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Riddarholmen. Photo by Oscar Franzén.

Top 10 Fascinating Facts about Riddarholmen

Riddarholmen is a small island in central Stockholm, Sweden. The island is part of Gamla Stan, the old town, and is home to a number of 17th-century private palaces. The main landmark is the church Riddarholmskyrkan, which served as Sweden’s royal burial church from the 17th century to 1950 and is also home to a number of earlier Swedish monarchs.

The western end of the island offers a spectacular panoramic and photogenic view of the bay Riddarfjärden, which is frequently used by TV journalists with Stockholm City Hall in the background. Birger Jarl, traditionally regarded as Stockholm’s founder, is depicted on a pillar in front of the Bonde Palace, north of Riddarholm Church.

The Old Parliament Building in the south-eastern corner, the Old National Archive on the eastern shore, and the Norstedt Building, the old printing house of the publisher Norstedts, whose tower roof is a well-known silhouette on the city’s skyline, are also notable structures.

1. Riddarholmen island is also known as “The Noble Island” “Knight’s Island

Riddarholmen island is also known as “The Noble Island” or “Knight’s Island.” It is significantly smaller than Gamla Stan and is separated from it by a narrow channel. This island has been home to representatives of Sweden’s wealthiest families for centuries.

2. Riddarholmen was initially used for goat grazing 

Goats grazing in a farm. Photo by David Jusko.

The island is first mentioned as Kidaskär, literally “Kid Skerry,” indicating that it was used for goat grazing, in the Eric Chronicles from around 1325, which recounts how King Magnus Laduls had a Greyfriars monastery built on the island around. In his will, he asked that he be buried in it.

3. In the 1930s, Riddarholmen was known as Grmunkeholm

The original name vanished from historical records during the Middle Ages, replaced by Grbrödraholm (“Grey Brothers Islet”), Munckholmen (“Monk Islet”), and Grmunkeholm (“Grey Monks Islet”), the latter most commonly used until the 17th century.

However, the monastery closed after the Protestant Reformation and was later converted into a church. As a result, the name was changed in the 1630s to Riddarholmen, för detta Grmunkeholm kallad (“Knight’s Islet, formerly known as Grey Monk’s Islet”) in 1638. However, the old name persisted, and while Charles XI (1655-1697) preferred the new name, his youngest daughter Ulrika Eleonora (1688-1741) preferred the old. 

4. There is a broad waterfront in Riddarholmen

Riddarholmen in Stockholm as seen from the top of the City Hall tower. Photo by Benoît Derrier.

From the lake Mälaren side on the island of Riddarholmen is a very broad waterfront, Evert Toba. Here is the famous white Tower of Birger Jarl, built in 1530 by king Gustav Vasa. It was originally a Cannon tower of the fortress wall. On the embankment there is an interesting sculpture Solbaten, similar to a sail or shell.

5. Riddarholmen Church is located on Riddarholmen 

Riddarholmen Church. Photo from

Riddarholmen Church is the church of Stockholm’s former medieval Greyfriars Monastery. The church is the final resting place of the majority of Swedish monarchs. It is one of Stockholm’s oldest structures, with parts dating back to the late-13th century, when it was built as a greyfriars monastery.

The monastery was closed after the Protestant Reformation, and the building was converted into a Lutheran church. During the reign of John III, a spire designed by Flemish architect Willem Boy (1520-1592) was added, but it was destroyed by a lightning strike on July 28, 1835, and was replaced with the current cast-iron spire. 

The church’s walls are adorned with the coats of arms of knights of the Royal Order of the Seraphim. When a knight of the Order dies, his coat of arms is hung in the church, and the church bells are rung continuously from 12:00 to 13:00. 

6. The areas closest to the buildings at Riddarholmen were historically open and covered in granite

Man sited on a bench in Riddarholmen. Photo by Nicolas Nezzo.

Because of their uneven surfaces, new cobblestone areas were placed in areas where people rarely walk. Traditionally, the cobbles are arranged in rows. The varying sizes of the stones create a quiet but interesting and beautiful surface. The square’s natural stone paving is found in both pedestrian and traffic areas.

Different colored stones and the use of different pitching techniques on the surface of the stone define areas with different functions. The majority of the material is recycled old paving discovered buried in the ground on-site.

Square “horse-stones” mark important junctions, and there is a wheelchair accessible passage with paving of smooth surfaced flagstones of varying sizes, which adds to the variety of the paved surfaces.

7. C.K.G. Billings’ yacht is now docked at Riddarholmen

A yatch docked. Photo by Mikael Stenberg.

Cornelius Kingsley Garrison Billings was an American industrialist, philanthropist, art collector, and well-known horseman and breeder. Billings, an eccentric man, spent a lot of time and money promoting trotting, also known as “harness racing” or “matinée racing.” 

His yatch now serves as a hotel called Mälardrottningen, with the ship renamed Lady Hutton.

8. Riddarholmen is home to the Swedish government agencies

Svea Hovrätt, Svealand’s appellate court, now meets in Wrangel Palace and the palaces of Hessenstein and Schering Rosenhane, while the Supreme Court and the Supreme Administrative Court meet in Bonde and Stenbock, respectively. The island also houses some of the older Swedish government agencies, such as the Legal, Financial, and Administrative Services Agency and the Chancellor of Justice.

9. Riddarholmen is owned and managed by The Swedish National Property Board

It intends to renew and develop all the island’s public spaces to make them more appealing and accessible. Riddarholmen is culturally and historically significant, with significant antiquarian values that must be respected and preserved.

Riddarholmen’s rich history has been central in the process of developing, renovating, and meeting today’s modern functional requirements.

10. Södra Riddarholmen was the first public space on the island to be finished

Södra Riddarholmshamnen is a street and quay on Riddarholmen in Stockholm that leads to Riddarfjärden. It begins at Hebbes Bro, travels around the southern part of Riddarholmen, and ends at the height of Evert Taube’s terrace in Norra Riddarholmshamnen. The street was given its name in 1925.