The Lost Fort

My Travel and History Blog, Focussing mostly on Roman and Mediaeval Times


25 May 2012
  A Baltic Sea Cruise

I'm back from my cruise which took place on a smaller ship than the usual monsters (800 passengers maximum) and therefore was a lot more fun for me. As usual, I got a truckload of photos. So here's the traditional overview post of the places I've visited.

Visby and Gotland's west coast (Sweden)

A Medieaval town that belonged to the Hanseatic League and to the Gotland Trade League before, with some well conserved town fortifications, a cathedral, nice old houses (trade made for rich merchants who in turn built pretty houses to show off), and a few ruins.

Visby, the town walls

I took a bus tour along part of the west coast of Gotland so I could catch some impressions of the landscape, too. We had some interesting stops; one of them the ship setting at Gnisvärd. The flip side to guided tours are the other people in the group, but I managed to keep their appearance on photos to a minimum.

Bronze Age ship setting

Stockholm, and Stockholm Archipelago

I've lived there back in the 80ies. It was nice to revisit the place. The sun played along, too, as it did most of the tour. No grey and stormy Baltic Sea photos, I'm afraid. Well, we got some of those along the Norwegian coast last year.

Stockholm, the town hall

One place was new to me; the Vasa Museum where Gustav Adolf's flagship, which had sunk in Stockholm harbour in 1628 and was resurrected in the 1950ies, is now displayed in full splendour after years of conservation and reconstruction work.

The Vasa

Our ship cruised the archipelago in the evening which made for some great motives There are about 2400 islands of all sizes from several square miles to 'just a boulder with a fir tree', and on the larger ones, many Swedes have summer houses.

Romantic islands in the evening sun

Helsinki and Porvoo (Finland)

Helsinki is a rather young town, compared to places like Visby, but there was a tour to nearby Porvoo, a small Mediaeval town with pretty timber houses which, albeit not exactly Mediaeval (those had a habit of burning down during history), give the place an old fashioned, charming flair.

Helsinki Cathedral

St.Petersburg (Russia)

We stayed in St.Petersburg for two days. It's the time of the white nights now when it doesn't get fully dark, but twilight remains. It was unusually warm, too. Petersburg is a town of cathedrals with golden cupolas, splendid palaces, kitch vendors, and cars. I bet London has nothing to the chaos on the roads in St.Petersburg.

Church of Christ's Resurrection

The town is also bascially built on a swamp by Peter the Great, and it's a place with a history of assassinations. The above church was erected on the spot where Tsar Alexander I got killed, and Tsar Paul wasn't safe in his pretty palace below, either. I took an evening cruise on the many canals that cut through Petersburg which was a nice change to the road traffic. Here are some impressions from the Neva.

Palace of Tsar Paul

Tallinn (Estonia)

Another Hanseatic town, known as Reval when most of the territory of todays Baltic States was in the hands of the German Hanseatic League and the Teutonic Knights.

Tallinn, view from the Upper Town to the Old Town

Riga (Latvia)

Another member of the Hanesatic League. It is amazing how fast those towns managed to repair their historical sites that often had been damaged or destroyed during WW2 and neglected during the Sovjet area. Tallinn, Riga and Gdansk all have World Heritage status today. And the beer is still cheaper than in Germany. *grin*

Riga, House of the Black Brotherhood

Curonian Spit and Nida (Lithuania)

The Curonian Spit (Kurische Nehrung) is a 98 km long dune spit that separates the Curonian Lagoon from the Baltic Sea. To prevent the dunes from covering everything, a reforesting program had been established in the 19th century, and today there are birch and pine woods, but still a lot of sand, too.

The Geat Dune

And some pretty villages like Nida (formerly Nidden) which had been a summer residence of rich Germans post WW2. The writer Thomas Mann spent some time there, and it would still make a good writer's retreat today; the place is very quiet, with the lagoon on one side and only a mile or so to the Baltic Sea.

A fisherman's hut in Nida

Gdańsk and Malbork Castle (Poland)

Gdańsk is another town with a great Hanseatic tradition and lots of beautiful old houses as well as an interesting cathedral. It's also a centre of amber working and amber trade, in good Medieaval tradition when amber was one of its main export articles. Yes, I got me a bracelet.

