Now I’m really confused. They refer to Tjolöholm as a castle, but it seems to me to be the very definition of a palace or a mansion or even a country estate, but not a castle. It was designed in the Arts and Craft style to be the quintessential British country house by architect Lars Israel Wahlman, a man who never set foot in the British Isles. The project began in 1892 shortly after power couple James Fredrik and Blanche Dickson purchased this amazing piece of property. Planning the Elizabethan mansion took six years and then another six years to finish construction.
The Dicksons, of Scottish ancestry, were the third generation to make Gothenburg their home where James Fredrik ran the trading company Dickson & Co. founded by his grandfather in 1816. They were enormously successful and used their fortune to construct their idea of a utopian estate. The mansion itself offers everything the gentry could wish for, stables full of thoroughbred racehorses and scores of the most exquisite carriages of the day. Amazing views over the water of Kungsbacka Fjord to the small islands beyond. A lovely beach for swimming complete with a bath and boathouse. The house itself has all the modern conveniences of the day, including indoor plumbing, electric lights, central heating and even a vacuum cleaning system. Everything in the house and on the grounds is of the highest quality and the most pristine design.
The scrollwork above the stove reads: As Time Can Be Redeemed At No Cost – Bestow It Well – Let No Hour Be Lost
Blanche was convinced that a happy estate required happy workers and that called for quality housing in an idyllic setting. She designed and built a lovely little village where each family has a nice cottage with room for the children to play and a yard where each family could have a small vegetable patch. She even had a church built to insure the families got the necessary religious training.
At the end of the day this is sadly a bit of a cautionary tale. Shortly before construction began James Fredrik was celebrating at the Grand Hotel in Gothenburg. He cut himself opening a bottle of wine and wrapped the foil around his finger to stanch the bleeding. He died of blood poisoning a week later. A heartbroken Blanche toughened up, took control of the construction and finished the project. Not two years later she sailed to Ceylon to visit her brothers tea farm, ate some bad fruit on the ship and died of dysentery on the return trip to Europe. She was buried at sea in the Indian Ocean.
Once again the old wisdom rings true, don’t save your dreams for another day, do it now while fate allows.
Beautiful.
Fortunately it is still there. Also very interesting is the castle of Wrangel. A sleeping beauty. If you have time…
Wow – beautiful and a great but sad ending story…