About the Embassy

Sweden and the United States have had strong ties since the 17th century.

The first Swedish colony along the banks of the Delaware River was established in 1638. 

Sweden was the first country not engaged in the Revolutionary War to recognize the young American republic. America's Ambassador to Paris, Benjamin Franklin and the Swedish Ambassador, Count Gustaf Philip Creutz signed a treaty of amity and commerce in 1783.

Swedish men fought in the American Civil War. The hundreds of thousands of Swedes who crossed the Atlantic Ocean during the great Swedish emigration of the mid 1800's helped to settle and develop the central and Western United States.

The former Embassy Chancery was located at the intersection of 15th and M Streets in the heart of Washington, DC. Previous locations included a victorian building on R Street, N.W., and the top floor of the Watergate 600 Office Building along the banks of the Potomac River. 

On August 7, 2006 the Embassy returned to the banks of the Potomac River when the new Embassy site opened in Georgetown,  approximately one half mile north of the Watergate site.

The Embassy of Sweden in Washington, D.C. is one of the largest Swedish legations in the world. 

The Ambassador lives in a residence in Northwest Washington. Staff members reside in the District of Columbia and the surrounding suburbs in Maryland and Virginia.

The Embassy is the official communications link between the Swedish and American governments.  The Ambassador heads the Embassy and is the official representative of the Swedish Government to the United States Government.

In addition to the Ambassador's office and the office of the Deputy Chief of Mission, there are nine sections of the Embassy, each headed by a minister or counselor, who in turn are assisted by staffs of various sizes.