Visby () is an urban area in Sweden and the seat of

Gotland Municipality Region Gotland, legally Gotlands kommun ('), is a municipality with regional responsibilities that covers the entire island of Gotland in Sweden. The city of Visby is the municipality's seat. Gotland Municipality is the 39th most populous municip ...

Gotland County Gotland County () is a county or of Sweden. Gotland is located in the Baltic Sea to the east of Öland, and is the largest of Sweden's islands. Counties are usually sub-divided into municipalities, but Gotland County consists of only one count ...

on the island of

Gotland Gotland (; ; ''Gutland'' in Gutnish), also historically spelled Gottland or Gothland (), is Sweden's largest island. It is also a Provinces of Sweden, province/Counties of Sweden, county (Swedish län), Municipalities of Sweden, municipality, a ...

with 24,330 inhabitants . Visby is also the episcopal see for the

Diocese of Visby The Diocese of Visby () is a division of the Church of Sweden consisting of the island of Gotland. Its seat is Visby Cathedral located in the largest town on Gotland, Visby. The Bishop of Visby is also responsible for the episcopal oversight of ...

. The

Hanseatic The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

city of Visby is arguably the best-preserved

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

city in

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

, and, since 1995, it has been on the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

list. Among the most notable historical remains are the long

town wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with to ...

that encircles the town center, and a number of church ruins. The decline as a Hanseatic city in the

Late Middle Ages The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...

was the cause for many stone houses being preserved in their original medieval style. Visby is a popular vacation destination for Scandinavians during the summer and receives thousands of tourists every year. It is by far the most populous Swedish locality outside the Swedish mainland. The Gotland University is in Visby, and since 1July 2013, it is a department of

Uppsala University Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...

under the name Uppsala University–Campus Gotland. Visby is also the sole county seat in Sweden accessible from the mainland only by boat and air. Important annual events held in Visby include the annual political forum

Almedalen Week The Almedalen Week (, ), also known as Politician's Week in Almedalen () is an annual event taking place in week 26 in and around Almedalen, a park in the city of Visby, Gotland, Sweden. With speeches, seminars and other political activities, ...

Etymology

The name "Visby" comes from the

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

''Vis'', (

genitive In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can ...

singular of ''Vi'') meaning "(pagan) place of sacrifices", and ''by'', meaning "village". In the

Gutasaga Gutasaga (''Gutasagan'') is a saga regarding the history of Gotland before its Christianization. It was recorded in the 13th century and survives in only a single manuscript, the Codex Holm. B 64, dating to , kept at the National Library of Sweden ...

n (mid 14th century) the place is referred to as just ''Wi'' meaning "holy place, place of worship". Visby is sometimes called "The City of Roses" or "The City of Ruins".

History

The earliest history of Visby is uncertain, but it is known to have been a centre of merchandise around AD 900. It was inhabited as early as the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

, probably because of the access to fresh water and a

natural harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be moored. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

. The oldest finds at the site of present-day Visby are what have been interpreted as "beach huts", with the

radiocarbon dating Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for Chronological dating, determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of carbon-14, radiocarbon, a radioactive Isotop ...

method to the 7th–9th centuries AD. In the 12th century,

Visby Cathedral Visby Cathedral (), formally Visby Saint Mary's Cathedral (''Visby Sankta Maria domkyrka''), is a cathedral within the Church of Sweden, seat of the Diocese of Visby, Bishop of Visby. It lies in the centre of Visby, the main town on the Swedish ...

, dedicated to

Saint Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

, was constructed. It was reshaped in the 13th century to its current appearance, and was officially opened in 1225, by the bishop of the Swedish city of

Linköping Linköping ( , ) is a city in southern Sweden, with around 167,000 inhabitants as of 2024. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality and the capital of Östergötland County. Linköping is also the episcopal see of the Diocese of Linköping (Chu ...

(''in regional map''). Several other churches were also constructed in the ensuing centuries. The city flourished, thanks to the German

Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

. The work on the

ring wall A curtain wall is a defensive wall between fortified towers or bastions of a castle, fortress, or town. Ancient fortifications Evidence for curtain walls or a series of walls surrounding a town or fortress can be found in the historical source ...

was likely begun in the 12th century. Around 1300, it was rebuilt to reach its current height, acquiring the characteristic towers, although some towers were not constructed until the 15th century. The

ringwall A circular rampart () is an embankment built in the shape of a circle that was used as part of the defences for a military fortification, hill fort or refuge, or was built for religious purposes or as a place of gathering. The period during which ...

is still largely intact. In the first half of the 14th century (1300–1350), Visby was at the height of its wealth and influence, and it was during this time that

Laws of Wisbuy The Laws of Wisbuy, also known as the Wisbuy Sea Law or Gotland Sea Law, was a compilation of medieval maritime laws created in the 1400s. These laws themselves originated from the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The Wisbuy Sea Law did not ...

