Kajaani Castle

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The Kajaani Castle (Finnish: Kajaanin linna, Swedish: Kajaneborg, Kajaneborgs slott, older spelling Cajanaborg) is a ruined fortress built of granite in Kajaani. The castle was built in the early 17th century on an islet in the river Kajaaninjoki, between the Ämmäkoski and Koivukoski rapids in Kainuu, present-day Finland. It was the last medieval-style stone castle constructed in Sweden. The castle was built at a strategically valuable site to protect the region of Kainuu which had been ceded to Sweden in the Treaty of Teusina in 1595. Construction was started by king Charles IX of Sweden in 1604. Construction progressed slowly, and king Gustav II Adolf ordered its interruption in 1619. The incomplete castle was first used as a prison. The castle experienced its peak during the tenure of Count Per Brahe the Younger from 1650s to 1670s. The town of Kajaani was founded in 1651 next to the castle, and plans were made to transform the castle into a noble residence. However, in 1681, the fief was abolished during the Great Reduction, and the castle reverted to serving as a simple administrative center for Sweden's northernmost territories. During the Great Northern War, Russian forces besieged the castle and destroyed it with explosives in 1716. Today, only its roofless ruins remain. The castle's military significance was lost in 1809 when Finland became part of the Russian Empire. However, the island of Linnasaari and the bridge over it remained as an important crossing point of the Kajaaninjoki. Archeological interest in the castle awoke in the 1930s when old objects were discovered during the construction of the new bridge made of steel-reinforced concrete. After this the castle was restored many times, and during the 1930s the brick patches installed during its earlier restoration in the 1890s were replaced with granite.