A few minutes' walk west of the old town, across the river meadows, is the grass-covered mound of Riberhus — the foundations of the royal castle that once made Ribe a seat of Danish kings. The castle was the western anchor of the medieval kingdom, residence of figures including Valdemar I and Queen Dagmar (whose effigy on a horse stands by the path), and was demolished in 1771 after centuries of neglect.
What remains is a dramatic earthwork — a square moated mound with the river curling around one side — and the Queen Dagmar statue, raised in 1913. The walk out, along the river bank from the old town, takes about fifteen minutes and is rewarding at sunset.