Gotland and its city Visby are both names you’re probably familiar with if you’ve studied medieval, particularly viking, history. The area is filled with artefacts from the viking and medieval ages that have made their way to museums and the Battle of Visby in 1361 is notorious in Swedish history. Being a history lover, Visby was at the top of my list for places to visit in Sweden. And it did not disappoint!

Here’s my overview of things to see and do in Visby.

A Brief History of Visby

On the ancient island of Gotland, Visby has a relatively more modern history that starts around the 10th century. Since the island is located in the middle of the Baltic Sea, it became a stop on the trading route and quickly flourished. The Hanseatic League started to develop in northern Germany in the 12th century and Visby joined in 1280, giving the city the title “the Hanseatic Town of Visby.”

The population grew rapidly as Gotlanders moved to the island’s center of trade and even Germans migrated over. In the 13th century, it was flourishing; the walls that you see today, plus many of the church ruins that still remain, date to this period. They were all built to accommodate the influx of residents and the changing demands of the population. Its heyday was short lived. Plague and war (including the Battle of Visby) in the mid 14th century led to Visby’s decline. It was also sacked and set fire to during the Lubeckian invasion of May 1525. It is around this time and the following decades that a lot of buildings were simply abandoned.

Today Visby is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and retains much of its medieval heritage.

The Battle of Visby

If you’ve done any research on Gotland or even general Viking history then you may have come across the Battle of Visby, 1361. It’s also described as a “massacre.” It’s a piece of the larger Battle of Gotland.

Gotland had previously been a semi-independent Swedish island. In 1361, the Danish King wanted to take the city as its own, and an army of Danes and Germans were sent in July. What’s important to know about the battles are that they were a royal army up against peasants and farmers, ranging from children to the elderly. Gotland did not have a well supplied or trained army. It’s even unclear who was leading them, if anyone. On July 25, the Battle of Masterby took place a few miles south of Visby. The Danish troops continued north toward the city where they had another battle just south of the city walls on July 27. Untrained and unprepared, the Gotland peasant army was pretty much massacred, and Gotland surrendered to Denmark.

The battle took place just outside these walls.

Lots of sources say that 1,500 died at Masterby and 1,800 died at Visby, but the Swedish History Museum says that 1,800 died in Gotland and the aforementioned sources also have errors such as incorrect dates. So it’s my understanding that between the two battles, a total of 1,800 individuals died. They were buried in mass graves and their remains show us just how brutal medieval warfare was.

A short walk outside the city walls is the Korsbetningen which marks the site of the battle, now surrounded by modern houses, roads, and businesses. (Imagine living in a house on the site of a huge medieval battle…)

The Gotlands Museum has a few remnants of the battle available to see but there’s a much bigger and better collection at the Swedish History Museum in Stockholm. You can see many skulls with osteological research, some original chainmail and armor, weapons, etc. And it’s a tiny fraction of what was there in 1361.

Things to Do & See in Visby

Probably the most imposing and noticeable part of the medieval city is the humungous walls. They go around the perimeter of the city and are incredibly well preserved. The Gunpowder Tower was built in 1150 as a standalone defensive tower and is the oldest part of the walls. The rest of the walls were built around the mid 13th-14th centuries. What’s fun is that walking around the walls, you’ll notice the gates look different from one another. They’re all unique and even have their own names.

Unfortunately you can’t walk the city walls like with some other cities, and the towers were not open when I visited but they may be open during certain days of the year. But the walls are still incredibly impressive.

You can also see that the wall was built around some existing buildings. Across from St Michael’s Church ruins (which is really just a wall), you can see a small house ruin. It looks very unassuming but it’s actually very old and predates the wall itself. It’s an amazing glimpse back several centuries.

One of the main attractions and “the” thing to do in Visby is visit the Gotlands Museum. It is indeed an excellent museum with a lot of picture and runestones found on the island, and more. Actually, if you’ve visited the Swedish History Museum in Stockholm, you may have noticed that a ton of the artefacts on display there come from Gotland. The Gotlands Museum is a bit smaller but still has an excellent collection of stones, plus some skeletons of ancient people on the island. It gives a good overview of what Gotland and Visby looked like from the beginning of its inhabitation several thousand years ago up to about the medieval era, which was its heyday.

