an important city in the north of Europe, the capital of Sweden, occupying a fine position on the strait that connects Lake Malar with the Baltic, about 36 miles from the sea by water, 380 miles N.E. of Copenhagen, and 440 W.S.W. of St Petersburg; N. Lat. 59° 20'; E. Lon. 18° 3'. It has been called the Venice of the north; and there is some reason for the appellation from the similarity of its situation, partly on the mainland and partly on several small islands. Though inferior in general effect to that beautiful Italian city, Stockholm presents from some points a very imposing aspect; and the natural beauties of its environs far surpass those of Venice. It consists of three parts; the city proper, occupying three islands, which are so united as to form to all appearance but one; the northern suburb, Norrmalm, and the southern suburb, Södermalm, which stand on the mainland on either side of the strait. The islands are known by the name of Holms, those on which the city proper is built are Stockholm (the Castle Island), or Staden (the City), which is the largest of the three; Riddarholm (Knight's Island), to the west; and Helgeandsholm (Holy Ghost Island), to the north. There are also several other islands, covered in whole or in part with buildings; such as Kungsholm (King's Island), to the west of the northern suburb; Blasieholmen, which has been converted into a peninsula; Skeppsholmen, (Ship Island), and Kastellholmen (Castle Island), all lying to the east of the city proper. All of these subdivisions of the city are connected with the mainland, and with one another by numerous bridges, the finest of which is the new bridge of granite, from the city proper to the northern suburb. On the mainland to the north the ground rises gradually as it recedes from the water, while to the south the cliffs are more bold and abrupt, and many of the houses nestle amid overshadowing trees in the various ledges of the rocks. Although the ground on which a great part of Stockholm is built is hard and rocky, yet all the lower portions of the city are founded on piles. The streets, espe- Stockholm, cially in the city proper, which is the oldest portion, are very narrow and irregular; though in the other parts of the town and suburbs, more attention is paid to straightness and uniformity, yet even there they are of no great width. The houses in the city are in general built of stone; those in the suburbs of brick, and in the more remote portions sometimes only of wood. There are several public squares and market-places; some of them of considerable size. The public buildings are numerous, but most of them are not very remarkable. By far the largest and finest of these is the palace, which occupies the northern part of the Staden Island, and is conspicuous for its immense size and slightly elevated position. It was begun in 1697 and completed in 1753, after the designs of Count Tessin; and from whatever point it is viewed it presents an aspect imposing from its simple and massive grandeur. The lowest story is of granite, the rest of brick covered with stucco. Its form is quadrangular, with two projecting wings towards the north-east. The finest front is that facing south-east, which has a portico of six Corinthian columns. On the north-west it is approached by the new bridge leading from the northern suburb; and on the north-east, where it faces a spacious quay, there is between the two wings a terrace beautifully laid out as a flower-garden. The palace contains a picture gallery, sculpture gallery, royal museum, royal library of about 70,000 volumes, cabinets of antiquities, &c. The chapel is profusely decorated, but not in very good taste. The royal apartments occupy the northeast side of the quadrangle, and are approached by a fine staircase. The royal wardrobe and armory, containing many suits of armour and of clothes which belonged to former monarchs and famous men, has been removed to a large building in the Gustavus Adolphus market, in the northern suburb; and the royal stables, which can accommodate 146 horses, stand on the Helgeandsholm. South of the palace is an esplanade, called the Slottssbacken, in which stand a tall granite obelisk, and a bronze statue of Gustavus III. Here also is the Cathedral of St Nicholas, the most ancient church in Stockholm, whose lofty tower has a very picturesque effect. In the interior there are two large pictures, and an altar-piece richly carved in ebony, and adorned with ivory, gold, and silver. Much more interesting is the Riddarholms Church, on the island of that name. It is an old Gothic building, but has been considerably altered by various additions and restorations, and it is now only used as a royal mausoleum. The aspect of the interior is very impressive, but quite different at first sight from that of a church. All round the walls there are equestrian figures, clothed in complete suits of armour, worn by the several sovereigns of Sweden. The figures are eleven in all: one is clothed in the heavy armour of Birger Jarl, the founder of Stockholm; another wears the helmet of Charles VIII., with a visor in the form of a man's face; and a third, a richly wrought suit of armour, said to have been made by Benevenuto Cellini for Charles IX. In a side chapel of this church is the tomb of Gustavus Adolphus, surrounded by a multitude of flags and other trophies of his victories. Here are also preserved the clothes that he wore when killed on the field of Lützen. Opposite to this is another chapel, containing the remains of Charles XII., in a marble tomb; and here also are to be seen the cloak and hat worn by the hero in the trench before Frederickshald, the latter pierced by the bullet that terminated his existence. Many other Swedish monarchs lie in the vaults of this church, and among their tombs not the least interesting is that of Bernadotte or Charles XIV. Many noble and distinguished Swedes, not of royal lineage, are interred in this church; and the shields of the knights of the seraphim are hung round the choir.

