Exotic Earth

Malmo’s castle has an intriguing history, although not much remains of the older citadels built on the site: today, with its redbrick, functionalist buildings, it looks more like a factory. Some of the Malmo Museer are based inside the castle. Erik of Pomerania built the first fortress here in 1436, to control the growing medieval town and Oresund shipping. This castle was destroyed between 1534 and 1536 during a popular uprising in Skane. In the years immediately after the rebellion, King Christian III of Denmark had the castle rebuilt in forbidding late-Gothic and early-Renaissance styles. The most famous prisoner at Malmohus Slott was the Earl of Bothwell. Bothwell married Mary, Queen of Scots, but was forced to flee from Scotland after she was deposed. On reaching Europe, he was detained by the Danes until his death in 1578. After the Swedish takeover of Skane in 1648, the Danes made a futile attempt to recapture the castle in 1677. When peace was restored, interest in the castle waned and most of it became derelict by the 19th century. A devastating fire in 1870 left only the main building and two gun towers intact. These sections were renovated in 1930.

Marvellous Malmo is the most ‘continental’ of Sweden’s cities. It’s a vibrant and multicultural place, influenced by Copenhagen across the Oresund and populated by people from 150 nations. Malmo also seems to attract one-off works of architecture and design: the Turning Torso, created by Santiago Calatrava, is the latest wonder, after the jaw-dropping Oresund bridge and tunnel linking Copenhagen and Malmo. On a more personal scale, there are some great modern-art exhibition spaces; and several of the city’s half-timbered houses contain unique art and craft galleries. Near these nifty gift shops, the whole of Lilla Torg is a chattering, clinking mass of alfresco diners.