Gabled houses in Gdańsk

Amber trade was in the hands of the Teutonic Knights, and boy, did they build a whopping big castle a bit inland. Sorry, Edward I, but your Welsh castles have nothing to the Marienburg (Malbork Castle). I was lucky to be able to spend several hours there, exploring at least part of it.

Marienburg (Malbork) Castle, middle and inner bailey

Kiel Canal (Germany)

Better know as Nord-Ostsee-Kanal in Germany. Since our ship sailed off from Bremerhaven at the North Sea, we had to cross the canal to get to the Baltic Sea (it's much shorter than rounding the entire peninsula), and on the way back it took place mostly during daylight. It was almost like a river cruise.

Traffic on the Kiel Canal

Bremen (Germany)

On the way back, I stopped in Bremen for a few hours, to add another Hanseatic town to my collection. Its Renaissance town hall is one of the most beautiful in Europe, and there's a cathedral and some narrow streets with old houses as well.

Bremen, the town hall

Blog fodder for months to come, and I haven't even finished all posts about the Welsh castles from 2008. *sigh*
 
Comments:
Wow, what a great trip. St Petersburg is somewhere I'm really keen to visit, as well as the capitals of the Baltic states!
 
Welcome back, Gabriele! Some fabulous photos in these two posts. I'll look forward to more :-)
 
Some neat photos in these two posts. Thanks for sharing!
 
Visby. A great shame that....
 
Post a Comment

<< Home




The Lost Fort is a travel and history blog based on my journeys in Germany, the UK, Scandinavia, the Baltic Countries, and central Europe. It includes virtual town and castle tours with a focus on history, museum visits, hiking tours, and essays on Roman and Mediaeval history, illustrated with my own photos.


This blog is non-commercial.

All texts and photos (if no other copyright is noted) are copyright of Gabriele Campbell.

GDPR Privacy Policy



My Photo
Name:
Location: Goettingen, Germany

I'm a blogger from Germany with a MA in Literature and History, interested in everything Roman and Mediaeval, avid reader and sometimes writer, opera enthusiast, traveller with a liking for foreign languages and odd rocks, photographer, and tea aficionado. And an old-fashioned blogger who still hasn't got an Instagram account.
(See here for Archives for mobile devices)


Historical Places

Germany
- Towns
- Castles
- Abbeys and Churches
- Roman Remains
- Neolithicum and Bronze Age
- Museums

Great Britain
- England
- Scotland
- Wales

Scandinavia
- Denmark
- Finland
- Norway
- Sweden

Baltic States
- Estonia
- Latvia
- Lithuania

Central Europe
- Czechia
- Poland

Benelux States
- Belgium
- Luxembourg

Hiking Tours and Cruises

City Trips
Germany
Baltic Sea
Great Britain
Scandinavia


Historical Places

Germany

Towns

Bad Sooden-Allendorf
Historical Town and Graduation Tower
Bruchteiche Reservoir

Binz
A Seaside Resort

Braunschweig
Lion Benches in the Castle Square
The Quadriga

Erfurt
Medieval Erfurt

Goslar
Medieval Goslar
Chapel in the Klus Rock

Heiligenstadt
Churches St.Martin and St.Mary

Lübeck
St. Mary's Church

Magdeburg
Church of Our Lady: History

Mainz
The Temple of Isis and Mater Magna

Paderborn
Medieval Paderborn

Quedlinburg
Medieval Quedlinburg
The Chapter Church

Speyer
The Cathedral: Architecture
Jewish Ritual Bath

Stralsund
The Harbour
The Old Town

Treffurt
Medieval Lanes and Old Houses

Trier
The Roman Amphitheatre
The Aula Palatina
The Imperial Baths
The Porta Nigra

Weimar
Sites of the Weimar Classicism
The Park at the Ilm

Wismar
The Old Harbour

Xanten
Roman and Medieval Xanten
The Gothic House


Castles

Adelebsen
The Keep

Altenstein (Werra)
A Border Castle

Bramburg
Weser River Reivers

Brandenburg (Thuringia)
The Beginnings
Albrecht II of Thuringia

Coburg Fortress
History
Architecture

Ebersburg
The Marshals of Ebersburg
Architecture

Grebenstein
History

Grubenhagen
History of the Keep

Hanstein
Introduction

Hardeg Castle
The Great Hall

Hardenberg
History

Heldenburg (Salzderhelden)
A Welfen Seat

Hohnstein (Harz)
The Counts of Hohnstein
Between Welfen and Staufen
14th-15th Century

