The Château de Bury is castle near Blois (Loir-et-Cher), France. Although ruined in the 17th century, this Renaissance château still dominates the village of Bury.

The building of the Bury Castle was begun in 1511 and it was nearly complete by January 1515; it can thus no longer be considered to be an imitation of the Francis I wing of the Château of Blois.

If Bury was built as it appears in the engravings of Jacques Androuet Du Cerceau, it was in certain respects the precursor of the great châteaux of the Loire valley built between 1515 and 1525, such as Chenonceau, Azay-le-Rideau, and Chambord.

The buildings at Château de Bury were grouped around a square court, with round towers under high roofs at the corners.

Currently, the castle is listed for sale and visits are not possible. Visit Loire Valley Castles around.

Chateau de Bury Location

Château de Bury Address: 41190 Molineuf, France. Get directions using this map:

Chateau de Bury Map

The post Château de Bury appeared first on Every Castle.

Svartholm Fortress History

After the 1741 – 1743 Russo-Swedish war has ended, and the Peace Treaty of Turku was signed, Sweden had to move its borders to the west.

Thus the country was left without any fortresses that would protect its new borders.

With that in mind, the Swedes started again feverishly to fortify the border area. The area of Degerby (later renamed Loviisa) was chosen initially in 1745 as a site to build a border fortification.

The first few huts were constructed in Svartholm in the summer of 1746. The fortification plan of Svartholm followed the same guidelines, which were agreed upon for the Sveaborg fortification and the resemblance between these two is really striking.

The construction however dragged on and the first defensive structures were started in 1752 and continued until 1766 when most of the bastions were completed.

After the year 1766, the construction efforts slowed down but were hurried again after the relationship with imperial Russia declined in 1772. This cooling of Russo-Swedish relationships didn’t last long and in 1774 it was ordered to cease all construction efforts in Svartholm.

When finally imperial Russia was on the attacking side in 1808, the Swedish fortifications in Finland were in a disgraceful state, Svartholm wasn’t an exception to that. Additionally, several misfortunes hit the garrison and the commanding officer Major Carl Magnus Gripenberg.

First of all, the purpose of the Svartholm Sea Fortification was to stop the attack coming from the sea, not from the land. Secondly, an attack during the winter was thought to be extremely unlikely.

However, now both of those things had happened and during the second day of the Russian attack, the Russian troops were already looking at the Svartholm fortification, on the other side of the frozen bay.

Due to several misunderstandings and a competent Russian commander, the Svartholm garrison surrendered without putting up a fight, after being surrounded by the Russians for less than a month and finding out, that their cannons were unable to fire effectively toward the mainland, where the Russian cannons were located.

After these events, the strategic meaning of Svartholm declined, as it was located now inside of Russia, far away from the Swedish border.

The final nail to the coffin came, when the combined British-French fleet sailed in the Gulf of Finland during the Crimean War, destroying several coastal fortifications and finally Svartholm too.

In the afternoon of 7th of July 1855, a huge explosion trembled the area and the Svartholm Fortress during the Crimean War.

After the 1855 explosion, Svartholm Fortress fell into disgrace, but in 1960 a new restoration project commenced.

Svartholm Fortress Visitor info

Svartholm Fortress is located near the town of Loviisa in southern Finland. There is a permanent exhibition at the Svartholm fortress which presents its history.

There is also a bar near the castle where you can enjoy a drink.

Daily cruises are available from the city of Loviisa. See the official website for more information about Svartholm Fortress Tours and other attractions near.

Svartholm Fortress Location

Svartholma Fortress is located in Loviisa Bay about 10 km from the town center.

Svartholm Fortress Map

The post Svartholm Fortress appeared first on Every Castle.

Suomenlinna Fortress History

It was begun by Lieut.-Col. Augustin Ehrensvärd in 1748, when Finland was part of Sweden, and building continued during the Russian period.

Suomenlinna is an irregular bastion fortress, built of granite and adapted to its island site. The buildings show some Rococo influence, the 19th-century barracks being eclectic in style. As a naval base, the functional center of the fortress was the galley harbor, with its dry dock blasted into the seabed.

The most notable of the castle courtyards was the Great Courtyard, a square closed on all sides, which narrowed to the east giving a false perspective.

