Ever wondered how kings traveled in style centuries ago? Today we are standing on Gustav III:s Väg. This road whispers tales of royal journeys and grand ambitions.
Gustav III:s Väg is more than just a road. It’s a piece of history stretching through the districts of Abrahamsberg Olovslund and Nockeby in Bromma. It marks a section of the old Drottningholmsvägen. This was once Gustav’s old Drottningholmsväg. It ran from the Royal Palace in Stockholm across Brommalandet. The road passed through Traneberg Ulvsunda Abrahamsberg Olovslund and Nockeby. It continued over to Kärsön and Lovön to Drottningholm.
King Gustav III inaugurated this route in 1787. He sought a faster way to his beloved Drottningholm Palace. Before Gustav III’s road royals had to take a long detour. They went through Solna and Bällsta. Then they took a ferry to Lovön. Gustav III wanted something better.
He commissioned a new road and three bridges. These bridges were predecessors to Tranebergsbron Nockebybron and Drottningholmsbron. Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz was the architect. The road’s opening was a spectacle. There were illuminations and a play by Carl Michael Bellman.
Gustav III’s new road shortened the journey significantly. It went from 17 km to 11 km. The part of the old road that remained was named Gustav III:s Väg in 1938.
Around 1930 Drottningholmsvägen was rerouted. The construction of new city districts required this change. Gustav III:s Väg became a remnant of the original road.
Along Gustav III:s Väg several old torps or farmsteads once stood. Dragontorpet Abrahamsberg still stands at number 5. It dates back to the 1700s. Further along lay Olovslunds torp Katrinelundstorpet and Nytorpet. Fredrikslunds torp and Åkerslunds torp were nearby.
Åkerslunds torp was built around 1860. The Ahlberg family rented out rooms there. They had a veranda overlooking Drottningholmsvägen.
Today Gustav III:s Väg passes Åkeshovsvägen and Djupdalsvägen. It runs by Nockebyskogen. The Bromma sewage treatment plant is at number 95. The road ends in Nockebyskogen.
Gustav III wanted a direct view to Drottningholm. Geography made a straight line impossible. However with the new road he could see the palace. It appeared “on a platter” as he approached Nockeby.
The road and bridges were maintained by the state until 1919. Gustav III:s vision improved travel to Drottningholm. He left a lasting impact on the landscape. As you walk Gustav III:s Väg imagine the carriages. Picture the king traveling to his palace. Consider the vision of a king.