Riddarholmen
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Top: View from Södermalm Södermalm Södermalm, often shortened to "Söder", is a district in central Stockholm. It covers the large island formerly called "Åsön". With a population of 99,685, it is one of the most densely populated districts of Scandinavia... . Above: Panoramic view from the City Hall Stockholm City Hall Stockholm City Hall is the building of the Municipal Council for the City of Stockholm in Sweden. It stands on the eastern tip of Kungsholmen island, next to Riddarfjärden's northern shore and facing the islands of Riddarholmen and Södermalm. It houses offices and conference rooms as well as... Left: The Wrangel and Stenbock Palaces. Below: The Hessenstein Palace. Bottom: Tower of Birger Jarl and the Riddarholm Church. |
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Riddarholmen (Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
: "The Knights' Islet") is a small islet
Islet
An islet is a very small island.- Types :As suggested by its origin as islette, an Old French diminutive of "isle", use of the term implies small size, but little attention is given to drawing an upper limit on its applicability....
in central Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, 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 island forms part of Gamla Stan
Gamla stan
Gamla stan , until 1980 officially Staden mellan broarna , is the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Gamla stan consists primarily of the island Stadsholmen. The surrounding islets Riddarholmen, Helgeandsholmen, and Strömsborg are officially part of, but not colloquially included in, Gamla stan...
, the old town, and houses a number of private palaces dating from the 17th century. The main landmark is the church Riddarholmskyrkan
Riddarholmskyrkan
The Riddarholmen Church is the burial church of the Swedish monarchs. It is located on the island of Riddarholmen, close to the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden. The congregation was dissolved in 1807 and today the church is used only for burial and commemorative purposes. Swedish monarchs from...
, the royal burial church since the 16th century and where a number of Swedish monarchs lie buried.
The western end of the island gives a magnificent panoramic and photogenic view of the bay Riddarfjärden
Riddarfjärden
Riddarfjärden, literally the Knight Firth, is a bay of Lake Mälaren in central Stockholm. Stockholm was founded in 1252 on an island in the stream where Lake Mälaren drains into the Baltic Sea . The island is today called Stadsholmen and constitutes Stockholm's Old Town...
, often used by TV journalists with Stockholm City Hall
Stockholm City Hall
Stockholm City Hall is the building of the Municipal Council for the City of Stockholm in Sweden. It stands on the eastern tip of Kungsholmen island, next to Riddarfjärden's northern shore and facing the islands of Riddarholmen and Södermalm. It houses offices and conference rooms as well as...
in the background. A statue of Birger Jarl
Birger jarl
, or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland. Additionally, he is traditionally attributed to have...
, traditionally regarded to be the founder of Stockholm, is standing on a pillar in front of the Bonde Palace north of Riddarholmskyrkan.
Other notable buildings include the Old Parliament Building in the south-eastern corner, the Old National Archive
Gamla Riksarkivet
Gamla Riksarkivet is a building at Arkivgatan 3 on Riddarholmen in Stockholm, Sweden. Riksarkivet, the Swedish National Archives, were located in the building until 1968....
on the eastern shore, and the so called Norstedt Building
Norstedt Building
The Norstedt Building is the main office of P.A. Norstedt & Söner AB on Riddarholmen in Stockholm, Sweden.The building, designed by Magnus Isæus and built in 1882-91, features a spire-like roof, which is a well-known silhouette on the skyline of central Stockholm.Bridge Vasabron is passing in...
, the old printing house of the publisher Norstedts
Norstedts Förlag
Norstedts Förlag is a book publishing company in Sweden. It was established in 1823 by Per Adolf Norstedt....
, the tower roof of which is a well-known silhouette on the city's skyline.
Palaces
While the church dates back to the Middle Ages, most of the present structures on Riddarholmen were built during the 17th century when the island was an aristocratic setting which gave the islet its present name. Three of the palaces are gathered around the central public square, Birger Jarls TorgBirger Jarls Torg
Birger Jarls torg is a public square on Riddarholmen in Gamla stan, the old town in Stockholm, Sweden.The square used to be called Riddarholmstorget, but was in the mid-19th century renamed Birger Jarls Torg after Birger Jarl, traditionally attributed as the founder of Stockholm, and a statue of...
centred on the 19th century statue of Birger Jarl
Birger jarl
, or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland. Additionally, he is traditionally attributed to have...
: The Wrangel Palace
Wrangel Palace
Wrangel Palace is a townhouse in Stockholm, Sweden. Since 1756 the palace has housed Svea Hovrätt, the regional court of appeal. It was the residence of the royal court during the first half of the 18th-century....
on the west side, the most impressive, incorporates a medieval defensive tower and a portal designed by Nicodemus Tessin the Elder
Nicodemus Tessin the Elder
Nicodemus Tessin the Elder was an important Swedish architect.-Biography:Nicodemus Tessin was born in Stralsund in Pomerania and came to Sweden as a young man. There he met and worked with the architect Simon de la Vallée...
