Göta landsväg
Göta landsväg or Gamla Göta landsväg ( German Alte Göta-Landstrasse ) was a medieval road connection from Stockholm to the south.
history
In the 16th century, Göta landsväg was the only existing highway to travel south from Stockholm. This route connection had forerunners as far back as the Middle Ages (in Scandinavia approx. 1100 to 1500 AD) and probably a path was created here as early as the Bronze Age (in Scandinavia approx. 1800 to 550 BC), long before Stockholm existed .
The road ran southwards, beginning in the old town of Stockholm Gamla Stan, along today's Västerlånggatan . It crossed Södermalm along today's Götgatan and then ran via Årsta , the Årstafältet , through the southern municipalities of Huddinge , Botkyrka and Salem to Södertälje . From there it stretched through Södermanland to Götaland (today's Östergötland , Småland and the then Danish Skåne ). Göta landsväg lost its importance as the main connection to the south in 1670 when the new road , later also called Södertäljevägen , was opened.
On this important route, among other things, Christina of Sweden traveled to Rome in the autumn of 1654 and on the evening of Midsummer's Day 1634 the remains of Gustav II Adolf were brought back to Stockholm. According to calculations, around 800 travelers per year passed the sound at Flottsbro in Botkyrka in the Middle Ages . In 2007, around 90,000 vehicles drove past the same point on the E4 European route every day .
Today only a few remains of this historic country road have been preserved. On Årstafältet , a green area south of Stockholm, about 900 meters have been preserved through the centuries and restored in 1998 and a stone arch bridge reconstructed. This section is under monument protection .
To the south-west of Södertälje, the trail of Göta landsväg disappears, newer infrastructures and settlements have changed the landscape significantly. In Södertälje, however, there is a clue with the rune stone ( Holmfastristningen ) from the year 1000 AD that in all probability a predecessor of Göta landsväg passed by here. The runic text is carved directly into the rock and says that "Holmfast laid out this path and built a bridge, God help his spirit".
A country road has to be maintained in order not to deteriorate. King Karl IX had to do that. and his wife Christine found out when they drove to Södertälje on Göta landsväg in 1604 . The road was so bad that her carriage got stuck several times and threatened to overturn. Thereupon the king ordered in a letter that the road should be maintained by those who lived closest. This rule was gradually implemented for the country roads throughout the Swedish Empire .
Web links
- More information about Göta landsväg (Swedish)
Coordinates: 59 ° 17 ′ 30 ″ N , 18 ° 2 ′ 50 ″ E