Castles 20.1.2017

This year, the theme of the Europe-wide EUROPA stamp series is castles. As Posti recently released a booklet of stamps depicting old castles, Anssi Kähärä's Snow castle offers a new viewpoint to the subject. The sheet contains fifteen domestic no-value indicator stamps.

Château de Bonaguil 10.7.1976

Château de Bonaguil is a castle in the French commune of Saint-Front-sur-Lémance, but actually owned by the neighbouring commune of Fumel in the Lot-et-Garonne département. It has been classified as aMonument historique (historic monument) since 1862.^[1]

The Château de Bonaguil was the last of the fortified castles. It was built in the 13th century, but was entirely restructured at the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries by Bérenger de Roquefeuil, who added all of the defensive improvements of the end of the Middle Ages. A marvel of military architecture covering 7500 m², incorporating the latest developments in artillery (both for defence and in adapting the defences for protection against it) it was, however, obsolete when completed. It was never attacked.

The name derives from bonne aiguille (good needle) and refers to the defensive site: a steep, rocky promontory perfectly suited to the siting of a castle.

The Château de Bazoches 2.9.1972

The Château de Bazoches is a Château in the Burgundy region of France.

It is located at Bazoches, 84km from Autun in Burgundy. The feudal Château has a trapezoidal layout, four towers and a keep surrounding an inner courtyard.

The castle was built by Jean de Bazoches in 1180, on the site of an old Roman post, it has had twenty owners since and since 1675 it has been owned by the Bazoches, Chastellux, Montmorillon and la Perrière families.

Today it is private property, and classified as a listed Historic building.

Thank you Merja.

Esquelbecq Castle 17.6.1978

Esquelbecq Castle, locally known as Château d'Esquelbecq or Kasteel Ekelsbeke (in Dutch), lies in the village with the same name, south of the town of Dunkerque in the Nord department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region in France.

It is assumed that since the 9th century the village was protected by a wooden castle. If this castle was situated at the same location as the present castle is not known.

I could not find out when exactly the present castle was built. In 1299 however there was mention of the castle when the daughter of Thierry d'Esquelbecq; Beatrix, married Gauthier Ghistelles. Their descendants owned Esquelbecq Castle until 1584 when French lords were forced to sell their posessions in Flanders by the Spanish rulers.

The buyer and the new lord and Count of Esquelbecq was Valentin de Pardieu, Governor of Gravelines, who campaigned with the armies of Charles V. When he died in 1595 without heirs Esquelbecq Castle was left to his nephew Philippe Levasseur de Guernonval.

In 1606 Philippe de Guernonval restored the ruined castle and village. Amongst other things, large windows were placed in the walls of the castle which were more than a meter thick in some places. Also the castle garden in French style was laid out and a dovecote was built. His descendants owned the castle for the next 225 years.

In 1793 Esquelbecq Castle also experienced the fury of the patriots. Everything that reminded them of the Ancien Regime was looted, broken or removed. In the beginning of the 19th century the castle was ruined by battle and 15 days of enemy occupation. The Guernonval family abandoned it and finally sold it in 1821 to Louis Colombier, a Lille trader.

In 1984 the central tower of Esquelbecq Castle collapsed probably because of bad maintenance.

Esquelbecq Castle is private property and can not be visited. Too bad. It looks as if the castle is being renovated in a modern way.

Castles of Cyprus 14.9.2015

On  14th September 2015 Cyprus issued a set of stamps. The stamps in this issue depict four Cyprus castles to be found in the area of the island that has been occupied since the Turkish invasion in 1974.

Three of the stamps in the issue depict castles in the highest remote peaks of the occupied Pentadaktylos mountain range. These castle dominate the sea of ​​Cilicia and along with a number of forts were used to track ship movements in the area.

The € 0,04 stamp depicts Buffavento Castle. This is a Frankish castle, the name of which means "buffeted by the winds".
The € 0,34 stamp shows Kantara Castle, at the eastern most end of the Pentadaktylos range and dominating the north coast of the eastern Mesaoria plain.
The € 0,41 stamp depicts St. Hilarion Castle, that took its name from a monk who lived as a hermit in the area. There are many folk traditions associated with the building and history of the castle and with the beautiful Queen of Cyprus whose home it was.
The € 0,75 stamp shows Kyrenia Castle, built by the Venetians and later renovated by the Lusignans. Under British control the castle was used as a police barracks and as a prison for members of EOKA. Since 1969 it has held the famous "Ship of Kyrenia".  

Thank you dear Merja for this lovely FDC.

Ancient Finnish Castles 20.1.2014

The stamp year in Finland started on January 20th when a miniature stamp sheet/booklet representing ancient Finnish castles was released. It has been designed by Erik Bruun, one of the most respected graphic designers in Finland. He is well-known to the general public for numerous stamps, the last bills denominated in Finnish marks and highly popular nature and advertizing posters. 

