+468 - 1200 4870
info@kastellet.com
+468 - 1200 4870
info@kastellet.com
As you step ashore at Vaxholms Kastell you will meet the amazing fortress and after a short walk you will be in the stately courtyard. Climb the 130 steps up in the Tower Castle and enjoy the spectacular 360 degree view – on a clear day you can see all the way to Stockholm city and some of the city’s famous sites .
In the film “Pippi on the Seven Seas”, the castle of the pirates was built here at Kastellet and most scenes were recorded at the Vaxholms fortress. The tower was perfect to hold someone captive and this is where Pippi’s father was held.
The current tower replaced a round tower on the site where the oldest parts were from the 16th century. Today’s square tower was built in the years 1850-1852. The ground floor was usually used as storage room, but during the 1870s it was also used as storage for gunpowder after finding that the existing Kruttornet (which remains on the south side of the courtyard) was too poorly protected against the courtyard to handle excess shots from north.
The first floor was used as a regiment expedition for the Coastal Artillery, KA 1 until 1936. The 2-4 floors were used as buildings and accommodations for the 10th Company (Occupational Society), which included handrailers, stokers, engineers and healthcare professionals to name a few. Parts of the Professional Companion remained until 1945. The top floor was used as a gym until 1886 when the new gymnasium was completed (Exercise House).