The regulation consisted of two parts:

• The right for everyone to publish thoughts, opinions and feelings in print.
• The right for everyone to consult the documents of public authorities and governing bodies (such as decisions, minutes and reports), and to print them if they wish. This right is known as the principle of openness.

In the mid-18th century, Sweden had a unique parliamentary system that gave great power to the Riksdag and little power to the King. During the Age of Liberty, 1719-1772, it became important to be able to freely exchange thoughts and ideas, as well as to be able to raise public opinion and conduct public debate. This led to the first Freedom of the Press Act.

Through sources held at the National Archives, we can follow the process of formulating a Freedom of the Press Ordinance, and through printed matter preserved at the KB, we can study the impact of the law.

The documents were designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2023.

Explore the The National Library's materials

• Maj:ts Nådige Förordning, Concernant Skrif- och Tryck-friheten External link. (1766)
• The 1766 Freedom of the Press Ordinance, background and significance External link. (Facsimile with historical background by Jonas Nordin, 2015)
• Thoughts on the freedom of the press, and its benefit and harm External link. (1767)
• Shame to be a citizen, shame to be a scholar External link. (1769)
• Fria frågor, til et fri och sjelftänkande folk External link. (1769)
• On the freedom of the press, the foundation of our civil liberty, and the surest means for the survival of society in times to come External link. (1770)

Explore the materials of the National Archives

• Documents of the Grand Deputation of the Estates of the Realm 1765-1766, volume 1 External link. (constitutional report)
  
• Documents of the Grand Deputation of the Estates General 1765-1766, volume 2 External link. (Committee on Freedom of the Press)

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize posthumously, the same year as the accident.

After his death, the collection was donated to the KB, where it is still kept. It includes documents relating to the United Nations, manuscripts, letters and personal documents on world politics. It comprises around 45 shelf meters and the documents are mainly in English.

The Dag Hammarskjöld Collection was designated a World Heritage Site in 2017.

Explore the material

• Dag Hammarskjöld's collection in the the National Library's Arken search service External link.
  
• Photographer Dag Hammarskjöld - digital collection
  
• "Dag Hammarskjöld - World Heritage and the enigma", blog post (2021)

When the first boxes arrived, Astrid Lindgren was advised by the head of the manuscript department at the time not to "throw anything away". An advice that she carefully followed. After her death, both her heirs and other donors continued to transfer material to the archive.

Today, Astrid Lindgren's archive comprises a total of 137 shelf meters of paper, photographs, sound recordings and moving images plus 8.5 shelf meters of books. The material mainly covers the period 1933-2007, but the emphasis is on the period after 1970.

The Astrid Lindgren Archive was designated a World Heritage Site in 2005.

Explore the material

• Astrid Lindgren's archive in the National Library's search service Arken External link.
  
• "A popular world memory", blog post (2023)
• Ingrid Vang Nyman's sketches - illustrations from the children's books