ABSTRACT
The late Middle Ages was a boom time for Sweden. Foreign trade prospered, towns and the bourgeoisie flourished, and the nobility and the Church enjoyed increased prosperity. Together with the building of impressive castles, monasteries and churches, the outgrowth of this golden age was the founding of Sweden’s first seat of higher learning in 1477. Championed by the Archbishop of Uppsala, the university was established in Uppsala in the stone-built houses that surrounded the cathedral in the town centre, marking the beginning of the university’s integral relationship with the urban environment. Although the university has expanded centrifugally in its 500-year history, it remains intrinsic to the life of the city, and this is its chief quality and asset.