, a set of maritime laws that had broad influence in the Baltic and beyond, were probably promulgated. In 1361, Gotland was conquered by

Valdemar IV of Denmark Valdemar IV Atterdag, Valdemar Christoffersen or Waldemar (24 October 1375) was King of Denmark from 1340 to 1375. He is mostly known for his reunion of Denmark after the bankruptcy and mortgaging of the country to finance wars under previous rul ...

. 1,800 Gotlanders were killed in battle in front of the city. Valdemar tore down part of the wall, set up three huge beer barrels and threatened to turn his men loose to pillage the town unless they were filled with silver and gold. The Visby city fathers fulfilled the demand, with churches stripped of their valuables. Valdemar added "King of Gotland" to his title list. His treatment of Visby, a member of the Hanseatic League, precipitated that League into war with Denmark; however, though Valdemar was forced into various concessions, he retained Visby as a Danish city. In 1391, 1394 and 1398, it was taken and plundered by the

Victual Brothers The Victual Brothers () were a loosely organized guild of privateers who later turned to piracy. They affected maritime history, maritime trade during the 14th century in both the North Sea, North and Baltic Sea, Baltic Seas. They were initially ...

, pirates who sailed the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

. An invading army of

Teutonic Knights The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to t ...

conquered Gotland in 1398, destroyed Visby and expelled the Victual Brothers. In 1409, Grand Master

Ulrich von Jungingen Ulrich von Jungingen (1360 – 15 July 1410) was the 26th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1407 to 1410. His policy of confrontation with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland would spark the Polish–Lithuan ...

of the Teutonic Knights guaranteed peace with the

Kalmar Union The Kalmar Union was a personal union in Scandinavia, agreed at Kalmar in Sweden as designed by Queen Margaret I of Denmark, Margaret of Denmark. From 1397 to 1523, it joined under a single monarch the three kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden (then in ...

by selling the island of Gotland to Queen Margaret of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. In 1411, the Norwegian, Danish and Swedish King

Eric of Pomerania Erik of Pomerania ( 1381/1382 – 24 September 1459) ruled over the Kalmar Union from 1396 until 1439. He was initially co-ruler with his great-aunt Margaret I of Denmark, Margaret I until her death in 1412. Erik is known as Erik III as King of ...

had the castle of

Visborg Visborg (Count of Wisborg, Wisborg) refers to a fortress in the town of Visby on the Sweden, Swedish island of Gotland. Successive fortresses were built in Visby (''borg'' means fortress or castle), though Visborg is usually in reference to the c ...

constructed, and settled himself there for 12 years, during which the city virtually became a pirates' nest, and the commerce halted. As of 1470, the Hanseatic League rescinded Visby's status as a Hanseatic town. In 1525, the final blow came. In the Danish throne quarrel,

Lübeck Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...

, a Free City of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

and a leading member of the Hanseatic League, supported

Frederick I Frederick I or Friedrich I may refer to: * Frederick of Utrecht or Frederick I (815/16–834/38), Bishop of Utrecht. * Frederick I, Duke of Upper Lorraine (942–978) * Frederick I, Duke of Swabia (1050–1105) * Frederick I ...

, while

Søren Norby Søren Norby, self-styled as Severin Norbi (died 1530), was a Danish leading naval officer in the fleets of Danish kings Hans I and Christian II. He commandeered the greatest ship of the Danish fleet in naval wars against Sweden and Lübeck. Nor ...

the Danish governor of Gotland fought for

Christian II A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words ''Christ'' and ''Ch ...

, even after Christian's official resignation in 1523. While Norby fought a military action in Sweden, the Lübeckers successfully attacked Visby and set the city on fire from four sites. But unlike widespread belief, several churches survived at first. The churches of St. James (which already had been closed before), St. Nicholas and St. Gertrude were sacked by Lübeck's army. With the reformation, all churches except St. John, which became the city parish, were closed. In 1528, the citizens of Visby sacked the church of the Holy Trinity, or the church of Our Lord () in revenge for the plundering of their town. In 1533–34, the new Danish governor, , demolished St. John's and St. Peter's churches to improve the defence of his castle Visborgs slott. St. Mary's Cathedral remained the last functional church and became the new city parish. Gotland was again taken into Sweden's possession in 1645, by the Treaty of Brömsebro, after 300 years of Danish rule. The city developed slowly as things were left as they were. In the mid 18th century, after a plague had reduced Visby's population, some attempts were made by Swedish government officials to improve living standards, but little was accomplished. Not until the early 19th century did Visby once again attract commerce and a harbour industry. At the same time – 1808 – Gotland was conquered by Russia, but was peacefully taken back by the Swedes after only a couple of months.