Krukenburg
Built to Protect a Chapel

Kugelsburg
The Counts of Everstein
Later Times

Plesse
The Counts of Winzenburg
The Lords of Plesse
Architecture

Polle Castle
An Everstein Stronghold

Regenstein
History

Reichenbach (Hessia)
History

Sababurg
Photo Impressions

Scharfenstein
From Castle to Convention Centre

Scharzfels
History
Architecture

Sichelnstein
History

Stauffenburg (Harz)
A Secret Mistress

Stapelburg
A Little Known Ruin in the Harz

Trendelburg
Photo Impressions

Wartburg
A Virtual Tour

Weidelsburg
History
Architecture
Revisiting the Weidelsburg


Abbeys and Churches

Bursfelde
Early History of the Abbey

Fredelsloh
A Romanesque Basilica

Gehrden
A Romanesque Church

Göllingen
The Byzantine Crypt

Hahnenklee
The Stave Church

Helmarshausen
Remains of the Monastery

Lippoldsberg
Early History of the Abbey
Interior of the Church

Lorsch
The Carolingian Gate Hall

Pöhlde
Remains of the Monastery

Scharzfeld (Harz)
The Cave Church

Vernawahlshausen
Medieval Murals

Walkenried
The Monastery - Introduction

Wiebrechtshausen
Romanesque Church and a Ducal Burial

Wilhelmshausen (Kassel)
The Romanesque Church


Roman Remains

Augusta Treverorum / Trier
The Amphitheatre
The Aula Palatina
The Imperial Baths
The Porta Nigra
The Roman Bridge

Colonia Ulpia Traiana / Xanten
Roman Xanten
The Amphitheatre in Birten

Limes Fort Aalen
The Barracks

Limes Fort Osterburken
The Discovery
The Cohort castellum
The Annex Fort
The Garrisons

Limes Fort Saalburg
A Reconstructed Limes Fort
Shrine of the Standards

Romans in North Rhine-Westphalia
Playmobil Romans, LWL Museum Haltern
Varus Statue, Haltern am See

Romans at the Moselle
The Villa Urbana in Longuich

Romans at the Rhine
Boppard - The Roman Baudobriga
The Villa at Wachenheim


Neolithicum and Bronze Age

Neolithic Burials
Neolithic Burials in the Everstorf Forest and Rugia
The Necropolis of Oldendorf

Bronze Age
Bronze and Iron Age Remains at the Werra


Museums / Reconstructed Sites

Palatine Seat Tilleda
The Defenses

Viking Settlement Haithabu
The Nydam Ship

Open Air Museums
European Bread Museum Ebergötzen
Open Air Museum Oerlinghausen

Post-Mediaeval Exhibits
Historical Guns, Coburg Fortress
Vintage Car Museum, Wolfsburg


Other Countries

England

Towns

Chester
Roman and Medieval Chester

Hexham
The Abbey - Introduction
The Old Gaol

York
Clifford Tower
The Guild Hall
Monk Bar Gate with Richard III Museum
Museum Gardens
Houses in the Old Town
York Minster: Architecture

Castles

Carlisle
History

Richmond
Conquest to King John
Henry III to the Tudors
Architecture

Scarborough
Romans to the Tudors
Civil War to the Present
Architecture

Roman Remains

Eboracum / York
Roman Bath in the Fortress

Wall Fort Birdoswald
The Dark Age Timber Halls

Wall Fort Segedunum
Museum and Viewing Tower
The Baths

Other Roman Sites
The Mithraeum at Brocolita
The Signal Station at Scarborough


Scotland

Towns

Edinburgh
Views from the Castle

Stirling
The Wallace Monument

Castles

Doune
A Virtual Tour
The Early Stewart Kings
Royal Dower House

Duart Castle
Guarding the Sound of Mull

Dunstaffnage
An Ancient MacDougall Stronghold
The Wars of Independence
The Campbells Are Coming
Dunstaffnage Chapel

