Home Glimmingehus in easy-to-read English

Glimmingehus in easy-to-read English

Join us for a castle tour
with the help of pictures and easy-to-read text.

The castle seen from above from a drone. A square moat surrounds the castle yard, where two of the houses can also be seen. To the left, green fields.

Photo: Fanny Runeby, CC BY

Glimmingehus

The castle at Glimmingehus

was built in the Middle Ages.

Building work began in 1499.

Jens Holgersen Ulfstand and

Margareta Arvidsdotter

lived in the castle with their children.

Jens and Margareta were members of the nobility.

Nobles were the richest group

in society in the Middle Ages.

 

The castle’s entrance

The picture shows the castle gate with the stairs at the bottom of the picture, as well as the gate in the middle with a stone tablet above.

Photo: Fanny Runeby, CC BY

Here, you can see the front steps

and entrance to the castle.

There is a stone relief above the entrance.

It says that building work on the castle

started in 1499.

The text and pictures explain

that Jens was a member of the Ulfstand family

and Margareta was a member of

the Trolle family.

 

Oriel window

A projecting extension high up on the castle's outer wall, just below the roof.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

High above the entrance

there is an oriel window.

An oriel is a window that

sticks out from the side of a building.

There is a hole in the floor of the oriel.

People in side could pull things

up into the castle.

They could also drop things onto

the enemy through the hole in the oriel.

 

The Entrance Hall

Here you can see the entrance hall with the stairs up to the first floor in the center of the picture. To the left is the opened castle door.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

Here, you can see the stairs

that lead up to the first floor.

There are also two doorways

that lead down to the basement.

 

Murder hole

The picture shows a dark square hole in the ceiling of the entrance hall.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

In the ceiling of the vestibule

there is a murder hole.

The castle’s soldiers

could pour boiling water

through the hole

onto the enemy.

 

The Kitchen

The picture shows part of the kitchen with a hearthstone on the left and a wall opening in the middle for heating the hypocaust.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

From the stairs down to the basement

you can see the kitchen.

On the floor of the kitchen

are the remains

of a kitchen range.

 

Basement and well

Here you can see the kitchen cellar with the entrance to the right and well and oven opening to the left.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

On the left of the picture

you can see a well.

The people who

lived in the castle

drew water from the well.

 

Baking oven

Here you can see the kitchen cellar with pillars on the right and the kitchen space in the middle.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

On the left you can also see

the remains of an oven.

This is were the people

who lived in the castle baked bread.

Behind the oven is the kitchen.

 

The Cellar

The picture shows the food cellar with a cobblestone floor and a window niche. Against the wall are stone remains from the castle.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

The cellar was where

food and drink was stored

The cellar had two rooms.

You can see the doorway to the other room

on the left.

 

First staircase

Here you can see the stairs up to the first floor with lanterns. A window can be seen in the center of the picture.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

These stairs lead up to

the first floor of the castle.

The stairwell has murder holes

in the walls and ceiling.

Through these, the castle’s defenders

could shoot at the enemy.

 

The Upper Entrance hall and The Wild Man

Here you can see the front house with the chimney on the left, vaulted ceiling and the statue of the wild man in the corner.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

On the first floor there

is a second vestibule

with a red-brick chimney.

In the corner stands the

stone statue, The Wild Man.

The Wild Man is a common

figure in fairy tales in

medieval Europe.

 

The Castle Hall

Here, the castle hall is shown, whose vault descends into a pillar with a table top in the middle. Benches run along the walls and the floor is made of wood.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

The Castle Hall was used

as a meeting room and staff room.

It contains an eight-sided stone table

around a large pillar.

 

The Master’s Chamber

The picture shows a medieval room in the castle built entirely of stone. In the center is a stove, to the left a portal and to the right a window niche with seating.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

These were the private

living quarters and bedchamber

of Jens Holgersen Ulfstand.

The room contains a fireplace

that was used to heat the room.

 

Storeroom

Here you can see the manor house's barrel vault and window niche with a seat. To the right is a chest.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

Next to the private quarters

was a storeroom.

In the storeroom

was a door to a toilet.

The walls have holes

through which defenders

could fire on the enemy.

 

Second staircase

Here you can see the steps between the first and second floors. There is a railing on the wall and there are a couple of lanterns on the stairs.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

These stairs lead up to

the second floor of the castle.

Because of lack of space

these stairs are very steep.

 

The Great Hall

Here you can see part of the great hall with a tapestry on the wall and a bench underneath. Wooden beams can be seen in the ceiling.

Photo: Jonas Thunberg, CC BY

In the Middle Ages the hall

was divided in different rooms.

The largest room

was used for feasts.

The smaller rooms were used

as guestrooms or storerooms.

 

Fireplace

Here you can see the top of the fireplace in the great hall with reliefs. They depict a coat of arms surrounded by tree branches.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

There is a fireplace in the Great Hall.

This was used to heat a corner room.

The fireplace is decorated with

the Ulfstand coat of arms.

 

The Lady’s chamber

The picture shows the lady's chamber with a stove to the left and to the right a window niche with a seat, The roof is vaulted.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

This was the living quarters and

Bedchamber of the mistress of the house,

Margareta Arvidsdotter.

There are stone window seats

where she could sit.

 

The Battle Plaque

Shown here is a window niche with a sink at the bottom and a seat to the right. On the left, a former table top with picture and text.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

In the wall of the mistress’ chamber

is a decorated stone.

This stone is called the Battle Plaque.

The eight-sided stone was originally

the top of a garden table.

 

Stone doorway

The picture shows a portal top in stone with plant ornaments.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

In the mistress’ chamber

there is a beautiful ornate doorway

carved in stone.

This leads into a storeroom.

 

Storeroom

The picture shows a long, narrow room in the castle with a brick vault. Along the long sides are furniture such as a chest, bench and chair.

Photo: Mats Larsson, CC BY

Next to the mistress’ chamber

was a storeroom.

There is no plaster on the walls

or ceiling of the storeroom,

leaving the red brick walls visible.

Perhaps there was never

any plaster on the walls,

or it may have loosened

and fallen off.

 

Stairs to the Shooting Loft

Here you can see the staircase in the wooden shooting loft. On the right is the entrance to the oriel window.

Photo: Fredrik Nihlén, CC BY

A staircase leads up from the great hall

to the Shooting Loft.

On the right, you can see

the opening to the castle’s oriel.

 

The Shooting Loft

The picture shows an oblong floor plan in the castle with a wooden floor and a wooden ceiling with beams. Along the stone walls are deep window openings.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

We can’t be sure what the Shooting Loft

was used for in the Middle Ages.

Later, it was used for

defence and as a storeroom.

 

 

Window openings

The picture shows a window niche with two stone seats. Above you can see part of the truss' beams.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

There are many window openings

in the Shooting Loft.

These could be used to fire cannons.

 

The Attic

Here the wind is seen in longitudinal direction with the truss construction.

Photo: Bengt A Lundberg, CC BY

At the top of the castle

is the attic.

In the Middle Ages,

the attic was used for storage.

Some of the wooden beams

in the attic are very old.

They are from the Middle Ages.

Wood can last for a very long time

Indoors when it is dry.