Skeppar Olofs Gränd ( Swedish: "Alley of Skipper Olof") is an

alley An alley or alleyway is a narrow lane, footpath, path, or passageway, often reserved for pedestrians, which usually runs between, behind, or within buildings in towns and cities. It is also a rear access or service road (back lane), or a path, w ...

Gamla stan Gamla Stan (, "The Old Town"), until 1980 officially Staden mellan broarna ("The Town between the Bridges"), is the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Gamla Stan consists primarily of the island Stadsholmen. Gamla Stan includes the surrounding islets ...

, the old town in central

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. Stretching from Köpmangatan to Trädgårdsgatan, it forms a parallel street to Peder Fredags Gränd and Trädgårdstvärgränd.

History

Appearing in historical records as ''skepper Olaffz grändh'' in 1587, the alley is named after the skipper Olof Eriksson. Commonly known as ''Skeppar Olof'', he served under King

Gustav Vasa Gustav Eriksson Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), also known as Gustav I, was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560. He was previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm (''Reichsverweser#Sweden, Riksföreståndare'') fr ...

from 1525 and was skipper on board the ship ''Ugglan'' ("The Owl") in 1526. He was one of the leading figures in the organisation of the first fleet of the

Swedish Navy The Swedish Navy () is the maritime service branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet (), formally sometimes referred to as the Royal Navy () – as well as marine units, the Amph ...

, both as a master shipbuilder and as a naval commander. As one of the most trusted merchants of the king, Olof made a fortune, and as one of the most prominent burghers in the city, he was appointed

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...

, member of a court of first instance, head of the goldsmith guild, and churchwarden at the

Cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

. Skeppar Olof died in 1555 and is buried in the cathedral (which he saved from the king's plans to demolish it). One of the many buildings he owned was located between the alley and

Österlånggatan is a street in Gamla stan, the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching southward from Slottsbacken to Järntorget (Stockholm), Järntorget, it forms a parallel street to Baggensgatan and Skeppsbron. Major sights include the statue of Saint Ge ...

, in 1528 it was referred to as ''Schepar Olofz huus i Olof Grelsons g'' 'ränd''("House of Skipper Olof in the alley of Olof Grelson"), and in 1597 it was subject to his widow's distribution of the estate. The skipper in question might have lived in the medieval building on the right side directly after the vault. In the alley is a memorial tile dedicated to Sara Wacklin (1790–1846), a teacher and writer who was born in Uleåborg (Oulu), moved to Stockholm in 1843, and lived and eventually died in the alley. She is mostly remembered for her book ''Hundrade minnen från Österbotten'' ("A Hundred memories from Ostrobothnia", 1844–45) which deals with the fate of

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

following the Swedish defeat in the

Finnish War The Finnish War (; ; ) was fought between the Gustavian era, Kingdom of Sweden and the Russian Empire from 21 February 1808 to 17 September 1809 as part of the Napoleonic Wars. As a result of the war, the eastern third of Sweden was established a ...

of 1807–1809, and condemns those who "longed for war without having seen its atrocities".

References

External links

Stockholmskällan - Historical images from Skeppar Olofs Gränd

hitta.se - Location map and virtual walk
Streets in Stockholm {{Stockholm-road-stub

History

See also

References

External links