Located in Stockholm's Östermalm district, the Army Museum is a great place to visit on a muggy day for both children and adults. Admission is free and there is a lot to look at. Various tours and activities are also organised.
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Army Museum in Stockholm
We used our electric bikes to get to the Armémuseum in Stockholm, but it's also easy to get here by public transport. The museum is not far from Strandvägen in Östermalm. When you enter the courtyard, you are greeted by a mighty building and an abundance of old cannons.
It's completely free to visit the Army Museum in Stockholm, and if you want, you can download a free audio guide to your mobile phone. You can also look for special tours and events in the programme (there may be a fee) but we chose to look around on our own.
War and peace 16th - 19th century
The Army Museum has a number of permanent exhibitions. One of these is about war and peace in the 16th and 19th centuries. Here you get an insight into the life of a soldier, but also into the everyday life of women and children during these times.
Mostly you walk around and are very happy that you didn't have to live at this time. In addition to terrible battlefields, people had to deal with cold, disease and hardship.
You can also look at gruesome weapons and various hospital tools, such as those used to saw off bones to save lives. Like I said, it's nice to look at everything through a museum and not have to be there.
War and peace 20th century
The next exhibition focuses on war and peace in the 20th century. Here you can learn more about the world wars, conscription, the Cold War and nuclear threats. There are also many artefacts in the form of weapons and military equipment.
Raoul Wallenberg's room at the Army Museum
The 'Raoul Wallenberg's Room' exhibition showcases the famous Swede's office in Budapest, with his sketches and belongings. At the end of the Second World War, he managed to save tens of thousands of people from the Holocaust. In January 1945, he was arrested by the Soviet authorities and disappeared.
Weapons, coats and in the tack room
The 'Weapons & Coats', 'Modern Weapons' and 'In the Saddle Room' exhibitions include uniforms, sabres, swords, bayonets, muskets, pistols and ... horse snowshoes.
Temporary exhibitions at the Army Museum
The Armémuseum in Stockholm continuously organises various temporary exhibitions. Right now they have the exhibitions "The Price of Victory - Narva 1700" (20 October 2018 - 30 November 2020) and "On the Secret Service of the Empire" (20 February 2020 - 31 May 2022). We didn't even get to see the second of these, as we visited the museum before it opened.
The price of victory - Narva 1700
We loved the exhibition on the victory at Narva! It was really fascinating to step into Stockholm in 1701. You walk along the built-up streets and hear the shouting.
The information comes to Sweden in fits and starts and is uncertain. Narva is far from Stockholm, and this is at a time when information is not transported as it is now. When the trophies are presented, in the form of the opponents' flags, all that is heard is the sound of victory. There is no mention of the misery and suffering of war.
This exhibition was really good, and maybe it hit us extra hard since we visited Narva last summer:
What did we think of the Armémuseum in Stockholm?
The Armémuseum in Stockholm is a nice and interesting museum. We liked best the exhibition about Narva, which offered an interesting experience. We also saw a guided children's group, and must say that it feels like the museum has a lot to offer even families with children.
Have you been to the Armémuseum in Stockholm? What did you think?
Facts about the Army Museum in Stockholm
- Address: Riddargatan 13, Stockholm
- Location: Östermalm in Stockholm, not far from Berzelii Park and Strandvägen.
- More info: You can find more information at the museum's website.
Opening hours
- Regular opening hours: Tuesday 11:00-20:00, Wednesday - Sunday 11:00-17:00 and Monday closed (2020).
- Different opening hours: The museum is closed on certain public holidays, and is also open on special days. See the museum's website for up-to-date information.
Prices
- Entrance: The Army Museum has free admission every day.
- Tours and activities: See the calendar on the museum's website for current prices for tours and other activities.
- Group tours: See the museum's website for prices for group tours.
Services and practical information
- Audio guide: The Army Museum has a free audio guide, "A Guided Tour", which you can download to your mobile phone.
- Young children: You can bring a pram to the museum and there is a lift between floors. There are baby changing rooms and a canteen where you can heat up baby food.
