6 JULY 2026
Lövstabruk
Lövstabruk is one of Sweden's best-preserved ironworks and is considered an exceptional cultural heritage site from the 17th century Great Power era. In the well-preserved works environment you'll find a manor house, church, baroque park and an entire works village — all in the condition the De Geer family left it.
From Royal Works to the Walloons' Home
Iron production at Lövsta is documented from the Middle Ages, but it was during the 1600s that the place reached its heyday. In 1626–27, the works were leased to the Dutch merchants Willem de Besche and Louis de Geer. In 1643, Louis de Geer purchased the entire works and established here one of the country's leading iron foundries — described as Sweden's largest iron works and one of the world's finest.
Louis de Geer recruited blacksmiths and furnace builders from Wallonia, present-day southern Belgium. In total, this represented a labor immigration of over a thousand people. The Walloons brought with them advanced metalworking techniques that elevated iron quality to European top class, and the works' iron — the so-called Lövsta iron — was exported throughout Europe.
The De Geer Dynasty and the Manor Complex
After Louis de Geer's death in 1652, his son Emanuel inherited the works. Under his cousin Charles de Geer, who took over the works in 1692, a town plan was laid out that is still largely preserved today. The Russian raids in 1719 devastated the buildings, but Charles de Geer had everything rebuilt in stone — it is this complex that visitors encounter today.
The manor's elegant salons, an 18th-century library, historic kitchen and banqueting hall from the mid-1700s are preserved. In the church is a Cahman organ from 1728, one of the most important preserved Baroque organs in Sweden. The park reflects Baroque design principles and was designed with inspiration from the era's leading landscape architects.
Lövstabruk became an entailed estate in 1730 and remained in the De Geer family's ownership until 1986, when the Leufsta Foundation was established with Uppsala County Council, the County Administration Board, Uppsala University, Tierps Municipality and the De Geer family as parties.
Visiting Lövstabruk
Today the museum operations are run by the Leufsta Foundation. Visitors can walk around the works area, see the manor building, the church with the Cahman organ and the well-preserved works village whose character has remained largely unchanged since the 1700s. During the summer season, concerts and guided tours are arranged.
- Location: Lövstabruk, Östhammar Municipality, Uppsala County
- Church: Works church with unique Cahman organ from 1728
- History: Iron works in operation from the 1500s to 1926
- Management: The Leufsta Foundation (since 1986)