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Written by Nigel
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Wednesday, 06 August 2008 |
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No one knows exactly when Bosjökloster was founded, but most of those who have investigated its history assume that it was about 1080 A. D. It was the Benedictine Order that built this nunnery on the shore of Lake Ringsjön.
 The oldest document in which Bosjökloster is mentioned is a bull from Pope Lucius in 1181, in which he confirms the convent's privileges. When the Reformation in the 16th century came to Skåne, which then was Danish, the nunnery was closed down. But even today there are many relics from the time of the nuns at Bosjökloster, among them the original vaults - once the nun's refectory-, the church, which is still attended by the local population, ruins of the penitential chapel, the little churchyard where the nuns lie buried under simple stones, and the Thousand Year Old Oak, which still comes into leaf every year in the park.
The first private owner of Bosjökloster was Thale Ulfstand, who acquired it by a barter transaction with the Danish King Fredrik II. In 1628 the property was taken over by Jochum Beck, a versatile man and enthusiastic dilettante in many sciences. These experiments stood him dear; he lost most of his money and was forced to sell Bosjökloster to pay his debts. The buyer - Corfitz Ulfeldt - was also short-lived at Bosjökloster. He so lacked diplomacy in his intrigues with both the Swedish and Danish kings that he had to flee both countries, and his wife Leonora Christina - the king's daughter - was imprisoned in the Blue Tower in Copenhagen for all of 22 years.
The estate was sequestrated by the Swedish Government and fell into decay. After a lawsuit in 1735, Bosjökloster was returned to the Beck family, now Beck-Friis, who restored it and held it until 1908, when it was purchased by Count Philip Bonde, whose family still owns Bosjökloster. His grandson Count Tord Bonde and his family are now in charge of the estate. |  Throughout the season, the castle terraces and rose garden constantly change with tens of thousands of plants. In April, Bosjökloster's park is covered by a white carpet of wood anemone. On the terraces around the castle scores of narcissus and tulips bloom in May in all colours. Blooming shrubs, azalea and rhododendron line the path to the Thousand Year Old Oak.
The first roses appear at the end of May. Peony and lilies are fragrant and beautiful features in June. The large perennial flower beds in English style blaze in all colours and heights on the Upper Terrace. The nepeta creates blue-grey borders, not the least in the newly redesigned Rose Garden. Here the English David Austin roses distinguish themselves with their wonderful scents. Several hundred kinds of roses can be found at Bosjökloster - thousands in number.
Roses and hydrangea bloom in the Court Yard, surrounded by box-hedges. In the adjoining little herb garden, surrounded by high walls where roses, clematis and grapevines climb, you find both health- and food herbs. On the Lower Terrace a long flower bed along a hedge towards the Ring Lake displays variable and fascinating plants, such as the 1.5 m high tobacco plants. |  |  |  |  |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 05 August 2008 )
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