Book description
Situated on Lake Malaren on one of the world's most beautiful harbours,
Stockholm has set the benchmark for civilized city-living since the time
of the Vikings. Its medieval regal period saw the Vasa dynasty turn a
small town in the shadow of Uppsala into the capital city of a dominant
power in Europe and a major trading port. In the Napoleonic era
Stockholm readjusted its priorities to establish itself as a centre of
innovation, technical and social. While the city has suffered more than
its fair share of disasters, Stockholm's cultural and commercial elite
transformed it into a community which welcomed innovation and spread the
fruits of its achievements far beyond its borders. From its celebrated
Old Town, dating from the Middle Ages, to its Art Nouveau and modern
quarters, Stockholm is a city rich in museums, theatres and landmarks.
Tony Griffiths explores the Swedish capital, old and new, revealing a
city of unexpected contradictions. CITY OF POWER, INTRIGUE AND MURDER:
Gustav Vasa, Queen Christina and Voltaire; murder at a Masked Ball, Olaf
Palme s assassination; Lindh, social democracy and armed neutrality; the
rights of women and the impact of immigration CITY OF SCIENTISTS AND
INVENTORS: Linnaeus and Nobel; Ericsson and new technology; Laval,
Wenner-Gren and Kamprad. SENSUAL CITY: Strindberg, Greta Garbo, Ingrid
and Ingmar Bergman; sculptors and painters; home of the smorgasbord; the
church, lust and the alcohol monopoly. Situated on Lake Malaren on one
of the world's most beautiful harbours, Stockholm has set the benchmark
for civilized city-living since the time of the Vikings. Its medieval
regal period saw the Vasa dynasty turn a small town in the shadow of
Uppsala into the capital city of a dominant power in Europe and a major
trading port. In the Napoleonic era Stockholm readjusted its priorities
to establish itself as a centre of innovation, technical and social.
While the city has suffered more than its fair share of disasters,
Stockholm's cultural and commercial elite transformed it into a
community which welcomed innovation and spread the fruits of its
achievements far beyond its borders. From its celebrated Old Town,
dating from the Middle Ages, to its Art Nouveau and modern quarters,
Stockholm is a city rich in museums, theatres and landmarks. Tony
Griffiths explores the Swedish capital, old and new, revealing a city of
unexpected contradictions. CITY OF POWER, INTRIGUE AND MURDER: Gustav
Vasa, Queen Christina and Voltaire; murder at a Masked Ball, Olaf Palme
s assassination; Lindh, social democracy and armed neutrality; the
rights of women and the impact of immigration CITY OF SCIENTISTS AND
INVENTORS: Linnaeus and Nobel; Ericsson and new technology; Laval,
Wenner-Gren and Kamprad. SENSUAL CITY: Strindberg, Greta Garbo, Ingrid
and Ingmar Bergman; sculptors and painters; home of the smorgasbord; the
church, lust and the alcohol monopoly.
