Geschichte:
I 1508 erhvervede kong Hans (1481-1513) den lille ø Ebelø i Nakskov fjord med henblik på anlæggelse af et befæstet orlogsværft, og allerede 1509 omtales Engelsborg som "det ny slot" senere også kaldet Nyslot. Ifølge historikeren Arild Huitfeldt (1546-1609) indgik i byggeriet materialer fra den samtidig nedlagte kongelige slotslensborg Ravnsborg på Nordlolland. På Engelsborg lod kong Hans straks bygge de berømte orlogsfartøjer "Englen" og sandsynligvis "Maria". Lolland Nørre og Sønder Herred, der tidligere havde hørt under Ravnsborg, blev overført til Engelsborg, som dog allerede 1523 ophørte som slotslensborg. Værftsfunktionen ophørte sandsynligvis 1534, da borgen blev indtaget af lybekkerne, men blev senere genoptaget af Christian IV (1588-1648) i en kort årrække. Efter 1534 må borgen dog fortsat have haft betydning som fæstning frem til Christian III’s (1534-59) befæstning af Nakskov i midten af 1500-tallet, og meget betegnende blev det reducerede Engelsborg len helt nedlagt 1549.
In 1508 King Hans (1481-1513) got hold of the small island of Ebelø in Nakskov Fjord in order to establish a fortified shipyard. The following year Engelsborg is described as "the new castle" and it was later known as "Newcastle". According to the historian Arild Huitfeldt (1546-1609) Engelsborg was partly built of reused material from the royal main castle of Ravnsborg on Northern Lolland, which was abandoned at the same time. Soon after the famous naval vessels "Englen" (The Angel) and probably "Maria" were built. The herreds or shires of Lolland Nørre and Lolland Sønder which formerly belonged to Ravnsborg were taken over by Engelsborg but as soon as 1523 the castle ceased to administer a main fief. Engelsborg seems to have been closed down as a naval dockyard in 1534 as the castle was captured by forces of Lübeck, but it was once again in use for a short period of time during the reign of King Christian IV (1588-1648). However, the castle must have had continual military importance until the mid 16th century fortification of the nearby city of Nakskov during the reign of Christian III (1534-59). The reduced royal fief of Engelsborg was finally dispersed in 1549. (H. M. Møller Nielsen)
Bauentwicklung:
Byggeriet af det befæstede skibsværft startede med etableringen af vandgravene for at skaffe materiale til planering af bradbænkenes kraftige forankringskonstruktion, der var under opførelse samtidig. Herefter fulgte de to V-formede flankemure formentlig i sammenhæng med opførelsen af kanontårnet. Anlægget menes tidligst at være færdigbygget i løbet af fire år. Massive forekomster af huggespåner og bearbejdede træstykker viser, at der blev bygget skibe før og samtidig med borgens anlæggelse.
The building of the fortified shipyard set out with the construction of the moats in order to provide clay for filling up the wooden constructions that anchored the slipways on the shore. The next step included the building of two V-shaped flanking walls and probably the gun tower. At the earliest the fortification was completed within four years. Vast amounts of wood chippings and construction timber show that the site served as a shipyard before and during the building of the castle. (H. M. Møller Nielsen)
Baubeschreibung:
Engelsborg var omgivet af grav, vold og en ydre grav mod syd og vest, der muligvis stod i forbindelse med fjorden, således at borgen var afskåret fra resten af øen. Anlægget bestod af et kraftigt cirkulært kanontårn i teglsten, hvorfra der mod stranden i nordøst strakte sig to op til 66 m lange, halvanden meter tykke teglstensflankemure. Den bevarede del af tårn og flankemure er ikke i forbandt men synes at repræsentere en samlet plan. Langs med ydersiden og for enden af hver flankemur fandtes en tømmerkonstruktion, en såkaldt bradbænk, hvor skibe kunne kølhales i forbindelse med reparation. Mellem flankemurene, der var forsynet med skydeskår og sandsynligvis også krenelering, er der fundet spor af brolagte veje, gulve og fundamenter fra flere bygninger samt diverse konstruktioner til brug for skibsbyggeriet, der øjensynligt foregik her. Skydeskårene er udformet som nicher på 1,5 x 1,1 m og en dybde på ligeledes 1,5 m afsluttet med fladbuestik. De er placeret med meget uregelmæssig afstand, hvilket er tolket som tegn på, at andre konstruktioner