Stirling
Robert the Bruce

Abbeys and Churches

Inchcolm
Arriving at Inchcolm Abbey

Neolithicum and Bronze Age

Neolithic Orkney
Ring of Brodgar
Skara Brae

Brochs and Cairns
Clava Cairns
The Brochs of Gurness and Midhowe - Introduction

Picts and Dalriatans
Dunadd Hill Fort
Staffa


Wales

Towns

Aberystwyth
Castle and Coast

Caerleon
The Ffwrwm
The Roman Amphitheatre
The Baths in the Legionary Fort

Conwy
The Smallest House in Great Britain

Castles

Beaumaris
History
Architecture

Caernarfon
Master James of St.George
The Castle Kitchens

Cardiff
From Romans to Victorians

Chepstow
Beginnings unto Bigod
Edward II to the Tudors
Civil War

Conwy
History
Architecture

Criccieth
Llywelyn's Buildings
King Edward's Buildings

Manorbier
The Pleasantest Spot in Wales

Pembroke
Photo Impressions
The Caves Under the Castle

Roman Remains

Isca Silurum / Caerleon
The Amphitheatre
The Baths in the Legionary Fort


Denmark

Museums

Viking Museum Roskilde
To come


Finland

Towns

Porvoo
Medieval Porvoo


Norway

Castles and Fortresses

Akershus Fortress in Oslo
Kings and Pirates
The Time of King Håkon V
Architecture

Vardøhus Fortress
History

Museums

The Fram Museum in Oslo


Sweden

Neolithicum and Bronze Age

Gotland
Gnisvärd Ship Setting

Museums

The Vasa Museum in Stockholm


Estonia

Towns

Tallinn
The History of Medieval Tallinn


Latvia

Towns

Riga
The History of Medieval Riga


Lithuania

Towns

Vilnius
Photo Impressions


Czechia

Towns

Cheb / Eger
The Old Town

Karlovy Vary / Karlsbad
Brief History of the Town

Kutná Hora
The Sedlec Ossuary
The Medieval Town and St.Barbara's Church


Poland

Towns

Gdańsk / Danzig
History of Medieval Gdańsk
Medieval and Renaissance Gdańsk

Kraków
The Old Town
Jewish Kraków - Kazimierz and the Ghetto

Wrocław / Breslau
The Botanical Garden
The Wrocław Dwarfs

Castles

Ogrodzieniec Castle
A Virtual Tour
First Castle to the Boner Family


Belgium

Towns

Antwerp
The Old Town

Bruges
Medieval Bruges

Ghent
Medieval Ghent

Tongeren
Medieval Buildings

Roman Remains

Atuatuca Tungrorum / Tongeren
Roman Remains in the Town


Luxembourg

Towns

Luxembourg City
A Tour of the Town


Hiking Tours and Cruises

City Trips

St.Petersburg (Russia)
Impressions from the Neva River

Strasbourg (France)
A Tour of the Town


Germany

Baltic Sea Coast
Flensburg Firth
Rugia: Jasmund Peninsula and Kap Arkona
Rugia: Photo Impressions
Rugia: The Pier of Sellin
A Tour on the Wakenitz River

Lüneburg Heath
Hiking Tours in the Lüneburg Heath

Harz National Park
Arboretum (Bad Grund)
Bode Valley and Rosstrappe Cliff
Devil's Wall
Ilse Valley and Ilse's Rock
Oderteich Reservoir
Rappbode Reservoir
Views from Harz mountains

Nature Park Meissner-Kaufunger Wald
Bruchteiche / Bad Sooden Allendorf
Hessian Switzerland

Nature Park Solling-Vogler
The Forest Pasture Project
Raised Bog Mecklenbruch

Nature Park Reinhardswald
Old Forest at the Sababurg

Thuringian Forests
Oberderdorla and Hainich National Park

Rivers and Lakes
The Danube in Spring
Edersee Reservoir
A Rainy Rhine Cruise
Vineyards at Saale and Unstrut
Weser River Ferry
Weser Skywalk

Wildlife
Harz Falcon Park
Ozeaneum Stralsund: The Baltic Sea Life
Ozeaneum Stralsund: The North Sea Life
Red squirrels

Seasons
Spring Impressions from Göttingen
Spring in the Hardenberg Castle Gardens
Spring in the Meissner
Memories of Summer
Summer Hiking Tours 2016
Autumn in the Meissner
Autumn at Werra and Weser
Winter at the 'Kiessee' Lake


