Stockholm

Stockholm, city and seaport, capital of Sweden and of Stockholm County, on the eastern coast of the country, where Lake Malaren enters the Baltic Sea. Stockholm is situated on about 20 islands and the adjacent mainland, and is the largest city as well as the commercial, manufacturing, financial, transport, and cultural centre of the country. Population 761,721 (2004 estimate).

Major manufactured goods include printed materials, electrical equipment, processed food, machinery, metal products, paper, chemicals, textiles, and clothing. Government operations, tourism, and shipbuilding also are important to the city's economy.

Stockholm is a beautiful city with many waterways and open spaces and is often referred to as the Venice of the North. It is the seat of the University of Stockholm (1877); the Royal Institute of Technology (1827); the College of Fine Arts (1735); schools of music, economics, medicine, and physical education; the Royal Library; the Nobel Foundation (1900), which oversees the awarding of Nobel Prizes; and the Swedish Academy (1786).

Among the many museums in the city are the Swedish Museum of Natural History; the National Museum, with large collections of paintings, sculpture, drawings, and prints; the Contemporary Art Museum; the National Museum of Science and Technology; the Ethnographical Museum of Sweden, with a collection of artefacts from around the world; and the National Maritime Museum, with displays relating to Swedish naval and merchant-marine history. The Vasamuseet (Vasa Museum) houses the magnificently restored wreck of the 17th-century warship, the Vasa. Other places of interest include the Kungliga Slottet or Royal Palace (completed 1754), the 13th-century church of St Nicholas, or Storkyrkan (Great Church), and the 17th-century Riddarhuset (Hall of Nobles), all on the island of Städsholmen. This is also the location of the Old Town of Stockholm (Gamla Stan), a warren of medieval streets and a popular tourist draw. Other notable attractions are the Riddarholm Church (begun late 13th century), in which many of Sweden's monarchs are buried, on the island of Riddarholmen; and the House of Parliament, on the island of Helgeandsholmen. The Storkyrkan cemetery was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. Other World Heritage Sites in and around Stockholm include the castle of Drottingholm, on the island of Lovön (designated in 1991), and the archaeological sites of Birka on Björkö Island and Hovgården, on Adelsö (inscribed in 1993). Also of note are the Stadshuset (City Hall), built between 1911 and 1923 and designed by the Swedish architect Ragnar Östberg (1866-1945), and the zoological garden and open-air museum in Skansen, a popular park. Further afield is the Millesgården, a parkland devoted to the monumental sculptures of Carl Milles. Among the performing-arts institutions that are supported by the city of Stockholm are the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Dramatic Theatre, and the Royal Swedish Ballet.

Although the area had long been inhabited, Stockholm was not established until the mid-13th century. This settlement developed as a trading centre after commercial ties were established with members of the Hanseatic League, particularly Lübeck. In 1520 the coronation of Christian II, king of Denmark and Norway, as king of Sweden took place here. To strengthen his position in Sweden, Christian had a number of Swedish noblemen killed during what has been called the Stockholm Massacre. Three years later Danish rule was overthrown, and Gustav I Vasa became king of Sweden, with Stockholm as the centre of his kingdom. The city became a noted cultural centre in the 17th century, and its main growth as an industrial community began about 1850. The 1912 Olympic Games were held in Stockholm. Although Sweden was officially neutral during both world wars, one of the city of Stockholm’s most famous sons, the diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, saved the lives of many Jews in Budapest where he was stationed. In 1986 the Swedish prime minister Olof Palme was assassinated in the city and seven years later the same fate befell the foreign minister Anna Lindh.