Stockholm has escaped looting and natural disasters, but the city's major scourges have been fires, which in the worst cases have wiped out entire neighborhoods. The population of Stockholm has historically lived in constant fear of fire breaking out. It was a legitimate fear, because the risk of fires in the 16th and 17th century Swedish cities was great. The question was not whether it would burn, but when.[1]
The night watch as every citizen was obliged to stay there well into the 19th century. The worst fire in the history of Stockholm was Clara Brandenburg in 1751, which turned into a firestorm and spread from Riddarfjärden to Södermalm.
Only through fire retardant buildings, organized fire services, better fire fighting equipment and running water from fire hydrants (after 1861) could fires be reduced and maintained. However, among all the misery that large fires caused in Stockholm, there were also benefits, such as the planning and marketing of new districts through the construction of new neighborhoods and streets which were constructed after the fires' destruction.[2]
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Even during the medieval period, the city laws had regulations to prevent the occurrence of fires. In 1661, Stockholm produced its first fire regime. The house's host was required to "let give cry", and so start screaming to indicate that there was burning in the house.[3] The city was divided into districts headed by fire chiefs, and building owners were required to have some fire equipment. For example, in summer the house portal would be filled with water barrels.[4]
Come fire loose rang church bells and the care tower (watch tower) on Brunk Hill was squeezed and hoisted different signals. In Skeppsholmen, there was a case where there was a fire on salute batteries, where a certain number of cannon shots alerted the people in the town that it was burning. In a decree of December 18, 1728 a series of measures was established to provide a warning of a fire. The sighting of unusual smoke would be immediately alerted to the master or mistress (otherwise it was fine), which would then be passed on to the churches to see if they agreed with the tower guardian. In such a case, in every neighborhood in which there would be fire at night, this system would alert the watchmen in the towers. Later, they used the particular church bells, flags and cannon shots to warn of a fire. A fire at Södermalm required two signals. At Norrmalm, Kungsholmen and Blasieholmen three signals were used. The Old Town had four, and on the island of Djurgården five rings were sounded.[5][6][7]
In 1731, a solid brandvaktskår was established, the precursor to the Stockholm fire. The Fire Union was funded by the city treasury and also patrolled at night, but the "care" or night-watch that every citizen was required to keep went well into the 19th century.[8]
In 1746, the Swedish insurance company Brandcontoiret was established in Stockholm. It supported the city's fire safety through grants to include water and better insurance policy for stone. In 1828, the city's public Stood Fire Company was founded. The company's board had its seat in the Ship's Bridge 20.
In 1875, a new fire regime appeared in Stockholm, which for the first time possessed a professional fire department. Stockholm would have seven fire stations and two main stations, one in Norrmalm and one in Södermalm.[7] Before this there was certainly eldsläckningsmanskap, but it was male volunteers who put out the fires. Instead of earlier times knell set fire telegraphs.
Stockholm has been hit by many large fires, one of the oldest documented fires ravaging the city on April 14, 1297. The years 1330, 1344, 1407, 1411, 1419, 1445, 1458 and 1495 saw the city ravaged by major fires. The fire of Brandenburg in 1407 was caused by a lightning strike and is alleged by some sources to have claimed up to 1600 casualties.[9] This fire destroyed many areas including the Black Friars' Monastery of Stockholm.
After the year 1501 there were no wooden houses built inside the city walls. In 1552 the ban against fire hazards within the city was tightened so that the wooden houses in the town center were to be demolished and replaced with stone. However, there was still flammable wooden buildings such as outhouses and sheds left in the yard.[10]
In 1555 there was a fire on Stadsholmen's west side outside the new city wall and all the houses from the Great Gråmunkegränd to Kornhamnstorg burned to the ground. They caught fire in pitch at the newly built fort along the shore. This meant that they had to run to the east side of Stadsholmen to collect water to extinguish the fire.[11]
Among the first fires which took place prior to the city plan changes on a large scale was the Great Fire in 1625 that devastated the southwestern parts of Stadsholmen. The fire broke out in the evening of September 1, 1625 in a house along the bottom at Kåkbrinken and reached all the way up to West Long Street stone house and for some time the German church was under threat. The fire lasted three days and destroyed a fifth of the infrastructure of Stockholm at the time.[12]
The result was that a new city was built over the burnt areas. Eventually the fire was extinguished, sparing parts of northwestern Stadsholmen. Here was built the city's first main street called Great King Street (now Stora Nygatan). The transformation is considered to be Stockholm's first settlement. Another consequence of the fire disaster was a tightening of the fire prevention measures which meant that the fire chief and master of rotation would inspect chimneys and brädtak and ensure that the houses had the mandatory fire fighting equipment.[13]
After a fire in 1642 that devastated the eastern part of Brunkebergsåsen and destroyed 247 houses, the city planned that part of Government Street would become the main street. It was the beginning of street regulation during Clas Larsson Fleming in the neighborhood that is now called Östermalm. To help prevent fire spread, stringent rules were created to put pressure on land owners to build stone houses rather than the more flammable wooden ones.[14]
An internationally infamous large fire was the Castle fire of 1697. This great fire occurred in May 7, 1697, when the old Tre Kronor was totally destroyed in the fire, except for the castle in the newly constructed north wing. Most of Sweden's former national archives and the royal library were destroyed. The palace architect Nicodemus Tessin the Younger was able to design a brand new Royal Palace.