; the Stenbock and Hessenstein Palaces on the east side are less elaborate. North of the square the two 19th century wings of the Palace of Schering Rosenhane reach the rustic main building which dates from the 17th century.
The palaces of Wrangel, Hessenstein, and Schering Rosenhane are today used by Svea Hovrätt, the appellate court for Svealand
Svealand
Svealand , Swealand or Sweden proper is the historical core region of Sweden. It is located in south central Sweden and is one of three lands of Sweden, bounded to the north by Norrland and to the south by Götaland. Deep forests, Tiveden, Tylöskog, Kolmården, separated Svealand from Götaland...
, while the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of Sweden
The Supreme Court of Sweden is the supreme court and the third and final instance in all civil and criminal cases in Sweden. Before a case can be decided by the Supreme Court, leave to appeal must be obtained, and with few exceptions, leave to appeal can be granted only when the case is of...
and the Supreme Administrative Court
Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden
The Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden is the supreme court and the third and final tier for administrative court cases in Sweden, and is located in Stockholm...
reside in the palaces of Bonde and Stenbock respectively. Some of the older Swedish Government Agencies, like the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency and the Chancellor of Justice
Chancellor of Justice
In some countries, the Chancellor of Justice is a government official responsible for supervising the lawfulness of government actions. The Chancellor does not have the power to strike down laws In some countries, the Chancellor of Justice is a government official responsible for supervising the...
, are also located on the island.
These anonymous institutions, together with the motorway Centralbron
Centralbron
Centralbron is one of the major traffic routes in central Stockholm, Sweden, connecting the northern district Norrmalm to the southern Södermalm....
which isolates the island from the rest of the city, make the island as a whole a lifeless and dull environment, despite ambitious restorations during the 1990s.
Origin of the name
The island is first mentioned as Kidaskär (literally "Kid Skerry" and thus indicating the islet was mostly used to graze goats) in the Eric ChroniclesEric Chronicles
Eric's Chronicle is the oldest surviving Swedish chronicle. It was written by an unknown author between about 1320 and 1335....
(Erikskrönikan) from around 1325, which recounts how King Magnus Ladulås
Magnus III of Sweden
Magnus III Ladulås of Sweden, Swedish: Magnus Birgersson or Magnus Ladulås was King of Sweden from 1275 until his death in 1290....
(1240–1290) had a Greyfriars
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
built on the island about 1270, asking to be buried in it in his will in 1285. During the Middle Ages, the original name disappeared from historical records to be substituted by Gråbrödraholm ("Grey Brothers islet"), Munckholmen ("Monk Islet"), and Gråmunkeholm ("Grey Monks Islet"), the latter being most commonly used until the 17th century. The monastery was, however, closed following the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
and subsequently converted into a church. Probably as consequence, the name was changed in the 1630s, the island being referred to as Riddarholmen, för detta Gråmunkeholm kallad ("Knight's Islet, formerly called Grey Monk's Islet") in 1638. The old name did persist however, so while Charles XI
Charles XI of Sweden
Charles XI also Carl, was King of Sweden from 1660 until his death, in a period in Swedish history known as the Swedish empire ....
(1655–1697) preferred the new name, his youngest daughter Ulrika Eleonora
Ulrika Eleonora of Sweden
Ulrika Eleonora or Ulrica Eleanor , also known as Ulrika Eleonora the Younger, was Queen regnant of Sweden from 5 December 1718 to 29 February 1720, and then Queen consort until her death....
(1688–1741) remained faithful to the old.
See also
- History of StockholmHistory of StockholmThe history of Stockholm, capital of Sweden, for many centuries coincided with the development of what is today known as Gamla stan, the Stockholm Old Town...
- Geography of StockholmGeography of StockholmThe City of Stockholm is situated on fourteen islands and on the banks to the archipelago where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic Sea. The city centre is virtually situated on the water.- Islands and islets :- Lakes and watercourses :...
- List of streets and squares in Gamla stan
- RiddarholmsbronRiddarholmsbronRiddarholmsbron is a bridge in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden, leading from the square Riddarhustorget on Stadsholmen to the smaller neighbouring island Riddarholmen.- Wooden bridges :...
- Hebbes BroHebbes BroHebbes Bro is a pedestrian bridge in Gamla stan, the old town of Stockholm, Sweden, connecting the two islands Riddarholmen and Stadsholmen....
- Birger Jarls torn