The Ancient Castles stamp booklet contains six 1^st class stamps that depict the Suomenlinna, Häme, Raseborg, Kastelholm, Olavinlinna and Turku castles. These ancient castles were strategically important buildings considering Finnish defense and trading. Currently, they comprise Finland's most important national heritage and sightseeing sites. A brief about them is given below:

Soumenlinna Sea Fortress.  Augustin Ehrensvard initiated the construction of the Sveaborg fortress in 1748. The fortress surrendered to the Russians in 1808 and, after Finland declared independence, the fortress was named “Suomenlinna”.

Hame Castle. This castle was founded in the late 13^th century and was converted to a residential castle in the 18^th century. A prison operated in the castle from 1837 to 1972.

Raseborg Castle was built in the 14^th century. The castle was abandoned in the 16^th century and it started to fall into decay. Renovation commenced in the late 19^th century and continued well into the 1980s.

Kastelholm Castle was first mentioned in the contract of Queen Margaret in 1388. The Golden Era of the castle was in the 15^th and 16^th centuries.

Olavalinna Castle . Erik Axelsson Tott began the construction of this castle in 1475 to protect the Savo region. The history of Olavinlinna Castle is one of medieval sword fighting, roaring cannons and normal everyday chores of those days.

The construction of Turku Castle commenced in the 13^th century to be the administrative castle of the crown. Later on, it was the renaissance castle of the dukeship of John III, the official residence of the Governor General, and also a prison.

“The antiquarian value of the castles was understood in the late 1800s and plans for their restoration began. In the 1930s, decades of work began to restore them. “Today, the castles are amongst Finland’s most important pieces of cultural heritage and most popular tourist destinations,” says Juhani Kostet, Director General of Finland’s National Board of Antiquities.

Hame Castle appears as a mirror image on a stamp due to an error with the original image. “Erik Bruun made the stamp based on an old photograph that the National Board of Antiquities gave him, which had at some earlier stage become a mirror image of the original. We believe that the stamp will be of interest to buyers despite – or even perhaps because of – the mistake and it will sell very well,” estimates TommiKantola, Product Manager from Itella Posti Oy.

Thank you Ella for this wonderful FDC. 

700 Years of Viborg Castle 6.5.1993

Viborg Castle was one of the three major castles of Finland. It was built as the easternmost outpost of the medieval Kingdom of Sweden: it is located on the Karelian isthmus, on a little islet in the innermost corner of the Gulf of Finland, in a tight strait which connects Suomenvedenpohja to Bay of Viipuri. It was originally constructed in the 1290s.

The town was originally located inside the outer fortifications of the castle, at the fortress island, but it had to be moved to its present location out of the island because of lack of space.

The Vyborg Castle is situated on a small island in the Castle Strait which was once the emptying of the Vuoksa River that connected the Gulf of Finland with Ladoga Lake.

The main building of the Castle is the St.Olaf Tower. Its brick walls with cannon loopholes make up an octahedron - this shape was considered the best to withstand bombardment. The shield baring three crowns (as in the coat of arms of the Swedish kingdom) was attached above the Tower portal by the appointment of King Eric XIV. The Tower being 48.6 m high is one of the tallest ones in Scandinavia. It is easy to see the space of 30 km from the observation deck of the Tower.

The so called "Tyuremnaya (Prison) Tower" of the Vyborg Castle is an example of the architecture of the Renaissance period known as "Vasa Renaissance" in Sweden. It prevailed in 1550-1650 when a lot of Italian and German masters were invited to work there.

The exhibit "From the History of the Vyborg Castle" brings the moments of the past. Bricks of the 15th century making the Raiskaya (Paradise) Tower before it was dismantled in the reconstruction of 1891-1894 are on display. The chambers adjacent to the Raiskaya (Paradise) Tower were the home for balls and magnificent celebrations arranged by Swedish King Karl Knutsson Bonde in the 15th century that was the peak period in medieval Vyborg flourishing. Dice with raw stock from a bone-carving shop of the 14th century and bone combs of the 14th-15th centuries that remained since then can be seen at the exhibit.

It is not only the history of the Castle itself that can be explored in the museum. The "Swedish Vyborg" exhibit displays cannon-balls, flints, case-shot and bullets adopted by the Swedish army of the 16th century. Another unique object - part of a sword baring inscriptions "GICELIN" on one side of the blade and "IN NOMINE DOMINI" on the other one - is presented here. The sword was made in the Middle Rhine area of Germany in the 12th century. It was found on the Kuznechny (Smithy) Yard during the 1984 year excavations of "the Karelian layer" of the 12th-13th centuries. The sword might be used by the Swedes in their attack on the fortified settlement of the Karelians in 1293. The war topic is continued by the exhibit "Our Land During Great Patriotic War". A separate section is devoted to Winter War of 1939-1940.

Merja sent me this FDC which was issued By Finland to commemorate the 700 Years of this famous Castle, which is now a popular tourist site in Russia.

