of shoes. The paintings were restored in 1953. |
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The Great Staircase Tower in the middle of the Inner Ward. Work was started by Duke Johan in 1556. At the same time as this project, the great halls were built on the highest floors. |
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The current entrance to the castle, which is also the entrance to the museum in the castle. |
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The castle church, originally the shooting gallery in the castle. In 1706 the room was furnished as a church, serving both the castle and the Castle parish. Further decoration was carried out in 1775 when the castle was made ready to receive King Gustav III. |
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The kings throne, and on the opposite side of the church, the queens throne, which were added in 1775 when the castle was made ready to receive King Gustav III. The thrones bear the initials of Gustav II and his queen, Sofia Magdalena. |
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In the fire that damaged the Castle in 1941, the interior of the church was destroyed, but it was restored from photographic records. The pulpit dates from 1757 and comes from the church in Lieto. It was decorated by Jonas Bergman, who was also responsible for the paintings on the original Castle Church pulpit. |
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Looking out windows of the wooden gallery which connects the northern wing of the castle with the Great Staircase Tower. |
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The King's State Room, the principal room in the Castle from the beginning of the 14th century until 1556. In this room, guests to the castle were received, and banquets were held. The ceiling was vaulted in the early 14th century. The high windows face the courtyard. This room was also heated during the Middle Ages with warm air, with an open fireplace being built in the 1530s. |
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The Kings Hall on the top floor of the north wing was built for Duke Johan in the late 1550s. The original furnishings were destroyed by fire in 1614. |
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Another view of the Kings Hall. Ceiling details were reconstructed from models in Sweden, the walls are original and never rebuilt. The tapestries are copied of originals which are in the National Museum in Stockholm. |
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The Scriptorium, a vaulted room where castle scribe worked during the Middle Ages. Archives would have been kept in pigeonholes within the walls. When the 16th century ended, the original duties of the castle had largely passed away, and the room may have been turned into a guest-room, because of the signatures which are seen here on the eastern wall. |
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Looking through a window in the Nun's chapel to the inner courtyard. |
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Mediaeval wood carvings in the Sture Church, a room which dates from the 15th century. The wood carvings come from mediaeval churchs in southwest Finland and Äland. |
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Mediaeval
wood carving of the Virgin Mary. |
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The crucifix
in the Nun's Chapel, the oldest of the castle's three chapels. |
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A watercolor drawing of Turku Castle, by Reino Mattila (1993). |
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Interior courtyard or yard of the bailey at Turku Castle. |