Sweden gifts palace to Victoria and Daniel

The Swedish government announced on Thursday that it is to hand over the use of Haga Palace near Stockholm to Crown Princess Victoria.

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"The Crown Princess appreciates the generous offer and looks forward to living in Haga Palace together with her husband to be Daniel Westling," the Royal Court confirmed in a press release on Thursday.

The initiative to vacate the palace, which is located in Hagaparken in Solna, was taken by the government.

"I wanted to raise the issue of how the housing problem should be solved when the wedding was announced. I noticed a significant interest from the Royal Court," Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said in a press conference on Thursday.

The government has used the palace, which has also been known as the Queen's Pavilion, since 1966, when the then king, Gustaf VI Adolf, surrendered the royal right of disposal.

The palace was transferred to the government for use "as a residence for prominent people from overseas, who are guests of the government or otherwise considered worthy of the privilege."

Haga Palace was designed by the city architect Carl Christoffer Gjörwell and was completed in 1804. The current king, Carl XVI Gustaf, and his sisters were born in the palace and lived there until the death of their father in a plane crash in 1947.

Since 1966 the palace has been used for a range of purposes from state visits, conferences and meetings to government entertainment.

Fredrik Reinfeldt declared that the royal residence would not affect public access to the park.

"I think that the Swedish people have fond memories of when the 'Haga princesses' lived there (referring to the four elder sisters of the current king). I hope that this decision will lay the basis for a new similar age," he said.

The palace is managed by the National Property Board (SFV) and is a registered national monument.

It is now between the king and SFV to decide how best to use the property and identify any renovations that may be required.