There are also several church ruins around the city. In the medieval era, Visby was packed with about 6,000 inhabitants, so lots of churches were built to accommodate them. The only medieval church still in use today is St Mary’s Cathedral. Even though the city walls are impressive, it’s also the cathedral that dominates Visby’s skyline. The cathedral was first consecrated as a church for German merchants in 1225 and became the cathedral of the local diocese in 1572, having survived the Reformation.

You can visit today and inside, they have some medieval artefacts from the area on display, including a cool chest that needed 4 different keys belonging to different people to be opened. I’ve heard of these types of chests before but don’t think I’d ever seen one in person. It dates all the way back to the 13th century, I believe.

Most of the churches in Visby did not make it past the Reformation of the early 16th century, and they’re now ruins. My favorite church ruin to visit was St Lawrence (Lars) because you can walk around the upper passages, but there are a total of 11 church ruins, plus St Mary’s Cathedral. The others include St James/Holy Spirit, Drottens, St Catherine’s, St Nicholas’, St Clement’s, St John’s and Peter’s, St Olof’s, St George’s, St Gertrude (unmarked), and St Michael’s (just a wall). If you walk around the streets and a little outside the city center you should be able to see them all!

Interested in Visby’s church ruins? I had a full post on them here.

There are lots of houses that have some significance. There’s the Burmeister House which was built and decorated in the mid 17th century. It’s gorgeous outside and in (from what I’ve seen in photos) but unfortunately it’s been closed for quite some time and there doesn’t seem to be any momentum to get the house open again. Such a shame because the inside looks so exquisitely painted and it would be nice to see a different era of Visby’s history. In this area you can also see half-timber houses from around this time period.

The Old Residence is also in this area and also has a beautifully painted interior. While it’s not open for tourists, at least it’s of some use. It can be rented out for banquets. There’s even a stone house, Cramerska House, at Saint Lars alley 1 that is said to be the oldest inhabited house in all of Sweden. Could you imagine living in that house? It’s adorable, too.

You can also eat at the Kapitelhusgarden which is a medieval themed restaurant. The building is in a 13th century Chapter House, so it really is the perfect setting for such a restaurant. Unfortunately it was closed when I visited. They’re only open for a limited part of the year and also for events.

Near the Gotlands Museum you will see “Langeska House” or the Hotel Visby Bors and its step-gable detail. You’ll see this detail at the top of some other buildings. These buildings were built around the end of the 13th century and during that point in time, most of the buildings in Visby were of that architectural style. The city is very cute today but these rather tall buildings are a glimpse into a time when it looked completely different.

I recommend putting notes into your map beforehand or bringing a guidebook with you because everything in Visby is so old and pretty, it can be easy to gloss over buildings of historical significance.

The city also has a decently sized botanical garden that was in bloom in August, plus it has the ruins of St. Olof’s Church. It’s a nice little escape. But something that wasn’t mentioned when researching my trip was the nice coastline. There’s a stone beach along the western edge of the town and it’s quite lovely. There was a sailboat event going on when I visited. Swimming is a popular thing to do on Gotland, but I’m not sure if people swim in this area. Even in August it was a bit too cold to go swimming, at least the day I was there. But it’s something to keep in mind.

Another place to visit is the Gotland Art Museum but that’s something I decided to skip. Maybe if you have more time, it’s something to consider.

One thing you’ll notice is that Visby is still very residential. The streets are lined with beautiful homes of different styles and colors and it’s such a lovely time to stroll along and see what a pleasant place it is. In late August, I’d just caught the end of the flower season and got to see some beautiful roses in bloom. Actually, Visby is nicknamed “the city of roses and ruins,” and in the summer you can definitely see both.

There are also lots of nice shops that line the streets. Many have some beautiful furniture, which is completely up my alley so it was quite enjoyable for me. Gotland is also known for its wool. I didn’t see as many wool shops as I anticipated but there are some there. There’s also a nice selection of local restaurants to enjoy, including several vegan options.

Medieval Week

Do you know the horror that befell me when I booked my trip for late August, only to find out later that Visby has a Medieval Week in early to mid August? It was devastating! So I’m here to tell you that if you’re a history nerd looking to go to Visby during the summer, you should keep Medieval Week in your mind. Their website is here which should include the dates for each year. People dress up and there’s jousting and fire throwing and other fun medieval themed activities, including a reenactment of the Battle of Visby. It looks so fun and I’m so upset I missed it by just a week or so.

Visby is such a lovely city. It has small town charm and an incredibly rich and impressive medieval history to back it. I definitely recommend a trip to Visby, and to see the rest of Gotland.

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