Turku Castle 4.5.1961

Turku Castle is a monument of Finnish history situated in the city of Turku in Finland. Together with Turku Cathedral, the castle is one of the oldest buildings still in use in Finland. Turku Castle is the largest surviving medieval building in Finland and one of the largest surviving medieval castles in Scandinavia. It stands as a national monument, on the banks of the Aura River, as it has done since the 14th century. The history of Turku Castle stretches back to the 1280s. The castle's heyday was in the mid 16^th century, during the rule of Duke Johan and Katarina Jagellonica. Among others, the Renaissance floor was built at that time.
Turku Castle was founded on an island on the estuary of Aurajoki River in the 1280s as the administrative castle of the Swedish Crown. The water level was three and half meters higher than now in those days, therefore, the castle was located on an island. The castle was originally built in the form of a rectangular fortified camp. The fortified camp became a closed castle in the early 14th century, and the castle was divided into a main castle and bailey. Under the Swedish Duke Johan between 1556 and 1563, Turku Castle was renovated into a handsome renaissance castle; this is when its main features became the size they are today. In the 1630s the bailey became the official residence for Pietari Brahe, the governor general of Finland. In the late 18th century, after the county governor and Higher Regional Court had moved from the castle to town, the castle underwent significant changes. The bailey became a prison and the main castle became a granary. The castle functioned as a prison until the 1890s after which the historical museum was placed in the bailey. Turku Castle was damaged by Soviet aircraft in the beginning days of the Continuation War 1941. Restoration of the castle to its former Renaissance glory had begun before the war and went on gradually after it, over the decades. The renovation was complete in 1987 and the castle was handed over on October 12, 1993 to the City of Turku which is entrusted with its operation for the Finnish state, its owner.The fully repaired castle was opened to the public in 1961. Turku Castle is a significant landmark at the mouth of Aurajoki River, and it is surrounded by the harbour and the small-scale industry and strorage areas that go with it. The Castle is part of the Finnish cultural and architectural heritage as an architectural monument, a museum and as premises for distinguished celebrations. The Castle has been rented to Turku City for the use of the Museum Centre of Turku. The castle is Finland's most visited museum, with attendance reaching 200,000 in some years. In addition, many of the larger rooms are used for municipal functions. My dear friend Pia gave me this cover postmarked 4.5.1961.

Finland - 200th Anniversary of fortress Suomenlinna

This Fdc and the stamps on it were issued on 15^th October 1948 on The 200^th Anniversary of Helsinki’s Sea Fortress. Suomenlinna's history is closely entwined with that of Finland and the Baltic region. Helsinki can also thank Suomenlinna for its early growth and prosperity. The fortress was built in the 18th century to fortify defences at the eastern part of the Swedish Empire. After the fortress fell under Russian rule at the beginning of the 19th century, its role was to guard the shipping channels to St. Petersburg. The Swedish maritime fortress helped Helsinki to grow into a significant city which became the capital of Finland in 1812 when the country was an autonomous grand duchy within the Russian Empire. The fortress was built on virtually barren islands. Today, nature in Suomenlinna is extremely diverse. The scenery ranges from parks, yards and herb gardens to natural beaches, wild meadows and earth-filled sandbanks. The islands are surrounded by sea and bordered by cliffs and sandbanks.

Construction of Suomenlinna Fortress began in 1748 by Sweden. It was built on six islands, and took about 40 years to be completed. The fortress was surrendered to Russia in 1808. The Russians ruled the place for 110 years. The fortress was called Sveaborg (or Viapori in Finnish), the Fortress of Sweden. But in 1918, the next year of Finnish independence from Russia, it was officially renamed to Suomenlinna, the Castle of Finland. It is a popular tourist attraction nowadays, and ferry-boats are plied regularly between Suomenlinna and Helsinki harbor all year round. The Fortress was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage in 1991. Thank you My Dear Friend Pia for this nice FDC.

Austria 9.11.1962 - Monuments

These First day covers and the stamps were issued on 9.11.1962 in Austria to commemorate famous historical sites. Looking from the top we have The Swiss Gate in the Hofburg palace is the most colourful surviving remnant of Renaissance Vienna. Hofburg Palace is a palace located in Vienna, Austria, which has housed some of the most powerful people in Austrian history, including the Habsburg dynasty, rulers of the Austro-Hungarian empire. It currently serves as the official residence of the President of Austria. It was the Habsburg's principal winter residence, as the Schönbrunn Palace was their preferred summer residence.

Schloss Esterházy. Esterházy Palace in Eisenstadt is one of the most beautiful baroque palaces in Austria and provides an impressive insight into the once glamorous life at the court of Prince Esterházy.

And finally the Linz Cathedral. Linz is the third-largest city of Austria and capital of the state of Upper Austria It is located in the north centre of Austria, approximately 30 km south of the Czech border, on both sides of the river Danube.