optog arealet mellem flankemurene, da disse blev opført. Omtrent 9 m fra tårnet var flankemurene forbundet af en tværmur med en døråbning til et slags forrum, sandsynligvis overdækket. I vestre flankemur fandtes indgangsporten, hvorfra en brolagt vej førte ud gennem vestvolden, og i østre flankemur en dør, der førte til et område med formodede tilhørende bygninger. Under døren var anlagt en spildevandskanal, og den østre flankemur rummede også en niche med en sandstenssat brønd. Tårnet, der målte 10,9 m i diameter og havde 3,3 m tykke mure, har haft mindst to stokværk forbundet af en indmuret vindeltrappe og sandsynligvis øverst en forsvarsplatform med krenelering. I 1. stokværk fandtes ni stærkt smigede, tøndehvælvede skydeskår og i 2. stokværk seks (udvendigt mål ca. 14 x 35-40 cm). Lensmanden formodes da at have boet i en lettere bebyggelse udenfor borganlægget tillige med borgens mandskab og skibsbyggere, men af denne middelalderlige bebyggelse er ikke fundet spor. En del af området optages i dag af et gårdsanlæg. På Resens prospekt fra ca. 1680 ses umiddelbart øst for det ruinerede tårn en bygning, og ved de arkæologiske undersøgelser 2005 viste sig her rester af lettere huskonstruktioner sandsynligvis opført i forbindelse med Christian IV’s genoptagelse af skibsbyggeriet 1623-34.
The fortified shipyard of Engelsborg was surrounded by a moat, a rampart and an outer moat to the south and west. The outer moat was possibly connected to the fjord so that Engelsborg was cut off from the island. The central feature of the complex was a strong circular gun tower built of bricks. The tower was connected to two V-shaped flanking walls approaching the beach. They were up to 66 metres long, 1,5 metres wide and built of bricks. There is no bonding between the walls and the tower but they must represent a unity. A wooden construction at the seawards end and on the outside of the flanking walls formed the foundation for a careening place. In the area between the flanking walls which were provided with gun-loops and probably crenelated the actual building of ships took place and remains of pavements, roads and several structures have been found. The gun-loops which are flat arched niches (1.5 x 1.1 m, 1.5 m deep) are irregularly situated which has been interpreted as a sign of the existence of other structures in the space between the walls. C. 9 metres from the tower a transverse wall with a door between the walls forms an anteroom to the tower. The main access from the outside was a gate in the western wall. In the eastern wall a doorway gave passage to the supposed bailey area. A drain passed under the door and a well constructed of sandstone has been found in a niche in the eastern flank wall. The gun tower (10.9 m in diameter, 3.3 m thick walls) had at least two storeys and an upper probably crenelated platform. It was constructed with nine strong bevelled gun-loops at the first floor and six on the floor above (c. 14 x 35-40 cm on the outside). Supposedly the bailiff, his men and the shipbuilders had their living quarters in lighter buildings outside the main castle but so far no trace of this medieval settlement has been found; today the supposed bailey area is partly occupied by a farm. On a prospectus by Peder Hansen Resen dating from c. 1680 a building is seen to the east of the demolished tower and in 2005 remains of post medieval lighter buildings were uncovered. They were probably built during the period of the reuse of the site as a naval dockyard in 1623-34. (H. M. Møller Nielsen)
Arch-Untersuchung/Funde:
Berejsninger 1830 (N.L. Høyen), 1877 (Magnus Petersen), 1904 (P. Hauberg) m.fl. Engelskborg blev arkæologisk undersøgt 1944-47 under ledelse af den lokale gymnasielektor Marius Hansen med deltagelse af elever. Udgravninger udførtes igen 2005 af Nationalmuseet (Nils Engberg) i forbindelse med restaureringsarbejder (Jørgen Frandsen), der havde været i gang siden 1985.
Inspections 1830 (N.L. Høyen), 1877 (Magnus Petersen), 1904 (P. Hauberg) etc. The first excavations at Engelsborg were conducted by the local teacher Marius Hansen in 1944-47 and carried out by students. The site was once again excavated in 2005 by the National Museum of Denmark (Nils Engberg) in connection with restoration works (Jørgen Frandsen) which started in 1985.
