12/14/2001

Historical Stockholm

Stockholm will celebrate its 750th anniversary as a city in 2002, providing a natural opportunity for looking back over the centuries. And of course, reflection on the past will also lead to thinking about the future of Stockholm. Welcome to this 750-year-old city of bridges!

Stockholm celebrates its 750th anniversary 1�8 June 2002
In July 1252, Swedish ruler Birger Jarl issued a pair of documents that were signed and dated in Stockholm. These documents, which do not actually concern Stockholm as such, prove that the Jarl was in residence at Stadsholmen (present-day Gamla Stan) during that year. This is the oldest surviving record of the name �Stockholm�. Birger Jarl is thought with certainty to have been at Stadsholmen to plan and oversee the building of a stronghold � which would later be extended and modernised to become the old Stockholm Palace. This is why 1252 is considered to be the year in which Stockholm was founded � and why the city is celebrating its 750th anniversary in 2002.

To mark the occasion, Stockholm will be holding a birthday party from 1 to 8 June 2002. During this week-long celebration, the city will be humming with excitement and special activities. Exhibitions, theatrical performances and concerts will show off the latest in design, architecture, new technology and music. Plans for the future of Stockholm will also be on display. A number of different exhibitions will present the city as it appears today, as it will look in the future, and what it was like in the past. What did Stockholm look like 750 years ago? What happened here in 1523? When did King Gustav III die? When was the Stockholm City Hall built? Answers to these questions and more will be provided in the form of historical plays, walking tours, seminars and guided bus tours.
Stockholm 750 years

Medieval Stockholm
The Museum of Medieval Stockholm is a museum devoted to the origins and history of medieval Stockholm. Permanent artefacts � including a city wall built by King Gustav Vasa in the 1530s � can be studied, and objects on exhibit come from all around the Stockholm area. The two documents that Birger Jarl issued in Stockholm will be on display at this museum.
Medeltidsmuseet

Viking Age palace
The Tre Kronor Museum is located in the Royal Palace in Stockholm. The exhibitions housed in this museum deal with the building of the palace during the Viking Age, and describe the history of the palace until it was destroyed by fire on 7 May 1697. The Tre Kronor Museum can be found in the north wing of the palace, where the remains of the protective wall that surrounded the original medieval stronghold can still be seen today. The exhibitions tell about the stronghold�s function as a defence complex, as well as about how royalty and servants once lived at the palace.
The Royal Court

The Royal Palace today
The Royal Palace is a popular attraction for the many tourists who visit Stockholm each year. In addition to watching the changing of the guard, visitors can see the palace treasury, which houses the regalia, and the exquisite royal apartments and the collections they house. The flag on the roof of the palace is always raised when the King is in Sweden, and it also signals that the country is at peace.
The Royal Court

Magnificent collections
The Royal Armoury is located in the beautiful and evocative vaulted cellar of the Royal Palace. The collections housed there offer magical encounters with the history of royalty in Sweden � for children and adults alike. There are magnificent gold-embroidered costumes from coronations and royal weddings, gilded cars, weapons and armaments.
Livrustkammaren

Learn more about Stockholm
The best place to learn more about Stockholm is at the Stockholm City Museum. This museum is located in the seventeenth-century palace of Tessin the Elder, which is often referred to as the Southern City Hall. A jubilee exhibition dealing with the history of Stockholm from 1252 to 2002 will open on 23 March 2002, and will cover the development of the city from a small medieval fortified harbour town to the multicultural capital that Stockholm is today. The exhibition examines the history of Stockholm in fifty-year segments, showing visitors war and peace, misery and luxury, burghers and industry magnates, crowded inns and momentous political decisions.
Stockholm museum

Stockholm Information Service (SIS) is an organisation run by the City of Stockholm and the County of Stockholm, and is responsible for marketing and providing information about Stockholm. The primary task of SIS is to increase the number of visitors to Stockholm, to market the Stockholm area and to develop Stockholm as a destination for visitors. The intended markets comprise both Sweden and other countries.