Geography

Visby is the name of the locality, or town, as well as the name of the larger area surrounding it, Visby

socken Socken ( or ) is the name used for a part of a counties of Sweden, county in Sweden. In Denmark, similar areas are known as , in Norway or and in Finland or . A is a rural area formed around a church, typically in the Middle Ages. A socken ...

. In 1936, the socken was incorporated within the newly formed Visby stad (Visby city), the only locality with historical

city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose. Historically, ci ...

on Gotland. Visby socken comprises the same area as the administrative Visby District, established on 1January 2016. ,

Visborg Church Visborg Church is a church in Visby, on the island of Gotland in Sweden. The church was built in 1969 and designed by architect Per Erik Nilsson. It's built of brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements a ...

and Terra Nova Church in Visby belong to Visby Cathedral

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

(''Visby Domkyrkoförsamling''). Visby is also the only municipality seat of Sweden that is accessible from the mainland only by boat and air traffic. Visby is situated on the central west coast of Gotland, on the rather steep slopes of

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

cliffs surrounding the first natural harbor. The town has evolved around the

harbor that now constitutes the

Almedalen Almedalen (, ) is a park in the Swedish city of Visby on the island of Gotland. It is well known in Sweden as the central site of the annual Almedalen Week. In medieval times the area, just outside the city walls was the city harbour. Due to t ...

park. Long streets run parallel with the old shoreline with shorter alleys at a straight angle from these, lead from the harbor and up the slope up to the eastern higher part of town known as ''Klinten''. The old, original part of Visby is more or less enclosed by the city wall to the north, east and south, with the old harbor and the Baltic Sea in the west. The more modern parts of the town expand mostly east and inland from the wall. Along the shore south of the wall is the modern harbor with its ferry terminals and further south is a green recreational area called Södra Hällarna. Just inside the north part of the wall as well as along the north coast outside the wall, are several beaches: Kallbadhuset, Norderstrand, Snäckgärdsbaden (or simply Snäck) and

Gustavsvik Gustavsvik is a major recreational facility in the town of Örebro which was built in 1963 and it includes the largest water park in Northern Europe. Gustavsvik is one of Sweden’s most visited tourist and leisure facilities. In 2012, it had aro ...

. Visby and

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

are the only two North-European towns in which the city's medieval

grid plan In urban planning, the grid plan, grid street plan, or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid. Two inherent characteristics of the grid plan, frequent intersections and orthogon ...

has been fully preserved into present day. One of the

asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...

s in the

asteroid belt The asteroid belt is a torus-shaped region in the Solar System, centered on the Sun and roughly spanning the space between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It contains a great many solid, irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids ...

6102 Visby 6102 Visby, provisional designation , is a stony background asteroid from the central region of the asteroid belt, approximately in diameter. The asteroid was discovered on 21 March 1993, during the Uppsala-ESO Survey of Asteroids and Comets ...

, is named after this place.

Climate

According to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, Visby has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

(Cfb). This renders the summers cooler and the winters milder than in most of mainland Sweden. However, in spite of its maritime location the city's climate is very much influenced by continental airflows. Precipitation amounts are quite moderate, especially for an oceanic climate, and relatively consistent throughout the year. Visby is one of the sunniest towns in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and in the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; ) are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe, as well as the Arctic Ocean, Arctic and Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic oceans. It includes the sovereign states of Denm ...

, especially so during summer.

Infrastructure

Transport

Visby is linked to the mainland of Sweden by ferry and by plane. Ferries arrive from both

Oskarshamn Oskarshamn is a coastal city and the seat of Oskarshamn Municipality, Kalmar County, Sweden with 17,258 inhabitants in 2010. History Etymology Döderhultsvik was the original name before a town charter was granted in 1856. The name was then chan ...

Småland Småland () is a historical Provinces of Sweden, province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name ''Småland'' literally means "small la ...

and

Nynäshamn Nynäshamn is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Nynäshamn Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 13,510 inhabitants in 2010. While interest in the area as a potentially useful port grew from the mid-19th century, it was only ...

, near

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, each taking about three hours. The ferries are run by

Destination Gotland Destination Gotland is a Swedish ferry-line that runs state-subsidised domestic ferries from Nynäshamn and Oskarshamn to Visby on the island of Gotland. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rederi AB Gotland, also known as Gotlandsbolaget. The ...

and subsidized by the Swedish government. Destination Gotland is the only ferry operator – in summer 2016, independent shipping company Gotlandsbåten ran ferries to

Västervik Västervik is a city status in Sweden, city and the seat of Västervik Municipality, Kalmar County, Sweden, with 36,747 inhabitants in 2021. Västervik is one of three coastal towns with a notable population size in the province of Småland. Cl ...

and Nynäshamn, but this service was unprofitable and was not repeated in 2017.

