Where Sweden Is Governed: Riksdag, Prime Minister and Opera in Norrmalm

Sweden is run from a handful of buildings within a few minutes of each other, and most of them look like grand town houses. The route starts at the parliament on its small island, passes the prime minister's residence and the foreign ministry, then ends where the royal court once amused itself, at the opera and the old royal garden.

Riksdagshuset

The Riksdagshuset replaced the old parliament building on Riddarholmen. Aron Johansson won the design competition in 1889, and the building went up between 1897 and 1905, opening on 11 January 1905. It is really two buildings: one for the Riksdag and a semicircular one built for the central bank.

RiksdagshusetLandmarkLook at the front first: mostly neoclassical, with a Baroque Revival centre. It is really two buildings joined together, one for the Riksdag and a semicircular one built for the central bank, so the street front is both institutions at once. Cross the bridge off the island and turn north.Photo: Sahlen, CC0

Sager House

The Sager House is the prime minister's official residence, which Sweden did not have until the state bought it in 1988. The Sager family had owned it since 1880, and Robert Sager remodelled it in 1893. Göran Persson was the first prime minister to live here, from 1996.

Sager HouseLandmarkThis is a stop to look at from the street on Strömgatan, not to enter. Notice how little marks it as the centre of government. Keep going a few steps along the street.Photo: Sagerska huset 2012 - h.jpg : I99pema derivative work: ArildV, CC BY-SA 3.0

Arvfurstens palats

Arvfurstens palats was built between 1783 and 1794 to a design by Erik Palmstedt, as the home of Princess Sophia Albertina, sister of Gustav III. Since 1906 it has housed the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Arvfurstens palatsLandmarkStand across the square and take in the calm, late 18th-century front. Its rooms are used for receptions and conferences, so treat it as a building to admire from outside. Then walk the short way to the opera.Photo: Holger.Ellgaard, CC BY-SA 3.0

Royal Swedish Opera

Gustav III founded the opera company in 1773, and it became the national stage for opera and ballet. He was shot at a masked ball in the foyer of the earlier opera house in 1792. That building was demolished in 1892, and the present house, opened under Oscar II, replaced it.

Royal Swedish OperaTheatreThe architect was Axel Johan Anderberg, and the building is neoclassical. Inside are a gold foyer, a marble staircase and a three-tier hall for 1,200. Even without a ticket, look at the front. Then follow the street east to the park.Photo: Frankie Fouganthin, CC BY-SA 4.0

King's Garden

Kungsträdgården began as the royal kitchen garden, first mentioned in 1430, and later became a formal Baroque pleasure garden. Today it is a public park.

King's GardenParkFind the statue of Charles XIII at the centre, put up in 1821 and ringed by four lions, then the Charles XII statue at the south end, unveiled in 1868. The cherry trees planted in 1998 bloom in spring. Sit down at a cafe and let the route sink in.Photo: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain

Where it ends

The walk runs from a parliament to a foreign ministry, a prime minister's house and a royal garden now open to all. The buildings stay modest; the history is in their former owners.