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by the Swedish nobility on the 250th anniversary of the day when
the king entered Stockholm and delivered his country from the
Danish yoke. On 13th July, 1756, Count Brahe, Barons Horn and
Vrangel, and others were brought to the scaffold here for the crime
of conspiring to undermine the constitution. On 10th June, 1810,
Marshal Axel v. Fersen fell a victim here to the fury of the
populace, who were seriously alarmed by the sudden death of the
crown-prince, and believed that he had been poisoned by the marshal.
The Riddarhus (Knights’ House; PI. 35; D, 5), a brick
structure, erected in 1648-70 from designs by Simon de la Vallée, is
adorned with Latin inscriptions and allegorical figures on the facade.
On the first floor is a large room embellished with the armorial
bearings of all the Swedish nobles, and with ceiling-paintings by
Ehrenstrahl, where the Upper Chamber held its meetings down to
1866. A’ room on the ground-floor contains portraits of all the
marshals of Sweden from 1627 to 1865, who have been presidents
of the Upper Chamber, with the exception of General Lejonhufvud,
who was blamed by the nobility for their want of success in the
war against Finland in 1740-43, and beheaded in 1743.
Admission, see p. 322.
Adjoining the Riddarhus , on the opposite side of the
Riddar-hus-Grand which leads to the N.V. to the Vasa Bridge, rises the
Town Hall (Rådhuset; PL 34; D, 5), once the palace of Count
Bonde, the royal treasurer, but converted to its present use in
1731. The large Council Chamber contains several antiquities
connected with the history of the town. (Apply to the ‘vaktmästare.’)
From the Riddarhus-Torg a bridge leads to the S.W. to the
Riddarholm (PL D, 5). on which rises the *Riddarholms-KyTka
(Pl. 25). with its conspicuous perforated spire of cast iron, 290 ft.
in height. It was formerly a church of the Franciscans, and has
for centuries been the burial-place of the kings and most
celebrated natives of Sweden. The building is in the Gothic style, but
has hcen disfigured by Renaissance additions and alterations.
Divine worship has not been performed here since 1807, except
on the occasion of royal funerals. The principal entrance is at the
W. end. (Admission, see p. 322.)
The walls of the church are embellished with the armorial bearings of
the deceased knights of the Seraphim Order (p. 325), and the pavement is
formed of tombstones. Flanking the high-altar are the Monuments of Kings
Magnus Ladulås (d. 1320) and Charles VIII. (d. 1470), erected during the
reign of John III. in Ihe 16th century. On the right (S.) is the Burial
Chapel of Gustavus Adolphus (Gustavianska Graf koret), constructed in
1633 in accordance with instructions given hv the king in 1629 before his
departure for Germany. Since 1832, the 200th anniversary of the famous
monarch’s death fat the battle of Liitzen, 6th Nov., 1632). his remains
have reposed in a green marble sarcophagus, executed in Italy by order
of Gustavus III. for the reception of the body of his father Adolphus
Frederick, but unused till 1832. when the remains of Gustavus Adolphus
were transferred to it by Charles XIV. John. It bears the simple
inscription: Gustavus Adolf us Magnus. Between the windows of the chapel
are placed German, Russian, and other flags as trophies of the king’s
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