While Uppland is a Swedish province without much of a common identity, it is the cradle of the Swedish nation. Since the Kingdom of Sweden was unified around AD 1000, the de facto capital has over time been Adelsö, Birka, Sigtuna, Uppsala and finally Stockholm. Across today's Uppsala County and Stockholm County are plenty of runestones and other archaeological sites.

Understand

See also: Ice Age traces, Prehistoric Europe, Vikings and the Old Norse

Just like the rest of Scandinavia, Uppland was covered by ice during the last Ice Age. With the post-glacial rebound, much of the Uppland plains were below sea level until 2000 BC, but as soon as they rose above the sea, they were quickly settled. From 500 AD, archaeological artifacts are plentiful, including gold, iron weapons, and tools. Except laconic texts on runestones, domestic written records were few up to the 12th century AD. Most texts on the Norse people were written by missionaries and their adversaries.

While the Old Norse tribes have a long history, the Viking Age made the greatest impact abroad. From the 8th to the 11th centuries, seafarers from Uppland travelled across the Baltic Sea, reaching today's Russia and the Middle East.

Get around

Driving is the most practical way to get around the countryside, but many destinations are within reach of public transport.

Uppsala, Sigtuna and the other settlements at Mälaren can be visited by boat. On a cold winter the journey across Mälaren can be made on ice skates.

Destinations

Vendel

• 1 Vendels kyrka (Vendel church) (Tierp). A 13th century church, famous for the nearby boat grave from around 700 AD. The name Vendel has been associated with Vandal, the Germanic tribe that sacked the Roman Empire. For posterity, it lent its name to the Vendel Period (vendeltid) from the 6th to 9th century, known for its advanced metalworking.  
• 2 Ottarshögen (Tierp). A burial mound from around AD 600, for the semi-legendary king Ottar (Ohthere).  

Uppsala

See also: Uppsala countryside, Uppsala history tour

• 3 Tensta church (Uppsala countryside). A church built around AD 1300, remarkable for its mural paintings. Among other things, they tell the life story of Saint Bridget (Heliga Birgitta).  
• 4 Valsgärde (3 km (1.9 mi) north of Gamla Uppsala. Follow "Vattholmavägen" north, then take a left at the "Valsgärde" road sign.). At the bank of Fyris River, there is a small moraine hill which does not look like much to the eye. However, it covers one of the most important Viking-era archaeological sites ever excavated. Between the 5th and 11th centuries AD, this site was used as a burial site. Archaeologists have discovered some 90 graves, including 15 lavish boat burials. Since the same site was used continuously for such a long time period, archaeologists use its findings to compare how the same culture developed over time. Today, there are no noticeable remnants at the site. These can be found at the University museum Gustavianum, in central Uppsala. However, you can still visit Valsgärde to appreciate its beautiful landscape and historical atmosphere. (updated Sep 2018)

Gamla Uppsala (Old Uppsala) was the political and religious centre of Viking-era Sweden, with a royal estate, the "Thing of all Swedes" (political assembly) and a renowned pagan temple. The Viking heritage can still be seen in the landscape due to the three monumental burial mounds, historically attributed to the gods Odin, Thor and Freyr. In modern times it has become a centre for Norse Neopaganism.

With the help of augmented reality technology, you can also see what the site would have looked like at its historical peak in 650 AD. When looking at site through your smartphone, the app Augmented History: Gamla Uppsala adds an additional layer to reality, which contains all the different structures archaeologists have discovered on the site, including the old Temple at Uppsala and the Royal hall, enabling you to see and even interact with the Viking settlement.

