1 0 . G R E A T
C H U R C H
HAMNGATAN 4
The main church is the Stockholm Stift's cathedral since 1942. The
cathedral parish is created by three small congregations merged in
1989: the main church, St. Clara and St. Jacob.
In the 1250s, Birger Jarl gave society at Holmen city rights.
Stockholm then became the city with the same conditions and
regulations as the important commercial cities, including on Gotland
and in Europe.
Church dating
The first written document proving that the Great Church existed is
dated 1279. From this year we estimate the age of the church. It was
the knight Johan Karlsson to Fånö who in his will donated 1 mark of
silver to STOCKHOLM'S GREAT CHURCH. According to history, he
must have been beheaded on Stortorget, convicted of defeating the
king.
The name of the church and the congregation
From the beginning, the church was generally called the
City Church, it belonged to the city (village) and not to any
monastery.
The church was dedicated to St. Nicolaus, then also to the
Virgin Mary and St. Erik.
St. Nicolaus was the saint of commerce and shipping, an obvious
choice in a shipping city like Stockholm. It was said that he was in the
bow of a ship and led them safely into port if they happened to be at
sea or fog.
Nicolaus also became the children's - and thieves'! - saints and it is
the traditions around Nicolaus that created Santa Claus.
Virgin Mary knows everyone, the mother of Jesus. She got the
church's first big saint chapel erected for her, the Spring Breakfast.