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Sigtuna
 
 
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Geography Sigtuna is situated at the bay Skarven, stretching around Upplands-Bro and a part of Lake MälarenMälaren

br>Mlaren is the third largest lake in Sweden, after lakes Vnern and Vttern....
.
History
Sigtuna was founded on what was then the shore of Lake Mälaren just over 1,000 years ago. It took its name from an ancient royal estate (see Uppsala ödUppsala öd

Uppsala ?d, Old Norse: Uppsala au?r or Uppsala ??r was the name given to the collection of estates which was the pro...
) several kilometers to the west (see FornsigtunaFornsigtuna

Fornsigtuna, Old Sigtun, Sithun, Signildsberg or Signesberg is located in the parish of Håtuna ca 4 km west ...
). Various sources claim King Eric the Victorious as founder while others claim King Olof SkötkonungOlof of Sweden

Olof of Sweden or Olof Sktkonung/Skottkonung was the son of Eric the Victorious and Sigrid the Haughty....
.

It operated as a royal and commercial centre for some 250 years, and was one of the most important cities of Sweden. During a brief period at the end of the 10th10th century

As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000....
 and beginning of the 11th century11th century

As a means of recording the passage of time, the 11th century was that century which lasted from 1001 to 1100....
, Sweden's first coins were minted here. The old church built in the 13th century by the Dominican orderDominican Order Overview

The Order of Preachers , more commonly known as the Dominican Order, or Dominicans is a Catholic religious order...
 at the monastery still remains, and has had few restorations.






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Timeline

1187   Destruction of Sigtuna - archbishop is killed






Encyclopedia


Geography

Sigtuna is situated at the bay Skarven, stretching around Upplands-Bro and a part of Lake MälarenMälaren

br>Mlaren is the third largest lake in Sweden, after lakes Vnern and Vttern....
.

History


Sigtuna was founded on what was then the shore of Lake Mälaren just over 1,000 years ago. It took its name from an ancient royal estate (see Uppsala ödUppsala öd

Uppsala ?d, Old Norse: Uppsala au?r or Uppsala ??r was the name given to the collection of estates which was the pro...
) several kilometers to the west (see FornsigtunaFornsigtuna

Fornsigtuna, Old Sigtun, Sithun, Signildsberg or Signesberg is located in the parish of Håtuna ca 4 km west ...
). Various sources claim King Eric the Victorious as founder while others claim King Olof SkötkonungOlof of Sweden

Olof of Sweden or Olof Sktkonung/Skottkonung was the son of Eric the Victorious and Sigrid the Haughty....
.

It operated as a royal and commercial centre for some 250 years, and was one of the most important cities of Sweden. During a brief period at the end of the 10th10th century

As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000....
 and beginning of the 11th century11th century

As a means of recording the passage of time, the 11th century was that century which lasted from 1001 to 1100....
, Sweden's first coins were minted here. The old church built in the 13th century by the Dominican orderDominican Order Overview

The Order of Preachers , more commonly known as the Dominican Order, or Dominicans is a Catholic religious order...
 at the monastery still remains, and has had few restorations. The Dominican monastery played an important role in the Swedish Middle Ages and produced many important Church officials. Among them, many Swedish archbishopArchbishop of Uppsala Overview

The Archbishop of Uppsala has been the primate in Sweden in an unbroken succession since 1164, first during the Catholic era...
s. Many church and monastery ruins still stand, and the old city structure has not been remodelled, as happened in many Swedish cities during the 1800s and 1900s.

In 1187 Sigtuna was attacked by Baltic-Finnish raiders from KareliaKarelia

Karelia is the land of the Karelian and Finnish peoples and is a vast inhabited area in Northern Europe of historical signif...
, Couronia or EstoniaEstonia

Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia , is a country in Northern Europe....
. Among the casualties of this raid was the Swedish archbishop JohannesJohannes (archbishop of Uppsala)

Johannes was the second Archbishop of Uppsala, Sweden....
. It remained occupied for some time. This contributed to the diminishing of its commercial importance in the 13th century, in favor of UppsalaUppsala

Uppsala is a Swedish City in central Sweden, located about 70 km north of Stockholm....
, VisbyVisby

Visby is the largest city on the Swedish island of Gotland;it is arguably the best-preserved medieval town in Scandinavia, a...
, KalmarKalmar

Kalmar is a city in Småland in south east Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea....
 and StockholmStockholm Overview

Stockholm is the capital of Sweden, and consequently the site of its Government and Parliament as well as the residence of ...
.

The current coat of armsCoat of arms

A coat of arms or armorial bearings , in European tradition, is a design belonging to a particular person and used by...
 can be traced to the city's first known sealSeal (device)

A seal is an impression printed on, embossed upon, or affixed to a document in order to authenticate it, in lieu of or in a...
, dating from 1311. According to a legend (possibly inspired by the city arms) Sigtuna was once the Royal seat, but this can not be confirmed. The crown may also symbolize the large royal mintMint (coin)

A mint is a facility which manufactures coins for currency....
 which was located in the city. The coat of arms is since 1971 valid for the much larger Sigtuna MunicipalitySigtuna Municipality

Sigtuna Municipality is a Municipality in central Sweden, just north of Stockholm, being a part of Metropolitan Stockholm....
.

In the late 19th century, it still only hosted about 600 people, and was the smallest city in Sweden. The city remained insignificant until the second half of the 20th century. Much of the population growth can be related to Arlanda Airport, situated some 10 km from Sigtuna.

Twin Cities

RakvereRakvere

Rakvere is a town in North Estonia, county seat of Lne-Viru County, 20 km south of the Gulf of Finland....
, EstoniaEstonia Overview

Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia , is a country in Northern Europe....

See also

  • Sigtunaskolan Humanistiska LäroverketFacts About Sigtunaskolan Humanistiska Läroverket

    Sigtunaskolan Humanistiska L?roverket is a Swedish boarding school located in Sigtuna, Sweden....
    , a famous boarding school.
  • The replica of the Swedish city of Sigtuna,

External links

  • - Official site