Vaxholm
Encyclopedia
Vaxholm is a locality
and the seat of Vaxholm Municipality
, Stockholm County
, Sweden
. It is located in the Stockholm archipelago
. The name Vaxholm comes from Vaxholm Castle
, which was constructed in 1549 on an islet with this name on the inlet to Stockholm, for defense purposes, by King Gustav Vasa.
For historical reasons it has always been referred to as a city, despite the small number of inhabitants, which as of 2010 total was 4,857. Vaxholm Municipality prefers to use the designation Vaxholms stad (City of Vaxholm) for its whole territory, including 64 islets in the Stockholm archipelago
, a usage which is somehow confusing.
. It later received rights as a merchant town (köping
) and in 1652 was granted the Royal Charter
. The designated coat of arms reminds of the fortifications as well as shipping industry.
During the 19th century, it hardly expanded. In the 1880s, it became a popular spa town, and many wooded summer houses were built by people from Stockholm
.
It was not until 1912 that it allowed houses to be built from materials other than wood, giving the town a distinctive appearance.
Urban areas in Sweden
Urban area is a common English translation of the Swedish term tätort. The official term in English, used by Statistics Sweden, is, however, locality. There are 1,940 localities in Sweden . They could be compared with census-designated places in the United States.A tätort in Sweden has a minimum of...
and the seat of Vaxholm Municipality
Vaxholm Municipality
Vaxholm Municipality is a municipality within Stockholm archipelago in Stockholm County in east central Sweden. The municipal slogan is "Vaxholm – the capital of the archipelago", due to its central location in the archipelago...
, Stockholm County
Stockholm County
Stockholm County is a county or län on the Baltic sea coast of Sweden. It borders Uppsala County and Södermanland County. It also borders Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. The city of Stockholm is the capital of Sweden. Stockholm County is divided by the historic provinces of Uppland and Södermanland...
, 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....
. It is located in the Stockholm archipelago
Stockholm archipelago
The Stockholm archipelago is the largest archipelago of Sweden, and one of the largest archipelagos of the Baltic Sea.-Geography:The archipelago extends from Stockholm roughly 60 kilometers to the east...
. The name Vaxholm comes from Vaxholm Castle
Vaxholm Castle
Vaxholm Castle sits on an island just east of the Swedish village of Vaxholm.The Castle was originally constructed by Gustav Vasa in 1544 to defend Stockholm against shipborne attacks from the east, but most of the current structure dates from 1833-1863. Russian prisoners-of-war were used in part...
, which was constructed in 1549 on an islet with this name on the inlet to Stockholm, for defense purposes, by King Gustav Vasa.
For historical reasons it has always been referred to as a city, despite the small number of inhabitants, which as of 2010 total was 4,857. Vaxholm Municipality prefers to use the designation Vaxholms stad (City of Vaxholm) for its whole territory, including 64 islets in the Stockholm archipelago
Stockholm archipelago
The Stockholm archipelago is the largest archipelago of Sweden, and one of the largest archipelagos of the Baltic Sea.-Geography:The archipelago extends from Stockholm roughly 60 kilometers to the east...
, a usage which is somehow confusing.
History
The town of Vaxholm was established in 1558, when King Gustav Vasa bought some farms from Count Per Brahe (the elder)Per Brahe (the elder)
Per Brahe the elder was a Swedish statesman.Brahe was the nephew of King Gustavus Vasa and was among the first members of the Swedish nobility to be created a count when titles of nobility were introduced by King Eric XIV on the occasion of his coronation in 1561. Count Peter's county was...
. It later received rights as a merchant town (köping
Köping
This article deals with the Swedish denomination for a market town. For the city, see Köping, Sweden. For the municipality, see Köping Municipality....
) and in 1652 was granted the Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
. The designated coat of arms reminds of the fortifications as well as shipping industry.
During the 19th century, it hardly expanded. In the 1880s, it became a popular spa town, and many wooded summer houses were built by people from 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...
.
It was not until 1912 that it allowed houses to be built from materials other than wood, giving the town a distinctive appearance.
External links
- Vaxholm - Official site
- Photo gallery - Recent pictures of Vaxholm's surroundings
- Foto panorámica de Vaxholm - Foto panorámica de Vaxholm article Vaxholm from Nordisk FamiljebokNordisk familjebokNordisk familjebok is a Swedish encyclopedia, published between 1876 and 1957.- History :The first edition was published in 20 volumes between 1876 and 1899. The first edition is known as the "Iðunn edition" because of the picture of Iðunn on the cover...
