Vaxholm

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Panorama

Scenery from Vaxholm

Vaxholm Castle

Vaxholm is a town in the Stockholm archipelago in central Sweden. It has 4,900 inhabitants and is the seat of Vaxholm Municipality.

The name Vaxholm comes from the Vaxholm Fortress, 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 traded to him 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.