Bergenhus
Fortress
Two of Bergen´s most famous and
popular landmarks are Haakon´s Hall
(Håkonshallen) and the Rosenkranz
Tower. These two midevial stone
buildings are located next to each
other as parts of Bergenhus Fortress.
The area is easy to spot for cruise
tourists. If your ship dock at Bontelabo
at the outer part of Vågen (one of the
cruise terminals in Bergen) you are
more or less its closest neighbour. If
not, you will find it further out from
Bryggen if you start by the Fishmarked
in Bergen.
In addition to these two old buildings,
the area consist of a rather huge green
area with lawns and old curtain walls.
There are also some newer military
buildings here, but the whole area has
free access (except an entrance fee to
the medevial buildings)
Haakon´s hall was built by king Håkon
Håkonsson to celebrate his son,
Magnus Lagabøte´s wedding in 1261
as part of a royal manor. It has been
restored several times and was almost
wiped out after the massive WW2
explotion in Vågen in April 1944.
Today it is beautifully restored and
function as the city´s representation
building for the finest events. It is free
to explore the exterior, but you have
to pay an entrance fee to go inside.
The same goes for the Rosenkranz
Tower.
The tower was built on ruins from the
same period as Haakon´s Hall, in the
middle of the 16th century. It is named
after the Danish govenor of
Bergenhus Fortress, Erik Rosenkranz
who gave it todays shape around
1560. It had cannons at the top floor
and functioned as a gunpowder
magazine until as close as 1930.
The park area is now used for
recreation and during summer as host
for music festivals and concerts. Last
christmas it hosted the light festival
and exhibition Lumagica.
Tap on the image to watch video