Swedish political power had been centred around Mälaren for centuries, but it was forced to move to the lake's outlet when the rising land made navigation for large boats between the sea and lake impractical. Sweden's most important chieftain in the mid-13th century, Birger Jarl, ordered the construction of a fort on one of the strategically placed islets where the fresh water entered the sea, and traffic on the waterways was controlled using timber stocks arranged as a fence, or boom. Stockholm, meaning 'tree-trunk islet', may well be named after this boom.The oldest record of the city consists of two letters dating from 1252. Within a hundred years, Stockholm was the largest city in Sweden, dominated by an impregnable castle (which was never taken by force) and surrounded by a defensive wall. During the period of the Kalmar Union, the king's governor directed affairs from the castle. The city was periodically ravaged by fire until timber buildings with turf roofs were replaced with brick structures. By the late 15th century, the population was around 6000, and Stockholm had become a significant commercial centre. Shipping copper and iron to continental Europe was a lucrative trade that was dominated by German merchants.In 1471, the Danish King Christian I besieged Stockholm while attempting to quell the rebellious Sten Sture, but his 5000-strong army was routed by the Swedes just outside the city walls at the Battle of Brunkeberg (the fighting took place between what is now Vasagatan, Kungsgatan and Sergels Torg). Even after the Danish retreat to Copenhagen, trouble between unionists and separatists continued. Things escalated in 1520 when city burghers, bishops and nobility agreed to meet the Danish King Christian II in Stockholm, and the king arrested them all at a banquet. After a quick trial, the Swedes were found guilty of burning down the archbishop's castle near Sigtuna, and 82 men were beheaded the following day at Stortorget (the main square by the castle). This ghastly event became known as the 'Stockholm Blood Bath': heavy rain caused rivers of blood from the bodies to pour down steep alleys descending from the square.A major rebellion followed and Gustav Vasa finally entered the city in 1523 after a two-year siege. The new king then ruled the city with a heavy hand - though the role of commerce dwindled and the church was extinguished entirely, royal power grew and the city revolved around the court. Gustav's son Erik XIV (and later kings) racked up taxation on the burghers to fund wars. However, some did well from arms manufacture, and the city's importance as a military headquarters increased. At the end of the 16th century, Stockholm's population was 9000, but this expanded in the following century to 60,000 as the Swedish empire reached its greatest extent.In the 17th century, town planners laid out a street grid beyond the medieval city centre and Stockholm was proclaimed capital of Sweden in 1634. Famine wiped out 100,000 people across Sweden during the harsh winter of 1696-7, and starving hordes descended on the capital. The old royal castle (Tre Kronor) burned down, also in 1697. In 1711, plague arrived and the death rate soared to 1200 per day. After the death of King Karl XII, the country (and the capital) went into stagnation.In the 18th century, Swedish science and arts blossomed, allowing the creation of institutions and fine buildings. Another period of stagnation followed the assassination of King Gustav III; promised 19th-century reforms never arrived, and bloody street riots were common. Further town planning starting in the 1860s created many of the wide avenues and apartment blocks still to be seen today.

The city rapidly industrialised and expanded, and by 1915 it was home to 364,000 people. The 1912 summer Olympics were held in Stockholm. The next major transformation of the city started in the 1960s, when large 'new towns' sprung up around the outskirts and extensive areas of 'slums' were flattened to make way for concrete office blocks, motorways and other unsightly developments. The financial and construction boom of the 1980s helped make the city a very expensive place. Once that bubble burst during the 1990s recession, the devalued krona actually helped Stockholm - Swedish tourism grew, and foreign tourists arrived in ever-increasing numbers.

Since the country's entry into the European Union, Stockholm's progress towards becoming an affordable, vivacious tourist destination has continued apace. The easing of licensing restrictions on bars and restaurants, such as hours during which alcohol could be sold, type of alcohol sold and age of clientele, caused a huge increase in the number of licensed premises, helping create the vibrant Stockholm you see today.

Stockholm offers a great variety of activities for its taxpayers, and prices are subsidised. In summer, many people head for the coast and the islands with good swimming spots, or go picnicking in the parks. There are also indoor/open-air pools in the far south of Södermalm.

No true Scandinavian experience is complete without an understanding of its historical seafaring livelihood. Vasamuseet allows you to simultaneously look into the lives of 17th-century sailors and to appreciate a great achievement in marine archaeology. You'll need several hours to appreciate this amazing place.

Galärvarvsvägen 14

Western shore of Djurgården

Djurgården

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.vasamuseet.se

No serious traveller should miss the splendour of the Royal Park and its museums. The main attractions are Skansen and the extraordinary Vasa Museum (one of the world's top tourist destinations), but there are many other interesting places to visit in the vast park. Bikes can be rented by the bridge.

Djurgården

east of Gamla Stan and Skeppsholmen

Take the bus from Centralstationen, or the Djurgärden ferry services from Nybroplan or Slussen (frequent in summer). The vintage tram leaves from Norrmalmstorg.

While a museum dedicated to almost four centuries of Swedish postal history sounds positively mind-numbing, Stockholm's Post Museum is surprisingly engrossing, crammed with old mail carriages, a climb-aboard train carriage, offbeat postcards and a cute children's post office downstairs for budding postal workers. Previous temporary exhibitions have covered everything from the life of the Great Garbo to the kiss in art.

Lilla Nygatan 6

Gamla Stan

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.postmuseum.posten.se

Quite frankly, the Royal Armoury Museum is brilliant. A regal storage attic of sorts, its engrossing collection of booty spans over 500 years of royal childhoods, coronations, weddings and murders. Sneak a peek at lavish royal wardrobes, King Gustav III's masquerade costume (worn when shot in 1792) and the preserved stomach contents of Baron Bielke, one the conspirators to the king's assassination.

