Stockholm: Encyclopedia II - Stockholm - History

Stockholm - History

Stockholm - Origins

The earliest mention of Stockholm in writing dates from 1252, when it was an important post in the iron trade from the mines in Bergslagen. The first part of the name — stock — means log, while the last part — holm — means islet or small island. The full origin of the name is disputed.

The city is said to have been founded by Birger Jarl in order to protect Sweden from invasion from the sea by foreign navies and to stop pillage of the cities such as Sigtuna on Lake Mälaren. The first building at Stockholm was a fortification for the purpose of controlling the traffic between the Baltic Sea and Mälaren. Under the leadership of Magnus Ladulås Stockholm developed into an important trade city in the following decades, advanced through relations with Lübeck of the Hansa league. In 1270 Stockholm appears in historical documents as a city and in 1289 it was described as the most populated city in the Swedish region. The first trustworthy estimate of the size of city comes from the middle of the 15th century, giving Stockholm about one thousand households and five to six thousand residents.

Stockholm - Kalmar Union

The strategic and economic importance of the city made Stockholm an important factor in relations between the Danish Kings of the Kalmar Union and the national independence movement in the 15th century. On October 14, 1471 Sweden under Sten Sture, with the support of the people of Stockholm, achieved a dramatic victory over the Danish king Christian I. His grandson Christian II occupied the city in 1518 in vain, but was able to secure the city in 1520. On November 8, 1520, massive executions of opposition figures, called the Stockholm Bloodbath, took place. This massacre set off further uprisings, which eventually led to the break-up of the Kalmar Union.

Stockholm - Vasa Period

With the accession of Gustav Vasa in 1523 and construction of a royal power, Stockholm developed into a larger city. The city island no longer offered enough space, and in 1529 Södermalm and Norrmalm were incorporated into the city. The city continued to grow and by 1600 reached a population of ten thousand.

Stockholm - 1600–1800

The 17th century saw the rise of Sweden into a major European power, which was reflected in the development of the city. From 1610 to 1680 the population multiplied sixfold. Ladugårdslandet, today's Östermalm, and the island Kungsholmen were also incorporated. 1628 the Vasa ship sank in Stockholm. In 1634 Stockholm became the official capital of the Swedish empire. Trading rules were also created that gave Stockholm an essential monopoly over trade between foreign merchants and other Swedish and Scandinavian territories. In this period, great palaces and castles were built, including the House of Knights and later, in the early 18th century, the Royal Palace.

Between 1713–1714, Stockholm suffered from the Black Death. After the end of the Great Northern War and the destruction of several areas of the city in 1721, the city stagnated. Population growth halted, and the rapid economic growth slowed. However, Stockholm maintained its role as the political centre of Sweden and under Gustav III it continued to develop culturally. The royal opera is a good architectual expression of this era.

Stockholm - 1800–1900

In the beginning of the 19th century, the economic importance of Stockholm declined further. Norrköping became the greatest manufacturing city of Sweden and Göteborg developed into the key trading port because of its location on the North Sea. In the second half of the century, Stockholm regained its leading economic role. New industries emerged, and Stockholm transformed into an important trade and service centre, as well as a key gateway point within Sweden.

The population grew dramatically in the second half of the 19th century, especially through immigration. At the end of the century, not even 40% of the residents were born in Stockholm. Settlement began to expand outside of the city limits and also created dense poor districts, but also new districts in the countryside and on the coast.

During this period, Stockholm further developed as a cultural and educational center. In the 19th century, a number of scientific institutes opened in Stockholm, for example the Karolinska Institute.

Stockholm - 20th century

In the late 20th century, Stockholm became a modern, technologically-advanced and ethnically diverse city. Throughout the century, many industries shifted away from work-intensive activities into more high-technology and service-industry knowledge-based areas.

The city continued to expand and new districts were created, for example Rinkeby, Tensta, and Sollentuna, some with high proportions of immigrants.

In 1923 the Stockholm municipal government moved to a new building, the Stockholm City Hall. In 1967 the city of Stockholm was integrated into Stockholm County.

Stockholm - Recent Key Events

On February 28, 1986, Prime Minister Olof Palme was shot on the street, and the murderer was never found. On September 10, 2003, foreign minister Anna Lindh was mortally wounded in a stabbing attack that took place in the shopping mall Nordiska Kompaniet.

Stockholm was also named the European Capital of Culture of 1998.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki