Audunborg
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Audunborg ( ) was a castle and fortification built by Norwegian nobleman Audun Hugleiksson on his inherited estate near the village of Ålhus on the shores of the Jølstravatnet in what is now Sunnfjord Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The site was located about north-east of the village of Vassenden.
Audunborg ( ) was a castle and fortification built by Norwegian nobleman Audun Hugleiksson on his inherited estate near the village of Ålhus on the shores of the Jølstravatnet in what is now Sunnfjord Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The site was located about north-east of the village of Vassenden.
History
The castle was built in stone sometime between 1276 and 1286, probably by English craftsmen working out of Bergen. The rectangular building was and is thought to have had three stories, a store room in the ground floor, living quarters on the next floor, and a feast hall in the top floor. It had large windows and arches. The building itself had water on three sides and was thus easy to defend. It is also thought that a moat or castle wall was part of the fortifications. Recent research claims that Audun himself spent little time in his castle as his activities kept him either in Bergen, in the east of the country or abroad. As a baron, Audun Hugleiksson was allowed to keep a hird (armed retinue) a right otherwise reserved for the king. This hird would defend him on his travels and when he was at home in Audunborg. In Medieval Norway, typically only the King and the Church had the funds to build in stone and Audunborg along with Isegran by Glomma, built by Alv Erlingsson, are the only two known examples of private stone castles in Norway. Stories about Audun remain in local folklore and one story includes him burying all his money and sinking a silver table into the Jølstravatn before departing for his last trip to Bergen.
Media gallery
File:Door from Ålhus kirke.jpg|The door on display in Ålhus church is supposedly from Audunborg. File:Audunborg.jpg|This image based on Håkonshallen gives an idea of how the main building of the castle is thought to have looked 2002 08 30 31 Gjølanger borg.jpg|Memorial stone at the former site of Audunborg
References
Other sources
Kapstad, Anne Cecilie; Ludvig Eikaas (2000) Kongens sendebod : Audun Hugleikson 1240 - 1302 (Vassenden : Haugland forl.)
Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1365032909 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.