The Baltic Sea

A Baltic Sea Cruise

The Curonian Spit in Lithuania
Beaches at the Curonian Spit
Geology of the Curonian Spit


Great Britain

The East Coast
By Ferry to Newcastle
Highland Mountains: Inverness to John o'Groats
Impressions from the East Coast

Scottish Sea Shores
Crossing to Mull
Mull: Craignure to Fionnphort
Dunollie and Kilchurn: Photo Impressions
Pentland Firth
Staffa
Summer in Oban

Scotland by Train
West Highland Railway

Wales
Views of Snowdownia

Wildlife
Sea Gulls


Scandinavia

Coast of Norway: Hurtigruten-Tour
A Voyage into Winter
Along the Coast of Norway - Light and Darkness

Norway by Train
From Oslo to Bergen
From Trondheim to Oslo

Wildlife
Bearded Seals
Dog Sledding With Huskies
Eagles and Gulls in the Trollfjord



Medieval History

General Essays

Medieval Life
Hanseatic League
Teutonic Knights
Vikings

Essays by Country

Germany
Great Britain
Scandinavia
Lithuania and Livonia
Poland
Bohemia
Luxembourg

Roman History

The Romans at War
Life and Religion

Other Times

Neolithicum to Iron Age
Post-Medieval History

Geology

Geological Landscapes
Fossils and Rocks











Medieval History

General Essays

Medieval Life

Warfare
Trebuchets
Late Medieval Swords

Medieval Art
The Choir Screen in the Cathedral of Mainz
The Gospels of Heinrich the Lion
The Hunting Frieze in Königslutter Cathedral
Medieval Monster Carvings
The Viking Treasure of Hiddensee

Craftmanship
Goldsmithery
Medical Instruments


The Hanseatic League

The History of the Hanseatic League
Introduction and Beginnings

Hanseatic Architecture
Examples of Brick Architecture
Hall Houses (Dielenhäuser)

Goods and Trade
Stockfish Trade

Towns of the Hanseatic League
Riga
Stralsund
Tallinn / Reval


The Order of the Teutonic Knights

The Northern Crusades
The Conquest of Danzig
The Siege of Vilnius 1390


Vikings

Viking Material Culture
The Viking Treasure of Hiddensee

Viking Ships
The Nydam Ship


Essays by Country

Germany

Geneaology

List of Medieval German Emperors
Anglo-German Marriage Connections

Kings and Emperors

The Salian Dynasty
King Heinrich IV

Staufen against Welfen
Emperor Otto IV

Princes and Lords

House Welfen
Heinrich the Lion's Ancestors
The Dukes of Braunschweig-Grubenhagen
Otto the Quarrelsome of Braunschweig-Göttingen

The Landgraves of Thuringia
The Ludowing Landgraves of Thuringia
Albrecht II and Friedrich I of Thuringia

Dukes and Princes of other Families
Prince Wilhelm Malte of Putbus

Counts and Local Lords
The Marshals of Ebersburg
The Counts of Everstein
The Counts of Hohnstein
The Lords of Plesse
The Counts of Reichenbach
The Counts of Winzenburg

Feuds and Rebellions

Royal Troubles
Otto IV and Bishop Adalbert II of Magdeburg

Local Feuds
The Lüneburg Succession War
The Thuringian Succession War
The Star Wars


Great Britain

Kings of England

House Plantagenet
Richard Lionheart in Speyer
King Henry IV's Lithuanian Crusade

Normans, Britons, Angevins

Great Noble Houses
The Dukes of Brittany
The Earls of Richmond

Kings of Scots

House Dunkeld
Malcolm III and Northumbria
Struggle for the Throne: Malcolm III to David I
King David and the Civil War, 1
King David and the Civil War, 2

Houses Bruce and Stewart
The Early Stewart Kings

Welsh Princes

The Princes of Gwynedd
The Rise of House Aberffraw

Scotland and England

The Wars of Independence
Alexander of Argyll
The Fight for Stirling Castle

Wales and England

A History of Rebellion
Llywellyn ap Gruffudd to Owain Glyn Dŵr


Scandinavia

Kings of Denmark

House Knýtlinga
Harald Bluetooth's Flight to Pomerania

Kings of Norway

Foreign Relations
King Eirik's Scottish Marriages
King Håkon V's Swedish Politics
Beginnings of the Kalmar Union

