The remains of a medieval church dedicated to Saint Karlung

The ruins of Karls kyrkoruin are the remains of a medieval church in Söderby-Karl in Uppland, built in the late 1200s. According to tradition, the church was dedicated to Saint Karlung, the patron saint of Roslagen. The site lies along Riksväg 76, situated between Estuna church and Söderby-Karl's church. While the church was eventually abandoned in 1795, it served as a site of pilgrimage during the Middle Ages and long after the Reformation, where people came to pray for healing from illnesses.

The building features a rectangular nave with a choir, a sacristy added around the 1300s, and a porch in the south. The walls are constructed of natural stone with dressed sandstone in the corner chains. Historically, the upper part of the western tower collapsed during the 1500s or 1600s, and the remaining walls were demolished in 1785. The choir later collapsed in the 1860s, and the nave was demolished in the 1880s due to the risk of collapse.

Legend says a chapel preceded the church on this same spot because it was where Saint Karlung was buried. According to the legend, his coffin could not pass the site because it was too heavy or overturned, and a spring rose from the ground. A spring, known as Karls källa, is located outside the church, while another spring was once located inside the building. Today, the ruins are overgrown with wild roses, honeysuckle, and caprifoli, and a small bell tower sometimes rings for open-air services in the summer.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons