House of Sweden is a building in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 which houses the diplomatic mission

Diplomatic mission

A diplomatic mission is a group of people from one state or an international inter-governmental organisation present in another state to represent the sending state/organisation in the receiving state...

s of the Kingdom of Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

, the Principality of Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein

The Principality of Liechtenstein is a doubly landlocked alpine country in Central Europe, bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east. Its area is just over , and it has an estimated population of 35,000. Its capital is Vaduz. The biggest town is Schaan...

, and the Republic of Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

 to the United States of America. The building is located at 2900 K Street

K Street (Washington, D.C.)

K Street is a major thoroughfare in the United States capital of Washington, D.C. known as a center for numerous think tanks, lobbyists, and advocacy groups.-Location:...

 N.W.

Washington, D.C. (northwest)

Northwest is the northwestern quadrant of Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, and is located north of the National Mall and west of North Capitol Street...

 in the Georgetown

Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

Georgetown is a neighborhood located in northwest Washington, D.C., situated along the Potomac River. Founded in 1751, the port of Georgetown predated the establishment of the federal district and the City of Washington by 40 years...

 neighborhood.

Apart from the embassies, the building, which is owned by the National Property Board of Sweden, also houses representatives of Swedish commerce. Facilities includes a secretariat, exhibition space, 19 corporate apartments, and a high-tech business event center.

Building

The building was designed by the Swedish architects Gert Wingårdh

Gert Wingårdh

Gert Wingårdh is a Swedish architect whose company, Wingårdh arkitektkontor, maintains an international practice.- Personal life :Gert Wingårdh was born 1951 into a wealthy family in Skövde, Västergötland county, as the only child. His father owned the local cement factory and the family’s house...

 and Tomas Hansen, with VOA Associates in Washington DC as architect of record

Architect of record

Architect of record is the architect or architecture firm whose name appears on a building permit issued for a specific project on which that architect or firm performed services. Building permits are issued by a government agency with the authority in a certain jurisdiction to regulate building...

. It consists of five floors with a total surface of 7,500 m². The front of the building is made of glass

Glass

Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...

. Construction began in August 2004 and was completed in the summer of 2006. The embassy moved into the building at the beginning of August 2006. Previously the embassy was housed in rented space, first at Watergate

Watergate complex

The Watergate complex is a group of five buildings next to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Washington, D.C. in the United States. The site contains an office building, three apartment buildings, and a hotel-office building...

 600, and later at 1501 M Street

M Street (Washington, D.C.)

The name "M Street" refers to two major roads in the United States capital of Washington, D.C. Because of the Cartesian-coordinate-based street-naming system in Washington, the name M Street can be used to refer to any east-west street located twelve blocks north or south of the dome of the United...

 NW.

The building was inaugurated on October 23, 2006, by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden

Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden

Carl XVI Gustaf is the reigning King of Sweden since 15 September 1973, succeeding his grandfather King Gustaf VI Adolf because his father had predeceased him...

 and Queen Silvia. Also present at the inauguration were the Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Sweden)

The Minister for Foreign Affairs is the foreign minister of Sweden and the head of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.The office was instituted in 1809 as a result of the constitutional Instrument of Government promulgated in the same year. Until 1876 the office was called Prime Minister for Foreign...

 Carl Bildt

Carl Bildt

, Honorary KCMG is a Swedish politician, diplomat and nobleman. Formerly Prime Minister of Sweden from 1991 to 1994 and leader of the liberal conservative Moderate Party from 1986 to 1999, Bildt has served as Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs since 6 October 2006...

 and then Ambassador of Sweden to the United States Gunnar Lund

Gunnar Lund

Nils Gunnar Wiggo Lund, born 26 July 1947. Swedish diplomat and politician. Married to Kari Lotsberg. Three children: Gustav Harald and Ingrid ....

.

Gert Wingårdh received the Swedish national architecture award – the Kasper Salin Prize

Kasper Salin Prize

The Kasper Salin Prize is a prize awarded annually by the Swedish Association of Architects to a Swedish building or building project "of high architectural standard". It has been awarded since 1962 and was founded with money from a donation by the city architect of Stockholm Kasper Salin...

 – for House of Sweden in 2007.

See also

• List of Ambassadors of Sweden to the United States
• Swedish-American relations
  Swedish-American relations
  Swedish–American relations are the Transatlantic relations between Sweden and the United States, and between the Swedish and American people in particular.Sweden and the United States have had strong ties since the 18th century.-History of relations:...
  
  
• Diplomatic missions of Sweden
  Diplomatic missions of Sweden
  This is a list of diplomatic missions of Sweden. Sweden has a moderately sized diplomatic network of 78 embassies and 13 consulates general, supplemented by honorary consulates, cultural centres and trade missions that are operated separately. Of note Sweden was the first Western country to have...
  
  
• Iceland – United States relations

External links

• House of Sweden, Official website
• Embassy of Sweden, Official website
• Embassy of Iceland Official website
• Embassy of Liechtenstein Official website