Denmark · 8th century
Gamleborg ranks #5,000 of 9,040 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #54 of the 59 mapped in Denmark. Founded c. 750, it is older than 95% of the atlas's dated landmarks, one of 48 atlas entries founded in the 8th century. 2 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. See how Denmark compares in the castle statistics.
Gamleborg, also known as Gamleborg Viking Fortress, was the first fortification on the Danish island of Bornholm. Built around 750 AD, it was the seat of the kings of Bornholm during the Viking age (750–1050) and early Middle Ages (1050–1150). The massive fortress is 264 metres (866 ft) long from north to south and 110 metres (360 ft) wide from east to west, with gates to the north and southwest. Around 1100, significant alterations were made and it was reinforced, but it was abandoned soon afterwards in favour of the fortification of Lilleborg, roughly 700 metres (2,300 ft) to the northeast.
Text adapted from “Gamleborg” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
View on the interactive castle map →