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Stockholm is the capital of Sweden. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden and Scandinavia, with 897,700 people living in the municipality and a total population of 2,163,042 in the metropolitan area, accounting for 22% of the Swedish population in 2013. Stockholm is an important global city, placed in the "alpha-" category by the GaWC, and ranked 27th in the world, 12th in Europe and first in Scandinavia by the Global Cities Index in 2012. In 2013, Stockholm was named the 8th most competitive city in the world by the Economist Intelligence Unit.
Founded in c. 1250, possibly as early as 1187, Stockholm has long been one of Sweden's cultural, media, political, and economic centres. Its strategic location spread across 14 islands on the coast in the south-east of Sweden at the mouth of Lake Mälaren, by the Stockholm archipelago, has been historically important. The city is known for its beauty, its buildings and architecture, its abundant clean and open water, and its many parks.
Stockholm is the seat of the Government of Sweden and most government agencies, including the highest courts in the Judiciary, and the official residencies of the Swedish monarch and the Prime Minister. The Government has its seat in the Rosenbad building, the Riksdag is seated in the Parliament House, and the Prime Minister's residence is adjacent at the Sager House. The Stockholm Palace is the official residence and principal workplace of the Swedish monarch, while the Drottningholm Palace, a World Heritage Site on the outskirts of Stockholm, serves as the Royal Family's private residence.
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