• 5 Disagården, Disavägen. This open-air museum consists of an old preserved farm, and provides a picture of what life in Uppland's countryside was like in the 19th century. Free.  
• 6 Gamla Uppsala kyrka (Old Uppsala church). This 12th-century church, said to be on the site of the long-destroyed pagan Uppsala temple, was the seat of the archbishop of Sweden between 1164 and 1273. It is also known as the final resting place of Anders Celsius, inventor of the Celsius thermometer. Free. (updated Oct 2018)
• 7 Gamla Uppsala museum (Old Uppsala Museum). Tell the history of Uppsala's Viking heritage and exhibit many of the archaeological findings discovered in Gamla Uppsala. (updated Oct 2018)
• 8 Uppsala Cathedral (Domkyrkan), Domkyrkoplan 2. Gothic cathedral, which took a century and a half (1272 - 1435) to build, in the is one of the focal points of Uppsala and it dominates the city skyline. It is simultaneously the largest church in the Nordic countries, the burial site of many Swedish royals, and the seat of the Church of Sweden. Here you can see relics of Eric the Holy and Saint Bridget, and in the far end of the cathedral you will find "Vasakoret" – the royal crypt of Gustav I Vasa, "father of the Swedish nation". The walls of the crypt are covered in national romantic frescoes depicting Vasa's reign and his war for Swedish independence. Other notable burials include the 17th-century polymath Olaus Rudbeck, the 18th-century botanist Carl Linnaeus, the 18th-century mystic Emanuel Swedenborg and the theologian, archbishop and Nobel peace prize laureate Nathan Söderblom. (updated Oct 2018)
• 9 Gustavianum, Akademigatan 3 (Uppsala). Uppsala University's museum. Among other things they exhibits findings from Vendel- and Viking-era boat burial field in nearby Valsgärde.  
• 10 Hågahögen (Kung Björns hög). A bronze age burial mound. It held the most gold of any Bronze Age tomb in Scandinavia and contained about a third of all the Bronze Age gold objects ever found in Sweden! Dating from around 1000 BC, it is twice as old as the more famous Old Uppsala burial mounds.  
• 11 Predikstolen. A Bronze Age fortress.  

Southern Uppland

• 12 Stones of Mora (Mora stenar). A couple of monumental stones commemorating the election of kings during the Middle Ages, until monarchy became hereditary in the 16th century. (updated Jul 2020)
• 13 Broborg. (updated Jul 2020)
• 14 Alsike monastery (Alsike kloster). (updated Jul 2020)
• 1 Sigtuna. The city of Sigtuna was founded by Erik the Victorious (Sweden's first known king) in 980 and marked the unification of Sweden's provinces to a kingdom. His son and successor Olof Skötkonung (the meaning of prefix sköt is not certain but might have meant skatt, "tax") had the first Swedish coins minted here.  
• 15 Sigtuna Museum, Stora Gatan 55. Permanent exhibitions about the earliest history of Sigtuna, the previous ceramics factory of Steninge Castle and about the painters Carl Peter Lehmann and Gideon Ekholm.  
• 2 Gunnes gård, Ryttargatan 270 (Upplands Väsby). A reconstructed Viking Age farm, mostly open during summer. The surroundings have many runestones, graves and other genuine artifacts from the Viking Age and earlier. A market fair is held annually in early autumn. 

Ekerö

• 16 Adelsö (Ekerö). An island filled by archaeological sites. Swedish kings lived here until the 13th century.  
• 17 Birka (Björkö, Ekerö). Birka became the first Swedish city in the 8th century, and received travellers from afar. Today, a replica of the city has been built on the reclaimed land.  
• 18 Drottningholm Palace (Drottningholms slott) (Ekerö). This 18th-century palace has been the home of many Swedish monarchs, including reigning king Carl XVI Gustaf.  

Go next

• Stockholm history tour, for a stroll through Sweden's new capital from the 13th to the 21st century
• Stockholm quay palace tour, for a tour of Stockholm's architecture from the 15th to the 21st century
• Stockholm's northern defenses
• Nordic monarchies
• Skaraborg history tour, the cradle of Götaland, the other land of Sweden
• Swedish Empire from the 17th to 18th century