Tour a Naval City (Kariskrona) and Kiviks Cidery

7/15/2024

We have about 4 hours driving and 180 miles, and two stops between overnight cities today.

Entering Karlskrona we discover an interesting round-about feature in the center - a "sail" from a Swedish submarine.

Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to Sweden's largest naval base and the headquarters of the Swedish Coast Guard.

"Stumholmen is a small island adjacent to Karlskrona main island. It is connected to the center of Karlskrona by the Bastionsgatan (castle gate) bridge. Formerly the property of the Navy, today it houses the National Naval Museum, one of Sweden's oldest founded in 1752, the Hyper Island educational complex, and several other historic buildings. The unusual Slup- och barkass- skjulet (Sloop and Longboat Shed) is noted for its remarkable roof, while buildings on Laboratorieholmen once served as an isolation hospital when the town was struck with disease. Comprehensive restoration and renovation work has been undertaken since the 1990s, providing a variety of interesting sights for tourists as well as residential accommodation for senior citizens. Since 1998, the Naval City of Karlskrona, of which Stumholmen is a key component, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site."

"The Sloop and Longboat Shed is one of Karlskrona's most remarkable buildings. It was built in the 1780s to store the Navy's smaller boats during the winter. The building is topped by 10 interconnected saddle-backed roofs allowing rainwater from 16 cavities to run into collection barrels. It now forms part of the Naval Museum."

Jarramas was launched in the year 1900 and was one of the naval rating's preparatory school's last ships. When the school ceased operations in 1939, the school was 250 years old.

We take a break, enjoying the scenery provided by the navy brig (prison). Today the building offers teaching facilities for the Hyper Island Business Management and Digital Media school, which was founded in 1996.

We head back to the "main island" to see more Karlskrona sights.

"The Karlskrona Admiralty Church was consecrated in 1685 and is made entirely of wood. It could seat 4,000 making it Sweden's largest wooden church The interior is in a light bluish color while the exterior is in the traditional Falu red. Its shape is a squarish greek cross, with each cross arm measuring 20 metres (66 ft). The church was listed as part of the Karlskrona Naval Base on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998. "

"In front of the Karlskrona Admiralty Church, the popular wooden figure of Gubben Rosenbom (Old Man Rosenbom) has been standing since the mid 18th century. In 1956 the original was replaced by a copy and put in a safer place inside the church. The life-size figure is actually a poor box - if you lift its hat, you can insert a coin for the poor.

The figure holds a placard in one hand which states in a slightly old-fashioned Swedish:

I humbly beg of you,
even though my voice may be weak,
come and put a penny in
but first lift my hat.
Blessed are those that care for the poor.

The figure of Rosenbom is particularly well-known because it is featured in Nobel Laureate Selma Lagerlöf's book The Wonderful Adventures of Nils. There, the title hero meets Rosenbom and speaks with him."

Admiralstorn - a clock tower that once kept the Swedish Navy's standard time.

"Construction on the Fredrik Church began in 1720 as a replacement for the city's temporary wooden church. The Fredrik Church's first stone was laid by the then Governor Salomon von Otter, the foundation wall was completed on August 25, 1721, and the church was consecrated in 1744. The spires atop the church towers were completed in 1758."

"The Trinity Church was built in Baroque architecture for the town's German-speaking population. The first foundation stone was set in 1697. The church was inaugurated on June 27, 1709. The structure includes a domed rotunda.

After Karlskrona city-wide fire in 1790, only the severely damaged outer walls remained. In 1791, architect Olof Tempelman (1745-1816) was commissioned to draw up proposals for the reconstruction of the church. His simplification of architectural details for the exterior of the church resulted in a building with a Neoclassical architecture style."