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Architectural style · c. 1235–1530 in Sweden

Gothic

Gotik

Pointed arches, vaults and tall windows that draw the eye heavenwards. Gothic makes churches lighter, taller – and fills them with stories.

How to spot it Find it in the app

The style in timeDrag to travel in time

  1. Zigguratc. 2200–500 BC
  2. Ancient Greek architecturec. 700–30 BC
  3. Roman architecturec. 500 BC–AD 400
  4. Nabataean architecturec. 300 BC–AD 106
  5. Byzantine architecturec. 330–1453 in the Eastern Roman Empire
  6. Moorish architecture8th–15th century in al-Andalus and North Africa
  7. Carolingian architecturec. 780–900 in the Frankish Empire
  8. Novgorod and Pskovc. 1045–1600 in north-western Russia
  9. Norman architecturec. 1050–1200
  10. Romanesquec. 1050–1250
  11. Mudéjarc. 1100–1600
  12. Gothicc. 1235–1530
  13. Brick Gothicc. 1250–1530
  14. Late Gothicc. 1400–1530
  15. Manuelinec. 1490–1530
  16. Renaissancec. 1520–1650
  17. Palladian architecturec. 1550–1800
  18. Dutch Renaissancec. 1560–1650 in the Netherlands and Flanders
  19. Baroquec. 1640–1730
  20. Carolean Baroquec. 1680–1720
  21. Georgian architecture1714–1830
  22. Rocococ. 1730–1775
  23. Neoclassicismc. 1750–1850
  24. Gustavianc. 1772–1810
  25. Karl Johan stylec. 1810–1850
  26. Victorian architecture1837–1901
  27. Gothic Revivalc. 1840–1910
  28. Historicismc. 1840–1900
  29. Industrial architecturec. 1850–1950
  30. Neo-Renaissancec. 1850–1900
  31. Swiss chalet stylec. 1850–1900
  32. Landshövdingehus1875–1945
  33. Neo-Baroquec. 1880–1910
  34. Beaux-Artsc. 1830–1920
  35. National Romanticismc. 1890–1920
  36. Art Nouveauc. 1896–1914
  37. Art Decoc. 1910–1940
  38. 1910s Neoclassicismc. 1910–1920
  39. Bauhaus1919–1933
  40. Swedish Gracec. 1920–1930
  41. Functionalismc. 1930–1950
  42. Socialist classicismc. 1933–1955
  43. Post-war Swedish modernismc. 1940–1960
  44. Brutalismc. 1950–1975
  45. The Record Yearsc. 1955–1975
  46. The Million Programme1965–1974
  47. DeconstructivismFrom the 1980s
  48. Postmodernismc. 1980–1995
  49. LonghouseStone Age to Viking Age
  50. Log houseThe Middle Ages onwards
  51. Raised storehouseIron Age to 20th century
  52. Swedish vernacularc. 1600–1900
  53. Croft and cottagec. 1700–1900
  54. Decorated farmhouses of Hälsinglandc. 1700–1900
  55. Half-timberingThe Middle Ages to the 19th century
  56. Sámi goahtiFrom prehistory to the present day
  57. Seljuk architecturec. 1040–1300
  58. Persian architectureIran
  59. British Colonialc. 1700–1950 in the British Empire

01. The pointed arch takes over

Gothic is born in France in the 12th century and reaches Sweden in the 13th. The secret is the pointed arch and the rib vault. With them the weight can be led down into piers and buttresses instead of resting on thick walls – and the walls can be opened up for large windows.

The great projects are the cathedrals. Uppsala Cathedral is begun around 1272–73 on a French model and not consecrated until 1435 – the largest church in the Nordic countries. To this day, medieval iron tie-rods hold parts of its structure together: the silent partner behind the façade. Linköping Cathedral takes almost three centuries to build. And in Vadstena, the Bridgettines raise their abbey church in limestone from 1369 to 1430, its faint blue shimmer earning it the nickname the Blue Church.

Out in the parishes, older churches are rebuilt. Chancels are widened, vaults are put in and walls are covered in paintings. Where brick is scarce they build in limestone or fieldstone; in the Mälaren valley and Skåne brick becomes ever more common – see Brick Gothic.

02. How to spot it

  • 1.Pointed arches in windows, portals and vaults
  • 2.Rib and star vaults over the nave
  • 3.Buttresses on the outside of the walls
  • 4.Larger windows, often with tracery in the upper part
  • 5.A wider chancel than in Romanesque churches
  • 6.Painted and carved figures stand more freely, with deep folds in their robes

03. The giveaway

The buttresses. If heavy piers prop the church up from outside, the walls are not carrying the vault alone – a sure Gothic sign.

Read the façade

  1. Tracery in the round window
  2. Pointed arches
  3. The pointed gable

04. Where to see it

  • Uppsala Cathedralbegun in the 1270s, consecrated 1435
  • Vadstena Abbey Churchlimestone, 1369–1430
  • Linköping Cathedral
  • The churches of Gotland and the church ruins of Visby

05. In the app

7 places in this style in Everyday Grandeur, added by the app's users. Tap a place to see it on the map.

06. Often confused with

Gothic Revival. The 19th-century copy. Gothic Revival churches are usually built in machine-made brick with perfectly regular details, often with a tall, slender spire. If the church was built after 1840, it is Gothic Revival.

Sources

  • Svenska kyrkan, Folkungabygdens församling: "Stilar och epoker"
  • Pontus Bovin: Bakom fasaden – ankarslutens gömda konstruktion och syfte (Uppsala universitet, Campus Gotland, 2024), med Bo Molander: Järn i gamla byggnader (1985)
  • Swedish Wikipedia: "Gotik", "Uppsala domkyrka", "Vadstena klosterkyrka"

Text: Pontus Bovin · Last updated 9 November 2026

Gothic around the corner

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