Despite all precautions and new regulations, large fires continued to occur in Stockholm. Around 200 houses burned down in Norrmalm in 1719, while the Catherine Brandenburg fire in 1723 destroyed 500 houses[7] as well as other buildings and Catherine's Church on Södermalm.[15] On the night of May 1, 1723 a fire went loose in a mill in the Maria church and spread eastward, the result being that the Catherine Church dome and the tower collapsed.[7]
Cathy Brandenburg in 1723 was not the only church which caught fire in that year. During the night between the 14th and 15 May, a violent storm raged over Stockholm. Lightning struck St. Jacob's Church (today the King's Garden) and Clara Church. Jacob's Church tower was burned and destroyed while Clara Church received minor damages.[7]
The worst fire that Stockholm bore and survived was a fire in 1751 which developed into a firestorm and spread from Riddarfjärden to Södermalm. 221 houses were completely destroyed and Klara Church was badly damaged. The fire started in 1746. Brandcontoiret in Stockholm intended to pay about 784,000 dollars in insurance money, but it lacked the funds to cover the full amount. Only some of the affected home owners had insured their house, so the total cost of the fire was significantly higher than that of Brandcontoiret estimated sum. One person who was hit hard by the fire was rock scientist and mineralogist Daniel Tilas . His house was completely destroyed in the disaster. The fire demolished not only his home but also the materials that he gathered during 20 years of work and that would have been a Swedish and a global mineral history collection. His life's work had gone up in smoke. There was panic in the population that the fire was deliberately set, by namely one suspected arsonist.[16]
In 1759 the city was hit again by a fire disaster that had the same extent as Clara Brandenburg eight years earlier. Mary Brandenburg in 1759 in the Maria parish in Södermalm destroyed 300 houses and the Maria Magdalena church. The fire broke out on July 19, 1759 in a bakery at a fishmonger in the appellate Hill (currently Brännkyrkagatan) at Mary Hill. At the time there was a severe drought and the absence of extinction. Fire officers were advised to act logical, and it was decided not to extinguish the house that burned down, but to "counter-fire with a vengeance" further away.[11]
Due to the fact that more and more houses were built in stone; that fire was no more used for heating, lighting and cooking; and as a professional fire department was created, large urban fires ceased in the late 19th century.[17] However the fires in individual buildings such as palaces, factories and churches were still part of ordinariness.
The 19th century began with a fierce fire, the Riddarholm fire which ravaged Riddarholmen on November 15, 1802. The fire started early in the morning in the Administrative Court's old house (Cruuska palace) and was caused by a guard master's negligent use of fuel. The fire quickly spread to the southern side of the house and even lit the roof of the old King's House (Wrangel Palace). The fire destroyed many antiques including the nearly 300-year-old woodcut Blood Carlsbad painting that was stored in the Administrative Services Archives of Wrangel palace.[18]
Another palace which was destroyed in a major fire was De la Gardie Palace at Norrström, south of King's Garden, also known Unprecedented and 1793 rebuilt the theater. During a show on November 24, 1825 someone noticed the smell of smoke on stage. Actor Lars Hjortsberg urged the audience to evacuate the hall. All spectators escaped unharmed, despite the theater only having one narrow exit. However, the fire still caused three casualties amongst the staff. The damage after the fire was extensive and the remains of the buildings were salvaged.[19]
Lightning striking church towers and tall buildings, which then acted as lighting conductors were a common cause of fires. On July 28, 1835 Riddarholmskyrkan was met by lightning, and at the same time lightning even struck the bottom of the Katarina Church and Kungsholms church tower. The Riddarholmskyrkan towers could not be saved, the church roof and the vault collapsed the following day after having caught on fire, while the church hall survived. The new tower at Riddarholmskyrkan was built in 1841, and was made of cast-iron to withstand fire better.[7]
However, the factory buildings were victims of the flames. On January 22, 1842 fires burned down A. Bergman's cotton spinning mill at Stadsgården. The building and 1000 fathoms of wood burned up. The fire was so strong that audiences across the Salt Lake on Skeppsbron were showered with soot and sparks. The fire that had started in the factory's gas works caused more casualties, and led to 200 people losing their jobs when the factory abandoned the flammable gas and moved operations to Harg at Nyköping where they could use water power instead.
