Visby City Wall
| Visby City Wall | |
|---|---|
| Native name Visby ringmur, Visby stadsmur (Swedish) | |
Visby City Wall in winter | |
| Location | Visby, Sweden |
| Coordinates | 57°38′05″N 18°17′57″E / 57.63472°N 18.29917°E |
| Area | Length 3.44 km (2.14 mi) |
| Founded | 12th century |
| Built for | Defense for the Town of Visby |
| Restored | 1884–86 and some subsequent |
| Restored by | Emil Victor Langlet (in 1884) |
| Architectural style(s) | Medieval city wall |
| Visitors | 800,000 (in 2013) |
| Governing body | Swedish National Heritage Board |
| Owner | Gotland Municipality |
| Official name | Hanseatic Town of Visby |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | iv, v |
| Designated | 1995 (19th session) |
| Reference no. | 731 |
| Europe and North America | |
| whc.unesco.org | |
Visby City Wall (Swedish: Visby ringmur, "Visby Ring Wall", sometimes Visby stadsmur, "Visby City Wall") is a medieval defensive wall surrounding the Swedish town of Visby on the island of Gotland. As the strongest, most extensive, and best preserved medieval city wall in Scandinavia, the wall forms an important and integral part of Visby World Heritage Site.
Built in two stages during the 13th and 14th century, approximately 3.44 km (2.14 mi) of its original 3.6 km (2.2 mi) still stands. Of the 29 large and 22 smaller towers, 27 large and 9 small remain. A number of houses that predate the wall were incorporated within it during one of the two phases of construction. During the 18th century, fortifications were added to the wall in several places and some of the towers rebuilt to accommodate cannons.