- Shop: There is a museum shop where you can find souvenirs, toys and books.
- Food service: Restaurant Artilleriet serves lunch and dinner. One evening a week there is jazz and on Fridays After Work. At Markenteriet on the second floor, you can eat packed lunches and heat food in the microwave.
- Library: The Army Museum's library, which focuses on military history, is located under the east wing. You can't borrow from home, but you can read on site.
- Archive: The Army Museum's archives contain photographs, drawings and other documents. You can order pictures, for example, according to the price list and rules.
Tours and activities
- Views: Public tours are organised on certain dates, according to the calendar.
- Group tours: Tours can be booked for both children and adult groups, as well as for groups with special needs. Themes can include, for example, the age of great power, the age of preparedness or spies.
- Programme: In addition to guided tours, there are other events such as lectures, city walks and film screenings.
- Activities for children: For children, there are children's tours and activities such as 'The Spy Mystery' and 'The Hunt for the Spoils'. Special activities are organised during the holidays. See the museum's calendar.
- Conference: You can organise a conference in the premises, possibly together with a tour.
Accessibility
- Parking: For people with a disabled parking permit, there are two parking spaces near the entrance.
- Availability of premises: The premises are accessible to people with reduced mobility. A lift, with an entrance width of 119 cm, is available to all floors. There is an accessible toilet on the ground floor.
- Wheelchair and walker: Wheelchairs and walkers are available for hire.
- Companions and guide dogs: Companions, personal assistants and guide dogs are welcome.
- Visual impairment and hearing loss: You can book a sign language interpreted tour or an adapted tour for the visually impaired, with tactile and musical elements.
Getting here
- Car: If you come by car, you can park in the streets nearby. On Saturdays and Sundays you can also park in the artillery yard outside the museum.
- Bicycle: Bike racks are located right in front of the museum.
- Underground railway: Go to metro station Östermalmstorg (red line), exit Östermalmstorg/Sibyllegatan.
- Bus: The nearest bus stop is Nybroplan. You can get there by bus number 54, 69 and 76. You can also get here by tramway line 7.
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Matts Torebring says:
We ourselves are terrible at going to museums. Usually it's because if we go, we go by motorhome... We are simply afraid to leave the motorhome unattended in a public car park because of the risk of burglary. If we find a car park, it is usually several kilometres away.
We have visited war sites and museums where we know we can park. Normandy is also one of the places that everyone should visit. We still have the concentration camps in Germany and Poland. We sometimes take the small car to Stockholm, so that was a good tip.
23 February 2020 - 8:43
Helena says:
Parking the motorhome in the middle of cities can be tricky, I know what you mean. We do it sometimes, but we usually take a backpack with computers and cameras in it, just for the risk of burglary. These war memories you mention in Europe are extremely interesting, albeit horrible!
23 February 2020 - 9:03
Maria / MagnoliaMagis says:
We haven't been here but are thinking of going with my mum. She is doing genealogical research and one of her ancestors came from France to Sweden in the 18th century and was a regimental cocksmith. This place was then handed down in several family lines. "Our" flag may be included... A side track to this is that we have moved to a region where we have not been before but it turns out that one of these descendants lived just kilometres from here in the 17-1800s! The farm names are still there! The world is small!
23 February 2020 - 17:25
Helena says:
What an interesting story you found in the family, exciting! And yes, sometimes the world is small!
23 February 2020 - 20:35
BP says:
Thanks for the refresh! I was at the museum many years ago when there was a special exhibition of tin soldiers in different war environments. That exhibition is still there, but at that time it was amateurs who built their "war zones" on different tables and showed their creations during a weekend. We had two mates who took part.
23 February 2020 - 20:06
Helena says:
We saw some tin soldiers in one place, but didn't think much of it. Glad to hear this! 😉
23 February 2020 - 20:36
Lena in Wales says:
Looks very interesting. Haven't been there, yet.
I'm interested in history, but haven't really been into military history, but I'm getting more and more interested.
Listening to several history podcasts, including one on military history, interesting.
Thanks for nice post!
26 February 2020 - 9:15