Slottsbakken 3

Kungliga Slottet

Gamla Stan

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.livrustkammaren.se

Sweden's largest art museum heaves with painting, sculpture, drawings, decorative arts and graphics from the Middle-Ages through to the present. While there's no lack of continental bigwigs here, from Cézanne to Watteau, come for the Scandi stuff, which includes works by CG Pilo, Anders Zorn and Carl Larsson, whose commissioned staircase fresco, Midwinter Sacrifice, was originally rejected by the museum. Style buffs shouldn't miss the Design 19002000 exhibition.

Södra Blasieholmshamnen

Östermalm

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.nationalmuseum.se

This down-to-earth drinking hole boasts 400 whiskeys, a huge selection of Belgian ales and a good range of Swedish-made microbrews, notably the semi-divine Jämtlands Bryggeri trio Heaven, Hell and Fallen Angel. It has mussels on the menu and free live R&B and rock on Sunday nights.

Hornsgatan 18

Södermalm

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.akkurat.se

This Cuban restaurant turns into a crowded salsa bar at night, with limber-legged Swedes and latinos intermingling over mojitos and cuba libres in the basement. Nothing will get you through a long winters night better than a fat Cohiba, a large ron and some Cuban rhythms.

Sveavägen 108

Vasastan

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.lahabana.se

open hours:17:00-01:00

Fasching turns Swedish sobriety on its head with kick-ass jazz, swing and tango jams from local and international cool cats. Late Friday nights, it all makes way for DJ-spun reggae at club night Club Studio One (100; from midnight to 04:00), while Saturday club night Soul (100; from midnight to 04:00) is a funkalicious mix of retro R&B, soul jazz, disco and funk.

Kungsgatan 63

Norrmalm

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.fasching.se

High ceilings, wood-panelling and no-nonsense waiters in waistcoats set the scene for classic husmanskost (traditional Swedish fare) at this century-old beer hall. The superb menu includes an assortment of herring and cheeses and superbly roasted spare-ribs served with red cabbage and apple puree. Add huge beer glasses and you're set for an epic toast to Sverige.

Blekingegatan 40

Södermalm

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.pelikan.se

The menu at this kvarterskrog (neighbourhood bar) features Swedish and continental choices, including vegetarian. The Swedish country sausage called isterband, served over potatoes in a cream sauce, is a favourite dish here. Prices are lower in the 'Propeller bakfickan', so called because John Ericsson, after whom the street is named, invented the propeller.

John Ericssonsgatan 6

Kungsholmen

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.salzer.nu

open hours:17:00-01:00

Set in the opera house and appropriately crammed with opera photographs and deco-style lampshades, this buzzing counter restaurant is famed for its savvy old-school waiters and top-notch husmanskost; Bakfickan shares a kitchen with super-swank Operakällaren. A great place for solo supping, it's best late at night, when you're bound to stumble across a bitching soprano.

Jakobs Torg 10

Norrmalm

Operahuset

telephone or fax: 

Web: http://www.operakallaren.se

While in Stockholm, have a drink at the Ice Bar, where the ceiling, floor, walls, tables and glassware are all made of ice. Warm jackets, gloves and boots are provided. But be careful when dancing: you could melt something.

Stockholm's Arlanda airport is 45km (28mi) north of the city centre. Skyways and SAS have comprehensive networks of domestic flights. International air services to Copenhagen, Oslo, Bergen, Helsinki, Reykjavik and St Petersburg are run by SAS. Finnair flies to Turku, Vaasa and Tampere, and there are around 15 flights per day to Helsinki. British Airways, Air France, KLM and Lufthansa also have regular European services. Long-distance buses use Cityterminalen, next to Centralstationen. Here you'll find the Busstop ticket office, which represents the big lines such as Swebus Express, Eurolines, Svenska Buss and the cheaper Säfflebussen, along with many of the direct buses to the north. Stockholm is the hub for national services run by Sveriges Järnväg (SJ). Direct trains to/from Copenhagen, Osla, Storlien (for Trondheim) and Narvik arrive and depart from Centralstationen (Stockholm C), as do the SL pendeltåg commuter sevices that run to/from Nynäshamn, Södertälje and Märsta. Silja Line ferries depart for Helsinki and Turku from Värtahamnen. Viking Line ferries sail to Turku and Helsinki from the terminal at Tegelvikshamn. Rail passes give a 50% discount on these services.

Sweden has an extensive railway network, and trains are certainly the fastest way to get around. There are four long-distance train operators in Sweden, but the national network of Sveriges Järnväg covers most of the main lines. Exceptions are the overnight trains from Stockholm to Boden and Narvik, and the summer-only line from Boden to Haparanda, run by Tågkompaniet. Several counties run regional länstrafik train networks.Driving in central Stockholm is not recommended; traffic is chaotic and fuel and parking are expensive. Illegally parked cars will get a fine; those deemed dangerous will be towed more than 17km (10.5mi) out of town at the owner's expense.Taxis can be hailed from the kerb and are easy to find on busy streets or in front of bars at closing time. Cabs that are on duty have a lit 'taxi' sign on their roof. Most drivers speak at least some English, but if your Swedish is shaky it helps to have an address written down.Sweden is a flat country, and it's ideal for cycling (from May to September at least). Cycling is an excellent way to look for points of interest in and around Stockholm, such as prehistoric sites, rune stones, parish churches and quiet spots for free camping.