History

Enriching new perspectives

The citadel became a national monument in 1935 but its story goes back much further. The three-tongued naval flag was actually first flown at Kastellholmen over 400 years ago.

At the end of the 1660s, a small, octangular citadel was built, with a flagpole on its roof. Passing ships were greeted from here with a flag and cannon salute. The original idea however was that the citadel should be used for defence.

One Saturday in the June of 1845, the citadel blew up, following an unsuccessful ammunitions experiment. In its place, a new citadel was built, in Neo-Gothic style. The picture above shows the citadel pre-1845.

The maritime heritage of Skeppsholmen and Kastellholmen dates back to the time when the Swedish Navy had their maritime base here. Nowadays, the salute battery on Kastellholmen is used to greet visiting naval vessels. And even today, the Swedish three-tongued flag still waves from the top.