Of the other churches in Stockholm, of which there are 20, none are very remarkable; in one of them, that of

Adolphus Frederick, there is a monument to Descartes, who died at the Swedish court. The Riddarhus, or house of assembly for the nobles, is a plain and not very elegant structure, with many interesting historical associations. The hall of the assembly is hung round with the escutcheons of the nobility, and contains a president's chair, of fine Dutch workmanship in ebony and ivory. Stockholm has two theatres, one of which is a large and handsome building in the northern suburb, opposite the palace. Beside this building is the square of Gustavus Adolphus, containing a fine bronze statue of that monarch. The principal other public buildings are the governor's house, the town-hall, exchange, post-office, arsenal, and barracks. On the Skeppsholm stand most of the buildings connected with the admiralty. The educational institutions of the city are numerous, including a medical college, technological institution, naval and military schools, and several others. There are numerous scientific, literary, and artistic societies; and many hospitals, infirmaries, and other charitable establishments. Stockholm is the chief seat of the manufacturing industry of Sweden; it produces metal fabrics, silk, woollen cloth, hosiery, cotton, linen, sugar, tobacco, &c. There are here, too, a porcelain manufactory and numerous printing-presses, and many mathematical and optical instruments are prepared. The southern suburb, which is occupied chiefly by tradespeople, contains an immense iron magazine, and a large dock. The trade of the city is very considerable. The chief articles of export are—iron of various kinds, steel, copper, lead, grain, timber, leather, oil-cakes, and butter. Among the imported goods are—coals, cotton, wool, raw silk, coffee, sugar, spices, tea, wine, and spirits, &c. The following table exhibits the total declared value of the exports and imports of Stockholm for several years from 1851 to 1857:

| Year | Imports | Exports | |------|---------|---------| | 1851 | £948,844 | £533,508 | | 1853 | 831,432 | 548,692 | | 1855 | 1,412,518 | 769,575 | | 1856 | 1,829,380 | 629,466 | | 1857 | 1,295,568 | 615,502 |

In 1857 the exports and imports were distributed among different nations, as follows:

| Country | Imports | Exports | |------------------|---------|---------| | Great Britain and colonies | £209,846 | £175,026 | | Hanse Towns | 306,634 | 92,732 | | Russia | 224,672 | 80,900 | | Prussia | 109,292 | 72,254 | | Brazil | 137,886 | 12,627 | | France and Algiers | 41,672 | 53,722 | | Denmark | 37,088 | 46,957 | | Other countries | 177,848 | 153,747 |

Total | £1,295,568 | £615,502 |

There are more than 200 vessels belonging to the port of Stockholm. In 1856 the number that entered was 17,111, with an aggregate tonnage of 196,350; the number that cleared, 1662; tonnage, 171,740. The harbour is somewhat difficult of entrance, but very large and excellent; the quays are spacious, and the largest vessels can lie close to them. Numerous steamers ply between Stockholm and Lubeck, Stettin, St Petersburg, and other places. In the environs of the city there are many beautiful and much frequented parks and promenades. One of the finest of these is the Djurgård, or deer-park, which occupies an island to the east of the city, and is easily accessible by ferry-boats. In this park stands the palace of Rosendal, built by Bernadotte; and there are here also many theatres, ball-rooms, and coffee-houses. The Ladugårdsång, or review-ground, lies to the north of this, across a narrow arm of the sea; the Haga Park, to the north-west of the city, is another favourite resort; as also is the park of Carlsgården, which contains a favourite palace of Charles XII., now occupied by the military academy. At a somewhat greater distance from Stockholm there are several other royal and baronial residences, occupying beautiful situations on the islands or shores of Lake Malar. Stockholm was founded about the year 1260, by Birger Jarl, who made it his residence. But even before this time the site had been occupied; Odin had built here the city Signtuna, which flourished for several centuries before the introduction of Christianity; but is now entirely perished, save a few scattered ruins. It was near this site, also, that the first Christian colony was settled in Sweden; but their abodes also have almost entirely perished. Stockholm was strongly fortified, and sustained several sieges. One of the most memorable of these took place in 1501 and 1502, when it was held for nearly six months by Queen Christina of Denmark against the Swedish insurgents, but was at last surrendered after the garrison had been reduced from about 1000 to 80 in number. A still more noble defence of the city was made in 1520, by Christina Gyllenstierna against Christian II., of Denmark. It was surrendered after a siege of four months; but the terms of the surrender were violated soon after by the conqueror ordering the execution of all the most distinguished Swedes in the town. This and similar acts of treachery and cruelty led to the final expulsion of the Danes by Gustavus Vasa. It was not till the seventeenth century that Stockholm became the capital of Sweden, Upsala having previously to that time enjoyed that distinguished honour. Pop. (1859) 101,502.