Stop 17 of 20

The walls and the ramparts

Stop 17: The walls and the ramparts — The Park Promenade, Kalmar, Sweden

These walls and ramparts are what is left here of Kvarnholmen's inner fortifications. In the early 1800s, when much of the walls were demolished, they wanted to turn the remains into green trails, and rows of linden trees were planted along the dike. Then a "hole" was made in the dike, on which today's Olof Palme's street was built. In this way, Larmtorget gained a completely new status as an "arrival square".

If you have the chance, go up the stairs behind the theater, or up the stairs on the dike, and follow the trail past the station — you will also pass the Union Monument on your left on the way to point 18.

Good to know

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Extra background — not part of the original printed guide.

  • Earth ramparts outlasted stone walls in the gunpowder era: packed soil absorbs cannon shot instead of shattering like masonry.
  • When fortifications lost their military purpose in the 1800s, European towns routinely converted the ramparts into promenades and parks — Kalmar's green belt has the same origin as Vienna's Ringstrasse.

On to the next stop

Just a little further with me now — our next stop is Floras kulle. There's a gentle rise, so take it at your own pace.

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