Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Brief history
No sooner had the base for the Swedish Baltic fleet been chosen (the seas here are
ice-free in winter) than architects from across the country were dispatched to draw up
plans for the town's grid of wide avenues and grand buildings. These were to provide
the classical purity and Baroque splendour commensurate with a town destined to
become Sweden's second city. Built to accommodate the king's naval parades,
Karlskrona's original layout has survived intact, a fact which has earned it a place on
UNESCO's World Heritage list, despite the anonymous blocks plonked between the
town's splendid churches.
Today, cadets in uniform still career around its streets, many of which are named after
Swedish admirals and battleships; the town's biggest museum is, unsurprisingly,
dedicated to maritime history (see p.196).
6
Stortorget
The centre of Karlskrona today occupies the island of
Trossö
, connected to the
mainland by the main road, Österleden (the E22). Climb uphill past Hoglands Park,
named after an eighteenth-century battle between the Swedish and Russian navies
(Hogland is an island in the Gulf of Finland), to the main square,
Stortorget
, at the
highest point and geographical centre of the island. It's a vast and beautiful space,
dominated by two complementary
churches
; both were designed by Tessin the Younger
and are stuccoed in burnt orange with dove-grey stone colonnades.
Trefaldighetskyrkan
Stortorget • June-Aug daily 10am-4pm; Sept-May Mon-Fri 11am-3pm, Sat 9.30am-2pm • Guided tours can be requested
The more interesting of the churches is the circular, domed
Trefaldighetskyrkan
. Built
for the town's German merchant community in 1709, its most remarkable feature is its
domed ceiling, painted with hundreds of rosettes. The altar is also distinctive, with
golden angelic faces peering out of a gilded meringue of clouds. In the crypt are the
remains of two of Karlskrona's most revered men, Count Hans Wachtmeister,
responsible for much of the building of the town in the late seventeenth century; and
Johan Törnström, the Admiralty sculptor, who made most of the fabulous ship
figureheads on show at the Marinmuseum (see p.196).
Fredrikskyrkan
Stortorget • Mon-Fri 11am-3pm, Sat 9.30am-2pm
Fredrikskyrkan
, a few steps away from Trefaldighetskyrkan, is an elegant, light-flooded
church with towers, but holds fewer surprises inside. Construction began in 1720 in
classic Baroque style according to plans drawn up by Nicodemus Tessin, who also
designed Stockholm's cathedral and royal palace. Disaster struck just decades after
completion, though, and large parts of the church were destroyed in a devastating fire
which ripped through the roof section. Rebuilding began apace and today's elegant
structure stood ready in 1806.
Museum Kulenovic Collection
Stortorget 5 • Mon-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 11am-6pm • 50kr •
T
0455 255 73,
W
kulenoviccollection.se
Housed in the former water tower beside the square, the
Museum Kulenovic Collection
contains a remarkable collection of sculptures, Renaissance paintings and general objets
d'art first begun by the Kulenovic family from Yugoslavia in the 1450s; the collection
ended up in Karlskrona after two brothers moved here during the Tito period. The
highlight is a mesmerizing painting of the Angel Gabriel by Rembrandt from 1637; a
copy hangs in the Louvre in Paris whilst the original is here in Karlskrona. Check out,
too, the amazing miniature bronze horses from Persia from 200 AD, plus the sculpture
of the Devil with an erect penis.
