John III of Sweden kept his deposed brother Eric XIV in captivity in the castle in the Fall of 1571. At that time (1568-1621) the castle was the fief of queen dowager Catherine Stenbock, a political enemy of her stepson, Eric XIV. With the help of cannons, the castle was damaged severely when the forces of king Charles IX of Sweden conquered it from queen dowager Catherine in the 1599 civil war, the War against Sigismund.