The round arches are easiest to see in window and door openings. Romanesque-style buildings are characterized by barrel vaults, thick piers, round arches, and very few windows. This style was named because it copied the proportion and patterns of Roman Empire architecture. Medieval architecture in England began with the Romanesque period, which started at the beginning of the Norman era in the 11th century. From magnificent cathedrals to large fortresses, the country has hundreds of amazing medieval buildings that offer a look back in time to what it was like to live and worship in the region from the 11th to 15th century.
(Oldest buildings date from 18th century, as fires in 16 destroyed the town, so I guess it's not strictly medieval.England has a long history visible in its architecture.
It's a UNESCO world heritage site that a guidebook I have ( The Rough Guide to Finland) describes thusly:ĭespite the large number of tourists it attracts, the medieval core of Old Rauma (Vanha Rauma), held within a narrow triangle of land bordered on two sides by the trickling Raumanjoki river, holds enough quiet lanes, paths and alleyways-a total of six hundred individual buildings across a thirty-hectare area-to allow you to explore almost undisturbed. Wikipedia also has a pretty comprehensive list of oldest buildings in Helsinki, ranging from 1748 to 1889, with photos and addresses/coordinates.Įdit 2: Along with Porvoo, Old Rauma, should be mentioned too. Of course, there's typically just one of these in a town or village. A list in Wikipedia has plenty of details (in Finnish, but at least photos and dates are universally understandable). Oh, and the Suomenlinna sea fortress which is awesome in summer.) But by "old", I mean mostly 1800s and early 1900s, nothing even close to medieval.Įdit: Besides the castles, there are nearly 100 remaining medieval stone churches in Finland. (Besides the area around Senate Square, check out Kruununhaka, Katajanokka, Eira, Ullanlinna, Töölö, and Kallio districts. To see lots of beautiful old buildings in Finland, even whole neighbourhoods of them, I'd definitely recommend Helsinki. Much of the centre consists of rather ugly buildings from 1960s and 70s e.g. But if you go to Turku expecting to see a city centre with lots of historical buildings, you'd be disappointed. Turku (Åbo in Swedish, which used to be the dominant language during most of its history) is by far the oldest city in Finland, and besides the castle, there's Turku Cathedral, originally from 13th century (but largely rebuilt in 1800s). Olavinlinna, dating from 1400s, in Savonlinna, in the historical province of Savonia, Eastern Finland.
Häme Castle, dating from 1300s, in Hämeenlinna, Tavastia.Photo: Markus Koljonen, Wikimedia Commons Turku (Åbo) Castle, oldest parts of which date from 1200s.These three are the most notable and best preserved: There are some medieval castles, however. Most buildings back then were wooden (and primitive) and have burnt down at some point or another. Compared to most countries in central and southern Europe, Finland has very few remaining medieval buildings (or indeed buildings older than 100-200 years, sadly). Are there any current major Finnish cities where the architecture is medieval, or at least "pre modern" (before the late 1600s)?
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