Sweden · Still standing
Tidö Castle
Tidö slott
Tidö Castle is a 17th-century Baroque (Dutch Renaissance–influenced) palace in Västmanland, Sweden, built for Axel Oxenstierna and completed around 1645. The complex is arranged around a rectangular cobbled courtyard with a main northern corps de logis and three linked wings; the principal entrance is reached via an external double staircase to the south wing vault and portal. The von Schinkel family owns Tidö and the main building is well preserved.
First raised
1645
Its prime
1645
Today
Still standing
As it stood in 1645
What Tidö Castle looked like in its prime.
White-plastered rectangular Baroque palace set around a cobbled rectangular courtyard, two main storeys above a rusticated reddish-brown sandstone base, evenly spaced tall mullioned windows with red-painted frames, and a steep dark metal or slate roof punctuated by chimneys and small dormers. The north façade features a central projecting two-storey sculpted gable with a round clock and stone cartouche; a broad symmetrical sandstone double staircase with balustrade rises to an ornate arched stone portal with a smaller basement doorway directly beneath.
Its story
The story of Tidö Castle.
The Gren House and the Vasa Trade, 1400s–1540
The first building on the site, 17 km south of Västerås in Västmanland, was a medieval house raised by the Gren family in the fifteenth century. In 1537 the Grens sold it to the Queen Consort, Margaret Leijonhufvud (1516–1551). In 1540 her husband, King Gustav Vasa, traded Tidö away for Ekolsund, and the estate passed to the Tott family.
Axel Oxenstierna's Castle, 1625–1645
The present castle was built by the influential statesman and Lord High Chancellor Axel Oxenstierna, the work running from 1625 to 1645 and the design attributed to Simon de la Vallée. The ranges enclose a rectangular courtyard, with the main building to the north and three linked wings to the east, west and south; the main entrance passes through a vault in the south wing. Minor ruins of the older Gren house remain beside it.
Tidö is reckoned among the best preserved of Sweden's Baroque palaces, built in the Dutch Renaissance manner.
The von Schinkels and the Toy Collection, 1889–2017
In 1889 the von Schinkel family bought Tidö, and the family owns it still. The complex was designated a listed building ensemble in January 1969.
In 1974 the toy collector Carl-David von Schinkel opened a toy museum at Tidö, its large collection of historical toys including pieces formerly owned by the royal family. The collection merged with the Seriemuseet collection in 2010, and the museum moved out of the castle to the adjacent stables, where it ran as Tidö leksaks- och seriemuseum. The entire collection moved to Stockholm in 2017, and now forms the core of Bergrummet – Tidö collection of toys and comics on Skeppsholmen.
The Tidö Agreement, 2022
Following the 2022 Swedish general election, the leaders of four right-wing parties gathered at the castle to negotiate the Tidö Agreement: Ebba Busch of the Christian Democrats, Johan Pehrson of the Liberals, Ulf Kristersson of the Moderate Party and Jimmie Åkesson of the Sweden Democrats. The agreement allowed Kristersson to form a right-wing government with the Christian Democrats and Liberals, supported by the Sweden Democrats. Media and debaters have since carried the house's name into their label for the grouping, the "Tidö parties".
Step inside
7 places to explore in 1645.
The record describes 7 distinct spots at Tidö Castle, including 1 interior: vaulted south-wing entrance passage. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more rooms, more angles, and more of the place to stand in.
Build Your Own Castle
Recreate Tidö Castle with AI to explore it.
The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1645, a photoreal reconstruction that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.
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Clans who held Tidö Castle.
The families that held Tidö Castle for a decade or more across its history, follow a name to its clan.
Gren
Held by the Gren family from the fifteenth century until sold to Queen Margaret Leijonhufvud in 1537.
Tott
Came to the Tott family in 1540, when Gustav Vasa traded Tidö for Ekolsund Castle.
Oxenstierna
Lord High Chancellor Axel Oxenstierna built the present castle, 1625–1645.
von Schinkel
Held by the von Schinkel family since their purchase in 1889.
From the archive
Tidö Castle on paper: the measured plan and period views.
The survey plan and photographs below are the ground truth this page's reconstructions are checked against, drawn and photographed while the castle was still a working garrison. Every image is public-domain or openly licensed, with its source named.
Flygfoto över Tidö slott, Tidö.
· Västmanland County Museum (via Europeana)
Public domain
Flygfoto över Tidö slott, Tidö.
· Västmanland County Museum (via Europeana)
Public domain
Flygfoto över Tidö slott, Tidö.
· Västmanland County Museum (via Europeana)
Public domain
