Skövde

Skövde is a locality and the seat of Skövde Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 33,119 inhabitants in 2005. Skövde is situated some 150 km northeast of Göteborg, between Sweden's two largest lakes, Vänern and Vättern. It sits on the eastern slope of a low mountain ridge Billingen (299 m), which cuts through the plain between the lakes. The western main railway (Västra Stambanan) was located through Skövde in the 1890s, which dramati... more

Skövde is a locality and the seat of Skövde Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 33,119 inhabitants in 2005. Skövde is situated some 150 km northeast of Göteborg, between Sweden's two largest lakes, Vänern and Vättern. It sits on the eastern slope of a low mountain ridge Billingen (299 m), which cuts through the plain between the lakes. The western main railway (Västra Stambanan) was located through Skövde in the 1890s, which dramatically gave the town an industrial and population boost. Skövde traces its history back to the medieval age. On its city arms is the image of Saint Helena who allegedly was a pious woman from Skövde. She was born about 1101, and was canonized in 1165 by Pope Alexander III and Archbishop Stefan of Sweden. Of the medieval houses nothing remains, as a fire in 1759 burnt down the entire city except for some houses called Helensgården. After the fire, the city was rebuilt according to the grid pattern. The city still only had a small population... less