Lödöse


Lödöse, also known as Gamla Lödöse, Gamlöse or Gammelös, is a locality situated in Lilla Edet Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. A politically crucial centre of trade in the high middle ages, it had just 1,266 inhabitants in 2010. It is considered the precursor to modern-day Gothenburg, the second largest city in Sweden.

Medieval Lödöse

By the year 1000, Lödöse was an important trading town, located between modern-day Oslo and Copenhagen and near the mouth of the Göta river. It was the Geats' only port on the west coast: hence, it had great strategic importance.
Trapped as it was between Norway and Denmark, Lödöse was moved further down the river to Nya Lödöse, and eventually to the site of present-day Gothenburg, in order to escape taxes levied on merchants by the Norwegians at Bohus Fästning.

Modern Lödöse

Today, Lödöse is a small town with 1,300 inhabitants in Lilla Edet Municipality, 40 kilometers northeast of Gothenburg up the Göta älv. The medieval history of the town is displayed at the prize-winning Middle Age museum – Lödöse Museum – which opened in 1996.