Trelleborg begins rebuilding Viking fortress for warrior experience

Trelleborg, a Viking fortress near Slagelse, has begun rebuilding part of Harald Bluetooth’s more than 1,000-year-old fortress, DR reports. The project will give visitors a chance to experience aspects of life as a Viking warrior without risking life or limb.

The first spade was turned on Friday, according to museum director Anne-Christine Larsen. The reconstructed structure will stand six metres high.

The project will not recreate the entire fortress. Instead, it will include a section of the original complex with a moat and bridge, an earthwork with an oak palisade and gate, and three longhouses.

Visitors will be able to try out what it was like to be a warrior and Viking, while gaining a better understanding of why Harald Bluetooth built the fortresses, Larsen said.

Little remains of the original fortress today. The reconstruction will be built some distance away, outside the original location’s World Heritage area, creating new opportunities to imagine life during the Viking Age.

The project is also intended to attract more visitors to Trelleborg. The reconstructed fortress, known as Den Genskabte Borg, is expected to be completed by the end of next year. Organisers hope it will draw up to 60,000 paying visitors per season, roughly twice the current number.

Slagelse Municipality and the National Museum developed the project together. It has a budget of approximately 60 million kroner.