HOME | DD

Description
Based on a Swedish ghost story

During the 13th century, northern Gotland (Sweden's biggest island) was ruled by a cruel and sadistic psychopath named Nils Taksten aka Den Förfärlige Takstainarn/Takstainarn The Terrible.
Nobody dared to talk against him, not even the priest and the service of worship wasn't allowed to start without him.
One sunday the villages waited for Nils at the church the entire day and when the sun went down they forced the priest to start without him.
But when he just had started Takstainarn opened the door with a fierce power.
He walked to the priest and said to him with fire in his eyes...
"HAVEN'T I ORDERED THE PRIEST THAT HE MUST WAIT UNTIL I HAVE ARRIVED!?"
The priest begged for mercy but Nils took his sword and chopped his head of at the altar in front of the terrified villages.
That night they decided that they shouldn't take more of his tyranny and went to his house to kill him.
But Takstainarn was a skillful swordsman and a brutal massacre began where a lot of men lost their lives until they finally succeeded to kill him.
Afterwards the entire house was colored with gore and people traveled far and wide to see the result of the battle.
Everyone in Gotland was reliefed that Takstainarn was dead but they would soon realize that they haven't seen the last of him.
A man who had committed so manny horrid deeds in his lifetime and died such a brutal death could surly not find rest and shortly people started to see his ghost.
It was said that a swamp called Takstens More became his resting place during daytime and during night he tormented the people of Gotland .
Cattle who eat there was said to go mad and die in horrible pain.
They tried everything but no priests, words of God or crucifixes seemed to have any effect on him.
One day a mighty wizard from Öland came for their help.
Whit his magic he succeeded to trap the ghost in a grave on the floor off Lärbro church.
He putted a spell on the ghost so that he should never be able to leave and a large flagstone was then placed above him.
Finally it became peace and quite and the people where happy and the wizard returned to Öland.
But soon they realized that he hadn't completely succeeded with his task.
Even if Takstainarn was in the grave he couldn't find peace but moaned, screamed, cursed and scared the people at the church.
He ruined the service of worship and if a pregnant woman stepped on his grave the baby would turn deformed or dead.
So they decided to move the body to an old pagan burial ground.
And since that day there was peace in the church but Takstainarn's grave is still there and pregnant women still avoid it even if its empty.

You might believe that the story ends here but way in to modern time people still claim to have seen and heard strange things at Takstens house.
Doors and windows has slammed even though nobody lives there and during full moon nights you can see Takstainarn ride on a big black horse.
And people has also seen a big black dog with read glowing eyes that they claim to be him in disguise.

The legend of Takstainarn is one of Sweden's oldest ghost stories.
It has been told for centuries and was first written down in 1696.
His grave at Lärbro church is today a tourist attraction.
So even if Takstainarn has done so many bad things during his life and death the people seems to love to talk about their ghost and will probably do it for another thousand years.

Description
Based on a Swedish ghost story

During the 13th century, northern Gotland (Sweden's biggest island) was ruled by a cruel and sadistic psychopath named Nils Taksten aka Den Förfärlige Takstainarn/Takstainarn The Terrible.
Nobody dared to talk against him, not even the priest and the service of worship wasn't allowed to start without him.
One sunday the villages waited for Nils at the church the entire day and when the sun went down they forced the priest to start without him.
But when he just had started Takstainarn opened the door with a fierce power.
He walked to the priest and said to him with fire in his eyes...
"HAVEN'T I ORDERED THE PRIEST THAT HE MUST WAIT UNTIL I HAVE ARRIVED!?"
The priest begged for mercy but Nils took his sword and chopped his head of at the altar in front of the terrified villages.
That night they decided that they shouldn't take more of his tyranny and went to his house to kill him.
But Takstainarn was a skillful swordsman and a brutal massacre began where a lot of men lost their lives until they finally succeeded to kill him.
Afterwards the entire house was colored with gore and people traveled far and wide to see the result of the battle.
Everyone in Gotland was reliefed that Takstainarn was dead but they would soon realize that they haven't seen the last of him.
A man who had committed so manny horrid deeds in his lifetime and died such a brutal death could surly not find rest and shortly people started to see his ghost.
It was said that a swamp called Takstens More became his resting place during daytime and during night he tormented the people of Gotland .
Cattle who eat there was said to go mad and die in horrible pain.
They tried everything but no priests, words of God or crucifixes seemed to have any effect on him.
One day a mighty wizard from Öland came for their help.
Whit his magic he succeeded to trap the ghost in a grave on the floor off Lärbro church.
He putted a spell on the ghost so that he should never be able to leave and a large flagstone was then placed above him.
Finally it became peace and quite and the people where happy and the wizard returned to Öland.
But soon they realized that he hadn't completely succeeded with his task.
Even if Takstainarn was in the grave he couldn't find peace but moaned, screamed, cursed and scared the people at the church.
He ruined the service of worship and if a pregnant woman stepped on his grave the baby would turn deformed or dead.
So they decided to move the body to an old pagan burial ground.
And since that day there was peace in the church but Takstainarn's grave is still there and pregnant women still avoid it even if its empty.

You might believe that the story ends here but way in to modern time people still claim to have seen and heard strange things at Takstens house.
Doors and windows has slammed even though nobody lives there and during full moon nights you can see Takstainarn ride on a big black horse.
And people has also seen a big black dog with read glowing eyes that they claim to be him in disguise.

The legend of Takstainarn is one of Sweden's oldest ghost stories.
It has been told for centuries and was first written down in 1696.
His grave at Lärbro church is today a tourist attraction.
So even if Takstainarn has done so many bad things during his life and death the people seems to love to talk about their ghost and will probably do it for another thousand years.