At its western end, there were two curved buildings, which formed an exedra motif. In the middle of the courtyard is the tomb of Augustin Ehrensväard. The Great Courtyard was partly destroyed in 1885, in bombings during the Crimean War.

In the 18th century, Suomenlinna Fortress was important both as a cultural center and for technical innovations. Between 1918 and 1972 it was a Finnish military base, and now, as well as being one of the most important cultural monuments in Finland, it is also a lively community.

In 1991 Suomenlinna Fortress was included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

Suomenlinna is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Finland. It is a maritime fortress consisting of a group of islands.

What to see and to do

• A 4-minute aerial tour of the fortress
• 15-minute ferry tour
• Visit its historical sights such as fortress walls, tunnels, cannons, and museums
• Rest and relax: restaurants and coffee shops

Suomenlinna Fortress Location

Suomenlinna Fortress Location: Next to Helsinki, about 15 minutes boat ride from the center.

Suomenlinna Fortress Map

The post Suomenlinna Fortress appeared first on Every Castle.

Kyminlinna Fortress History

At the start, the Kyminlinna Fortress was supposed to have two complete bastions and two half-bastions.

Soon, it became quite clear however, that such a small fortress would be unable to defend such an important area the first fortress was demolished, and another bigger one was started to build in 1803. In the end, the Kyminlinna fortress contained five bastions and several other defensive structures and it was constantly reinforced, until the end of the 1808-1809 Russo-Swedish war. The place is a clear and good example of the fortification construction in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

After the peace agreement in 1809, the Kyminlinna Fortress like all the other fortifications which the Russians and Swedes had been building, was left useless, as the border area was now far away from the Loviisa – Kotka angle.

Also from a military point of view, this kind of fortification had lost nearly all of its meaning, as military technology had developed and cannons got much more effective. In 1835, Tsar Nikolai I gave an order, which disbanded all of the garrisons and fortifications in South-East Finland.

Kyminlinna Fortress was used by the Finnish army until 2005.

Kyminlinna Fortress Location

Kyminlinna Fortress is located next to the city of Kotka: 48700 Kotka, Finland.

Kyminlinna Fortress Map

The post Kyminlinna Fortress appeared first on Every Castle.

Fort Slava History

Several previous wars had proved that the delta area of Kyminjoki wasn’t easily defendable if the enemy was able to move freely in the sea.

This was the most important factor considered when it was decided to fortify the islands near Kotka and the Fortification of Kyminlinna.

The most powerful of these island fortifications was the fortification that was built on the island of Kukouri named Fort Slava. The fort was built in a circle form and it could fire in any direction with its ninety cannons.

The construction was started under the command of Aleksandr Suvorov in the year 1791 and by 1795 the fort was completed.

After the war from 1808 to 1809, the border area was moved away from Fort Slava, and the fort was considered a second-class fort, without any real importance. In 1835 the order from Tsar Nikolai I disbanded all the fortifications in South-East Finland, but Fort Slava was an exception as there was still a garrison there and it was maintained constantly. The place however wasn’t a priority for Russia.

The Crimean War was also the end of Fort Slava. At the start of the war, there was a garrison in the fort, but after the British and French fleet had destroyed the Bomarsund Fort in Åland and damaged or destroyed several Finnish cities, the order of emptying the fort came.

The British fleet arrived in front of the fort on the 15th of June 1855, firing several cannon shots toward the walls. As the fort didn’t respond, the British had to believe that the place was empty. The British landed on the fort and started to mine the fort. In the evening loud explosion was heard and the fort was surrounded by a dust cloud from the explosion.

After the cloud disappeared, to everyone’s amazement, the fort was still standing and hadn’t suffered nearly any damage.

The British however came back and landed at the fort on the 26th of July 1855. This time they didn’t save the gunpowder destroying the fort almost completely.

Fort Slava Recent years

Even when the huge explosion destroyed the fort completely, there has been some renovation work done in the past years. The sector of the main gate has been renovated and it is open for visits.

Fort Slava Location

Fort Slava is located on Kukouri Island, 48100 Kotka City, Finland. 

Fort Slava Map

The post Fort Slava appeared first on Every Castle.