Late in the evening of November 11, 1873 a fire came loose in the Palinska house with several people killed as a result. The city realized that this could have been prevented with a time and purpose under fire. The fire thus led to the ongoing work with Fire Guard transformational accelerated, and the formation of the Stockholm fire in the 1875-year fire regime.[20][21]
During the nights of June 19 and December 20, 1875 a fire swept through the central printer. This fire killed four people and Heinrich Neuhaus' unique panorama of Stockholm was destroyed. The panorama which was in the process of printing, as well as the lithographic stones were useless.[22]
The most famous factory fire was Eldkvarn in eastern Kungsholmen that burned on October 31, 1878. The event has given rise to the phrase "not since Eldkvarn burned" in the sense of "a very long time ago". Eldkvarn was a steam-powered mill, hence the name. The fire, believed to have been caused by flour dust falling onto a gaslamp which ignited, started just before 17:01 on two floors up in the northeast corner of the house no.1 at Hantverkargatan. The mill could continue to grind after the fire and was used right up to 1906. On the Eldkvarn plot, with the block name of Eldkvarn, the Stockholm City Hall was later built.
The same year that Eldkvarn burnt, a fire broke out in the German Church in the Old Town. It could have gone really bad with a church fire in the middle of Old Town. Now could be the new fire department to show what they died for and they managed to overcome the fire. The fire started early on the morning of October 7, 1878. This time Stockholm's church bells were tolled reminiscent of the old methods of warning of a fire. The Church's 1600-century spire collapsed and fell down along with the bells on the church vault. The interior survived and thanks to the fire department's response, the fire was limited and a potential disaster was avoided. In 1886 the church received its current tower.[23]
The Djurgården Theatre at Skansen on Djurgården Southern was ravaged twice by fire. The old Djurgården Theatre fire broke out May 19, 1865 and destroyed the house just when they were faced with their second season, but was rebuilt and re-inaugurated on 20 June 1867. On 21 June 1929 the building went up in flames again and wooden building disappeared in a few hours. The fire had started in the kitchen area and spread more quickly. All the people who were in the building managed to save themselves, but some firefighters had minor injuries. In The Park was one for a while worried that the fire could spread to rock the runway engine which was next door. How the fire started could not be clarified.[24]
One of the worst fires Stockholm fire experienced since its formation in 1875 was a fire in 1937 in the central dairy at Torsgatan.[25] The fire broke out February 8, 1937 in connection with a welder working in the attic above the fourth floor.[26] He first attempted to extinguish the fire himself, but failed. The fire brigade was alerted and soon the troops from several fire stations arrived on the site.
The men not only had to fight the fire but also work under difficult conditions, including heavy icing in freezing extinction (it was 10 degrees below zero that day in February) and a wax layer of 3,500 kg, which began to melt and burn and hindered the fire considerably. Two firefighters were cut off by the fire, the one hanging outside a window and fell (he later died of his injuries), the other was rescued at the last minute. Some acetylene cylinders exploded with a firefighter were injured. A stairwell threatened to collapse and officers had to withdraw the men. In the end, all of Stockholm fire fighters engaged in fire extinguishing, and all the firefighters were called to duty. In total there were 70 people on the site including managers, fire chief, firefighters and teachers from officers school.[27] Only after seven hours was the fire considered to be under control. The damage cost over a million dollars. Stockholm's milk supply became threatened.
On September 5, 1970 Ikea furniture warehouse at King's Curve burned. The cause of the fire was a short circuit in Ikea's big billboard. Fire Rean few weeks after the fire was about 8 000 people queuing to buy the sharp price reductions in the goods. Some had spent the night in tents. The queues on the highway were four miles long and furniture warehouse was emptied quickly. In March 1971 Ikea opened again. Codan paid an indemnity of 23 million; it was the then largest insurance loss in Sweden. [28]
Night of May 17, 1990 burned Catherine's Church for the second time. The church tower collapsed and went through the church vault. That was left was basically just the church walls, but we managed to save valuable textiles and church silver. An investigation into the cause of the fire could not work out how the fire started. The church was rebuilt and it was quite clear that no modern building materials would be used. As architect for the rebuilding and reconstruction, palace architect Ove Hidemark was appointed. [29] In 1995 the church was reopened by Bishop Henry Svenungsson .
Another notable fire hit Stockholm in 1990. 28 September 1990 there was a large fire in the iron trade, John Wall's premises at the corner of Drottninggatan and Slöjdgatan. [30] The fire destroyed the historic hardware store and a large part of the settlement in district of Adam and Eve. There was then a new shopping mall. In November 1992, was inaugurated under the name Adam & Eve Gallery. An analysis of fire behavior has revealed that inflammable material remained in contact with cracks and penetrations. Fire spread has occurred in areas that do not have inspection only, or even possible to detect. [31]
At two o'clock on the night June 5, 2008 a fire broke out on the third floor of Town Hall's west wing. It controlled most of the 70 firefighters. After about three hours the fire was under control. The fire in the Town Hall was dramatic, and when emergency services arrived at the building, it was a fully developed fire, five to ten feet high flames knocked out of the windows. The fire department estimated that the entire third floor of the south wing destroyed by fire. [32]
Since the work was carried out, the house was evacuated, businesses were concerned, therefore, and no people were hurt. The fire in the Town Hall did not affect the renovation works completion: September 1, 2009 could Stockholm District Court to move back as planned.