German Rule, Local Revolt: The Two Stone Church Ruins in Visby, Gotland

The two stone church ruins in Visby, Gotland, are captivating remnants of the past. The first church, Sankt Hans, likely built around 1060, served as the parish church for the Gotlanders in Visby. The second, Sankt Per, was built in the 12th century following the abandonment of a wooden church, Allhelgonakyrkan. However, during the more Germanized and Hanseatic 1200s, the parish character shifted. Sankt Hans became an 'upper-class church' for both Germans and Gotlanders, while Sankt Per became 'the people’s church.' At the Reformation, the town chose Sankt Hans (and Sankt Per) as the town church. The ruins disappeared from maps in 1646 and 1696, but remnants remained and were torn down at the beginning of the 1800s, with the stone used to build the neighboring Lythbergska house.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons