Description of the attraction
Medieval Riddarholm Church is the main burial place of Swedish monarchs. It is located on the eponymous island of Riddarholmen (translated as "Island of the Knights"), not far from the Stockholm Royal Palace. The congregation was disbanded in 1807 and today the church is used only for burials and memorial services, as well as a museum, historical monument and a place for exhibitions and other events. Swedish monarchs found their final resting place here, from Gustav Adolf (d. 1632) to Gustav V (d. 1950), except for Queen Christina, who rests in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. The earliest burials belong to Magnus III (d. 1290) and Charles VIII (d. 1470).
The building of the church is one of the oldest in Stockholm, some of its parts still survived, which date back to the end of the 13th century, when the Greyfriars Franciscan monastery was located here. After the Reformation, the monastery was closed and turned into a Protestant church.
The church consists of three naves, built in the Gothic style, but the brick building did not immediately acquire its modern appearance. The original design of the spire of the building was developed by Willem Boeh and erected to its rightful place during the reign of Johan III (1537-1592), however, already in 1835 it was destroyed by a lightning strike and was replaced by a cast-iron spire, which has survived to this day. It was during the reign of Johan III that the Riddarholm Church experienced the highest dawn and acquired its magnificent decoration.
Within the walls of the church you can see the coats of arms of the Knights of the Order of the Seraphim. If one of the knights of the order dies, then his coat of arms is hung in the church, and on the day of the funeral, the bell rings for an hour.
