Geography played a big role in the creation of the Kingdom of Sweden. Here’s how:
Natural Resources: Sweden is covered by lots of forests—about 65% of the country. These forests provided wood for building ships and houses. This wood was important for trade and making the military strong.
Rivers and Lakes: Sweden has more than 95,700 lakes! These lakes and rivers helped people move around and trade easily. Important rivers like Göta älv and Klarälven were key for transporting goods.
Strategic Location: Sweden is located between Finland, Norway, and Denmark. This location helped it defend itself and grow. The Baltic Sea was important for trade, linking Sweden to other parts of Europe.
Land Fertility: Most of the land in Sweden is rocky, but about 8% is good for farming. This farmland was important to feed the people and support the armies.
All these geographic features helped Sweden become a united kingdom by the early 12th century.
Geography played a big role in the creation of the Kingdom of Sweden. Here’s how:
Natural Resources: Sweden is covered by lots of forests—about 65% of the country. These forests provided wood for building ships and houses. This wood was important for trade and making the military strong.
Rivers and Lakes: Sweden has more than 95,700 lakes! These lakes and rivers helped people move around and trade easily. Important rivers like Göta älv and Klarälven were key for transporting goods.
Strategic Location: Sweden is located between Finland, Norway, and Denmark. This location helped it defend itself and grow. The Baltic Sea was important for trade, linking Sweden to other parts of Europe.
Land Fertility: Most of the land in Sweden is rocky, but about 8% is good for farming. This farmland was important to feed the people and support the armies.
All these geographic features helped Sweden become a united kingdom by the early 12th century.