Moat from above

Groenholt Rampart is one of those places that never ceases to amaze and spur imagination. Not much is known about the origins of this small rampart – who built it, and when excactly. The first written mentions of this place date from the seventeenth century and mention a “rampart in Tulstrup area...”.

It’s believed that the rampart was built in the early (Danish) medieval period, based on the type of build –a ‘motte’, (Basically; a fortification with a wooden or stone keep placed on a raised area of ground called a motte, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisades.)

King Frederik 7th. undertook an archaeological excavation of the motte in the middle of the 19th century, hoping to find remnants of stone buildings. However, nothing was found and the place was left to decay.

In 1936-38 the place was ‘restored’ and has since then been one of more than 1.000 protected mottes and ramparts found throughout Denmark.

It is possible to walk onto the motte – be careful though, at best the small wooden walkway is very slippery. Don’t cheat yourself from a walk in the surrounding forest – all seasons does something wonderful for this area. (It wasn’t until late Autumn when I took the drone above tree level, I saw the fantastic colours nature had swept around the small rampart).