Danish Rule in the Baltic Sea

The Duchy of Estonia
Danish Kings and German Sword Brothers

Feuds and Rebellions

Alv Erlingsson of Tønsberg


Livonia and Lithuania
(Livonia: Latvia and Estonia)

Lithuanian Princes

The Geminid Dynasty
Troublesome Cousins - Jogaila and Vytautas

The Northern Crusades

The Wars in Lithuania
The Siege of Vilnius 1390

Conflicts in Livonia
The History of Riga
The History of Reval (Tallinn)


Poland

Royal Dynasties

The Jagiełłonian Kings
Władysław Jagiełło and the Polish-Lithuanian Union

The Northern Crusades

The Conquest of Pomerania and Prussia
The Conquest of Danzig


Bohemia

Royal Dynasties

The Bohemian Kings of House Luxembourg
King Sigismund and the Hussite Wars


Luxembourg

House Luxembourg
King Sigismund


Roman History

The Romans at War

Forts and Fortifications

The German Limes
The Cavalry Fort Aalen
Limes Fort Osterburken
Limes Fort Saalburg

The Hadrian's Wall
Introduction
The Fort at Segedunum / Wallsend

Border Life
Exercise Halls
Mile Castles and Watch Towers
Soldiers' Living Quarters
Cavalry Barracks

Campaigns and Battles

Maps
The Romans in Germania

The Pre-Varus Invasion in Germania
Roman Camp Hedemünden
New Finds in 2008

The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
Museum Park at Kalkriese

The Battle at the Harzhorn
Introduction

The Batavian Rebellion
A Short Introduction

Roman Militaria

Armour
Early Imperial Helmets
Late Roman Helmets
The Negau B Helmet

Weapons
Weapon Finds at Hedemünden
The pilum
Daggers
Swords

Other Equipment
Roman Saddles


Roman Life and Religion

Religion and Public Life

Religion
Curse Tablets and Good Luck Charms
Isis Worship
Memorial Stones
The Mithras Cult

Public Life
Roman Transport: Barges
Roman Transport: Amphorae and Barrels
Roman Water Supply

Architecture
Roman Public Baths

Domestic Life

Roman villae
Villa Urbana Longuich
Villa Rustica Wachenheim

Everyday Life
Bathing Habits
Children's Toys
Face Pots


Other Times

Neolithicum to Iron Age

Germany

Development of Civilisation
European Bread Museum, Ebergötzen
The Hutewald Project in the Solling
Open Air Museum Oerlinghausen

Neolithic Remains
Stone Burials of the Funnelbeaker Culture
The Necropolis of Oldendorf

Bronze Age / Iron Age
The Nydam Ship

Scotland

Neolithic Orkney
The Neolithic Landscape of Orkney
Ring of Brodgar
Skara Brae
Life in Skara Brae

Bronze Age / Iron Age
Clava Cairns
The Brochs of Gurness and Midhowe - Their Function in Iron Age Society

Scandinavia

Bronze / Iron Age
The Ship Setting of Gnisvärd / Gotland


Post-Medieval History

Explorers and Discoveries

Explorers
Fram Expedition to the North Pole
Fram Expedition to the South Pole

Discoveries
Otto von Guericke and the Magdeburg Hemispheres
Raising a Wreck, Now and Then (Vasa Museum in Stockholm)

History and Literature

The Weimar Classicism
Introduction


Geology

Geological Landscapes

Germany

Baltic Sea Coast
Chalk Cliffs on Rugia
Flint Fields on Rugia

Harz Mountains
Bode Valley and Rosstrappe Cliffs
Daneil's Cave
Devil's Wall
Hübichenstein Rock
Klus Rock
Lonau Falls
Rhume Springs
Southern Harz Karst

Meissner / Kaufunger Wald
'Blue Dome' near Eschwege
Diabase and Basalt Formations
Hoher Meissner Karst
Salt Springs at the Werra

Solling-Vogler
Raised Bog Mecklenbruch
Hannover Cliffs

Great Britain

The Shores of Scotland
Staffa

Baltic Sea

Lithuania
Geology of the Curonian Spit


Fossils and Rocks

Fossilized Ammonites
Loket Meteorite (Czechia)



Powered by Blogger