Vaxholm

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Vaxholm


image_caption =
pushpin_

subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = Sweden
subdivision_type1 = Municipality
subdivision_name1 = Vaxholm Municipality
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Stockholm County
subdivision_type3 = Province
subdivision_name3 = Uppland
area_footnotes = cite web |title=Tätorternas landareal, folkmängd och invånare per km² 2000 och 2005 |publisher=Statistics Sweden |url=http://www.scb.se/statistik/MI/MI0810/2005A01B/T%E4torternami0810tab1.xls |format=xls |language=Swedish |accessdate=2008-05-15]
area_total_km2 = 1.6
population_as_of = 2005-12-31
population_footnotes =
population_total = 4,817
population_density_km2 = 3003
timezone = CET
utc_offset = +1
timezone_DST = CEST
utc_offset_DST = +2
latd=59 |latm=25 |lats= |latNS=N
longd=18 |longm=19 |longs= |longEW=E
website =

Vaxholm is a town in the Stockholm archipelago in central Sweden. It has 4,887 inhabitants and is the seat of Vaxholm Municipality.

Vaxholm is, despite its small population, for historical reasons normally still referred to as a "city". According to Statistics Sweden, however, only localities with more than 10,000 inhabitants are counted as cities. Furthermore 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.

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.

The town Vaxholm was established in 1558, when King Gustav Vasa bought some farms from Count Per Brahe (the elder). 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.

Not until 1912 was it allowed to build houses from materials other than wood, giving the town a distinctive character.

Population figures

* 1762: circa 600
* 1810: 987
* 1815: 1,077
* 1840: 921
* 1917: 3,322
* 2006: 4,887 [http://www.vaxholm.se/turism/eng/index.asp] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaxholm_Municipality]

References

External links

* [http://www.vaxholm.se/ Vaxholm] - Official site
* [http://www.vaxholm.se/turism/eng/index.asp Vaxholm official tourism] In Swedish, English and German
* [http://euge.smugmug.com/gallery/2620352 Photo gallery] - Recent pictures of Vaxholm's surroundings
*sv icon [http://runeberg.org/nfck/0488.html article "Vaxholm"] from Nordisk Familjebok