Diplomatstaden

Diplomatstaden, view from Djurgården, August 2008.

Diplomatstaden (Swedish for "Diplomat City") is a neighbourhood in the Östermalm district in central Stockholm, Sweden. As the name suggests, the neighbourhood is the home of many embassies and ambassadorial residencies.

Diplomatstaden encompasses the area facing the Djurgårdsbrunnsviken bay which is located south of the easternmost part of Strandvägen. It is an exclusive residential area composed of a group of brick villas built mostly in the 1910s and 1920s.[1]

History

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The municipal council had scrapped its plans for a Nobel institute in the neighbouring Nobel Park (Nobelparken) in 1906.[2] Instead, city planning authority Per Olof Hallman designed a city plan for the area in 1911 and 1914. His plan strictly specified what materials should be used and detailed much of the exterior shapes of the buildings. Additionally, the irregularly shaped sites, over time increasingly criticised by involved architects, strongly dictated the design of the buildings. Most buildings facing the street passing north of the area are surrounded by walls, while open gardens surround those facing the southern waterfront.[1]

Hallman placed the villas in a semicircle around St Peter and St Sigfrid's Church, known locally as the "English Church" (Engelska kyrkan). Designed by James Souttar in 1863, the church was originally located at Wallingatan north of the Norra Bantorget square, but was moved brick by brick to its present location in 1913. The first villa to be built was banker Philip Geber's (5, Nobelgatan), designed by Ragnar Östberg in 1913. Two years later, United Kingdom had their embassy built (7, Nobelgatan) to the design of British architect Sir Richard Allison.[1]

Villas

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The villas in the area are:[1][3]

Property Address Year Architect Initial owner Current owner (2008)
Villa Geber Nobelgatan 5 1913 Ragnar Östberg Philip Geber Salvatore Grimaldi
Tryggerska villan Nobelgatan 3 1914 Ivar Tengbom Ernst Trygger Swedish Bar Association
Brittiska residenset Nobelgatan 7 1915 Richard Allison United Kingdom United Kingdom
Bünsowska villan Nobelgatan 15 1919 Carl Westman Robert Bünsow Saudi Arabia
Tillbergska villan Nobelgatan 9 1919 Ivar Tengbom Knut Tillberg South Korea
Villa Gumælius Nobelgatan 1 1924 Erik Trana A. S:son Gumælius Hungary
Villa Bonde Dag Hammarskjölds väg 20 1925 Cyrillus Johansson Nils Gustaf Bonde Turkey
Villa Wikström Dag Hammarskjölds väg 22 1925 Cyrillus Johansson Carl Wikström South Korea
Villa Josephson Nobelgatan 11 1926 Erik Josephson John Josephson Belgium
Villa Bonnier Nobelgatan 13 1927 Ragnar Östberg Åke Bonnier Sweden
Villa Hjorth Dag Hammarskjölds väg 26 1930 Curt Björklund Berndt August Hjorth Turkey
Villa Åkerlund Nobelgatan 2 1932 Knut Peterson Erik Åkerlund United States

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c d Johansson, Guide till Stockholms arkitektur, p 184
  2. ^ Stugart, Diplomatstaden vore kul...
  3. ^ sv:Diplomatstaden

References

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  • Johansson, Bengt O H (1999). Guide till Stockholms arkitektur (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Arkitektur Förlag AB. ISBN 91-86050-41-9.
  • Stugart, Martin (2007-04-27). "Diplomatstaden vore kul att få veta mera om" (in Swedish). Dagens Nyheter. Archived from the original on 2012-01-29. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
  • "Sveriges dyraste villa får ny ägare" (in Swedish). E24. 2010-08-30. Retrieved 2011-02-20.
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59°19′59″N 18°06′10″E / 59.33306°N 18.10278°E / 59.33306; 18.10278