Swedish National Archives
| Swedish: Riksarkivet | |
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| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1618 |
| Jurisdiction | Government of Sweden |
| Headquarters | , Sweden |
| Minister responsible | |
| Website | riksarkivet |
The National Archives of Sweden (Swedish: Riksarkivet, RA) is one of the oldest public agencies in Sweden, with a history leading back to the Middle Ages. The chief of Riksarkivet is called the Riksarkivarie.
The National Archives is one of the oldest still active Swedish institutions, with roots back to the 1200s. Axel Oxenstierna intervened in the archival conditions on October 18, 1618. He prescribed how the Old Office , i.e., the National Archives, would be organized. Thus the National Archives was formally established as an independent body of state within the Royal Chancellery.
Only a small part of what was then the National Archives could be salvaged from the flames in the disastrous Castle fire of 1697 in Stockholm. The collection of medieval documents was severely decimated.
The National Archives was originally limited to the royal office, but from the late 19th century the National Archives also got responsibility for archives of other central and local authorities. The National Archives functioned as chief authority over the different regional archives: the Provincial Archives of Vadstena that opened in 1899, Lund and Uppsala that both opened in 1903, Visby in 1905, Gothenburg in 1911, Östersund in 1928, and finally in 1935 in Härnösand.
Since 1963, the Royal Palace Archives at has been a section under the National Archives. In 1995 the formerly independent authority, the Military Archives, was made a department of the National Archives.
The authority National Herald Board was closed down in 1953, and the state's heraldic operations continued as a department under the National Archives. The department deals with questions about coat of arms design, flags and emblems and continuously produces new heraldic images for newly formed governmental bodies, counties, etc. The National Herald Topic of office of the Manager held the title of National Herald, but in the new organization the title instead became State Herald (statsheraldiker).
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