398 years ago today, Sweden's most famous ship became Sweden's most famous shipwreck, and then eventually Sweden's most famous museum... We'll be telling the full story of the Vasa on the podcast quite soon. Keep your eyes out!

Pack your bags, we're off to create a new settlement called Gothenburg! It has taken a while for one of Sweden's most famous places to be founded, but it has now happened. Let's learn all about the rough start the town had and see what role the Dutch had to play. Out now!

Incredibly we're now a fair bit over halfway through our ranking of all the Swedish kings, queens and regents! Do you have a favourite person or a favourite story from those we've covered so far? Åsa's is Margareta's life story and Chris really enjoys Jons Bengtsson Oxenstierna!

Stockholm City Museum, we're ashamed to say we have only just visited you! But you made up for it. A super interesting place, all about the city's history from the middle ages onwards. Åsa even tried on some hats in one exhibition on department store! 👒

We know you're hungry for more Swedish ruler content, so here is EAT! Erik Axelsson Tott is here and ready to make the border nobility proud. But how will he try to succeed where so many others have failed in the recent past? Find out now!

Åsa joined the Stockholm Pride parade today 🏳️‍🌈 As a designated Pride parade it dates back to 1998 when the city hosted Europride for the first time. However, its roots are longer than that. Since the late 1970s there's been an LGBTQI+ parade/march in the city in some form.

Happy Birthday to half of Flatpack and Kingdom, Åsa! An excellent co-producer, co-host, travel buddy and excellent napper 🥳

Axel Oxenstierna is here, perhaps Sweden's most famous bureaucrat. But he's much more than just that. Here we look at how he begins to reshape the way Sweden functions as a country, from the courts to economic policies. He even hosts Sweden's first ever "trade show" in an attempt to spark new ideas!

Tomorrow on Kingdom, we're going to look into the fascinating life and rule of Jöns Bengtsson Oxenstierna, one of the most momentous characters of this part of Swedish history. Most importantly though, we'll see if Åsa is going soft on torture the further we get... Tune in to find out!

In today's episode Flatpack goes to Stegeborg castle 🏰 It's featured several times in the podcast and played an important part in Swedish history. We recorded on-site and learned lots about the castle that we wanted to share with you. Listen out for a special flyby as well 🛩️

Tomorrow is a new episode of Flatpack but here's something unrelated! Last week we visited Ireland and enjoyed plenty of history, just nothing to do with Sweden. We saw several castles and old ruins, as well as some great scenery. What a lovely place!

This week's episode of Kingdom covered our first religious figure, as we saw how Bishop of Linköping Kettil Karlsson Vasa led two revolts and kicked out two kings before eventually becoming Riksföreståndare himself. But how will we rank his time as regent?

Happy Birthday to the Swedish Air Force who turn 100 today! They were even kind enough to ensure the big flypast flew literally above our flat. Congratulations 🎊

A trip to Gotland isn't complete without a visit to Visby; where the middle ages feel closer than ever, thanks to the preserved town planning, old houses, ruins & not least the ring wall. Åsa's plans to become a pirate queen on Gotland having failed, she's returned to Flatpack HQ 😆

Gotlandic farms are a bit different from those on the mainland. The iconic farm houses are made of locally quarried limestone. Åsa stopped in Bottarve on southern Gotland, where the local village preserve a farm from the 1700s. Well worth a visit if you're ever on Gotland!

It's Sunday and time for a new episode of Flatpack. Gustav Adolf (yes, that's what we're calling him 😂) is off to deal with Sweden's enemies in turn; first Denmark and then the big mess in Russia. Let's see how it goes, who wins and who loses, and at what cost...

Åsa's Gotlandic exploration continues! For centuries quarrying stones, in particular the island's characteristic limestone, was a major, but often small scale, industry on the island. Here's some pictures from what an old stone cutting place looked like!

Åsa has given up her plans for a hostile medieval style take over of Gotland. Because when she arrived in Visby the annual Almedalsveckan was ongoing.

Åsa is on her way to Gotland! Inspired by Erik of Pomerania she has decided to set up as a pirate queen and harass the Swedish and Danish kingdoms from her castle in Visby ☠️ 👸🏼 😂

Why read the same book once, when you can read it in two different languages??!! 😂 We're beginning research on one of Sweden's most interesting characters. This man is coming to your ears at the end of July!

Karl Knutsson Bonde gives up the rule in Sweden to the German born King of Denmark Kristian I and the Kalmar Union is once again ruled by the same monarch. But will Kristian be able to keep this unstable union together and will he follow our two simple rules for success?

Today is Midsummer Day and Åsa has woken up after part taking in a Swedish tradition/superstition. Having picked 7 different types of flower on Midsummer's Eve, she slept with them under her pillow, in the belief that it'll make her dream of her one true love ❤️ 🌼😄

Glad Midsommar / Happy Midsummer! The most Swedish of Swedish holidays is here and Åsa is enjoying her herring and schnapps! 🐟 💐 Tonight the sun will barely set and a lot of Swedes will be out dancing around the maypole. Cheers to everyone celebrating! 🥳

It's Sunday, time for a new episode and a new king on the throne of Sweden 👑 Who is young Gustav Adolf, the man who will go down in history as the Lion from the North, and how will he deal with the three wars that his dad left behind for Sweden to deal with?

Up the road from Stegeborg is the town of Söderköping, a quaint little palce near the end of the Göta canal. It has also seen coronations and drama throughout history, including meetings of the Riksdag and the first coronation of a Swedish queen! Well worth a visit 😃

One of the coolest things about Stegeborg Castle is the herb garden! First created by King Sigismund's sister Anna, it's been recreated to show what it used to look like. Whilst the formal garden disappeared over the centuries, the herbs themselves continued to spread and grow wildly!

Today we continue to look at KKB and see him become King of Sweden. We'll judge him all the way up until the end of this part of his life and see how he manages to negotiate his way through this turbulent period of Swedish politics, with kings, regents and noblemen all vying for power!

Happy National Day Sweden! 🥳 We visited Stegeborg castle, a medieval ruin that featured a few times on the pod. We explored the ruins and listened to a great audio guide whilst enjoying the sunshine. More content, including some on-site recording, will be coming in a special epsiode soon 😉

A new episode is here and things are getting tough for Karl, with three separate wars on his plate. But, he does have a great commander in Jacob de la Gardie and a fancy new weapon from France...!

Åsa was at Uppsala University a few weeks ago and in one of their main meeting rooms, it turned out the entire line up of Kingdom, past and future contestants, were looking down on you 😄 The perfect interior decoration for any meeting room, in our opinion 😂