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Founded: 1642-1654Category: Palaces, manors and town halls in Sweden
Historical period: Swedish Empire (Sweden)
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The old Kronhuset (the Crown House) behind the Gustav Adolf Square is one of the oldest buildings in Gothenburg. It was built in 1642-1654 as a storehouse for military uniforms and other military equipment. Now it is a living craft center in historic buildings.
Around Kronhuset is Kronhusbodarna (the Crown House Sheds).The west wing served as carriage storage and warehouse, and was built around 1750 after the previous wooden buildings around Kronhuset burned down. The east wing was built in 1759 for artillery weapon smiths, turners and saddlers. Sweden was at this time mobilizing for war with Denmark and the demande for a warehouse in Gothenburg was therefore high.
Kronhuset was built in Dutch style, and apart from the brick walls and ceiling, it's made entirely of wood. It is six stories high and the ground floor has no supporting pillars, which means that you could more easily move around guns and vehicles.
When the parliament convened in Gothenburg Kronhuset also functioned as parliament house. Nowadays the neighborhood is a vibrant craft centre. In the small sheds the are shops for glassworks, chocolate, candy, furniture, clocks, pottery and leather. There is also a popular cafe and bakery.
References:The Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania was built originally in the 15th century for the rulers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The Royal Palace in the Lower Castle evolved over the years and prospered during the 16th and mid-17th centuries. For four centuries the palace was the political, administrative and cultural center of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
Soon after the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was incorporated into Tsarist Russia, Tsarist officials ordered the demolition of the remaining sections of the Royal Palace. The Palace was almost completely demolished in 1801, the bricks and stones were sold, and the site was bowered. Only a small portion of the walls up to the second floor survived, that were sold to a Jewish merchant Abraham Schlossberg around 1800 who incorporated them into his residential house. After the 1831 uprising, the czarist government expelled Schlossberg and took over the building as it was building a fortress beside it. Before the Second World War it was the office of the Lithuanian Army, during the World War II it was the office of the German Army, and after World War II it was used by Soviet security structures and later transformed into the Palace of Pioneers. Fragments of Schlossberg's house have become part of the Eastern Wing of the restored Royal Palace.
A new palace has been under construction since 2002 on the site of the original building. The Royal Palace was officially opened during the celebration of the millennium of the name of Lithuania in 2009.