Visby Airport Visby Airport , is located about north of Visby, Gotland, Sweden. Visby airport is Gotland's only commercial airport and the 12th largest airport in Sweden. The airport had 463,616 passengers in 2016. The traffic has a large seasonal variation, ...

is located about north of the city and offers connections to the Swedish mainland. With 467,857 passengers in 2018, it is the 9th largest airport in Sweden. Daily flights to

Stockholm Arlanda Airport Stockholm Arlanda Airport is the main international airport serving Stockholm, the capital of Sweden. It is located in Sigtuna Municipality, north of Stockholm and nearly southeast of Uppsala. The airport is located within Stockholm County. ...

is a common way to reach or depart from the island. There are also city buses in Visby as well as buses to other parts of Gotland. Visby gave its name to the 1968 Visby Amendments, which were an amendment of the Hague Rules of

shipping law Maritime law or admiralty law is a body of law that governs nautical issues and private maritime disputes. Admiralty law consists of both domestic law on maritime activities, and private international law governing the relationships between priva ...

, leading to the

Hague–Visby Rules The Hague–Visby Rules is a set of international rules for the international carriage of goods by sea. They are a slightly updated version of the original Hague Rules which were drafted in Brussels in 1924. The premise of the Hague–Visby ...

. Visby was previously served by two railway lines, the which ran from Lärbro in the north, to Burgsvik in the south, via Visby harbour and the , south to Visborgsslätt and Västerhejde. The first line, from Visby to Hemse was started in 1878, under the auspices of the Gotland Railway. Passenger transport was discontinued in September 1960. Freight traffic on the Slakteriet – Visby port route ran until May 1962. The last sections of the port track in Visby were removed in March 1964. Visby railway station, just south of the Söderport on Söderväg, was completed in 1878 and is one of the few remaining vestiges of the railway in Visby.

Utilities

Near Visby, there is the

static inverter plant An HVDC converter station (or simply converter station) is a specialised type of substation which forms the terminal equipment for a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line.Arrillaga, Jos; High Voltage Direct Current Transmission, s ...

for the first HVDC interconnection of a windpark (

HVDC Visby–Näs The HVDC Visby–Näs is a bipolar HVDC electric power transmission system between Visby and a wind power centre near Näs on Gotland, Sweden. The project went into service in 1999. The system operates at 80 kV with a maximum power of 50 megawatts ...

Sights and events

During the first week of July, Visby is the scene of the

, an important forum for everyone involved in Swedish politics. During the week, representatives from the major political parties in Sweden take turns giving speeches in the Almedalen park. In August, the

tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity on ...

season is at its peak. During week 32, from Sunday to Sunday, the annual

Medieval Week on Gotland The Battle of Visby was fought in 1361 near the town of Visby on the island of Gotland, between the forces of the Danish king and the Gutnish country yeomen. The Danish force was victorious. Background On 22July 1361, King Valdemar IV of Denmar ...

is held. During this week, regularly dressed tourists are outnumbered by people that are dressed in Medieval costumes. The festival started in 1984 and comprises a variety of events including music, jesters, theatre, a medieval market, and jousting tournaments. The headquarters of the World Ecological Forum is located in Visby.

Culture and the arts

Visby is home to the Baltic Centre for Writers and Translators and Visby International Centre for Composers.

In popular culture

Swedish author

Mari Jungstedt Mari Jungstedt (born 31 October 1962, in Stockholm) is a Swedish journalist and crime fiction author. Jungstedt worked as a reporter with Swedish national public radio and television, and was an occasional presenter on TV4's daily talk show ...

set nine detective novels on the island of Gotland. The principal character, DS Anders Knutas, is based at police headquarters in Visby, and there are numerous descriptive passages of the city and the island.

Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese animator, filmmaker, and manga artist. He co-founded Studio Ghibli and serves as honorary chairman. Throughout his career, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a masterful storyteller and creator of Anime, Japanese ani ...

noted that Visby is the main visual inspiration for the town in ''

Kiki's Delivery Service is a 1989 Japanese Anime, animated fantasy film written, produced, and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, based on Eiko Kadono's 1985 novel ''Kiki's Delivery Service (novel), Kiki's Delivery Service''. Animated by Studio Ghibli, the film stars Minami ...

'', with elements of other locations such as

also blended in. In 1971,

Ingmar Bergman Ernst Ingmar Bergman (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007) was a Swedish film and theatre director and screenwriter. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential film directors of all time, his films have been described as "profoun ...

filmed '' The Touch'' (''Beröringen'') with

Bibi Andersson Berit Elisabet Andersson (11 November 1935 – 14 April 2019), known professionally as Bibi Andersson (), was a Swedish actress who was best known for her frequent collaborations with filmmaker Ingmar Bergman. Early life and career Andersson ...

Max von Sydow Max von Sydow (; born Carl Adolf von Sydow; 10 April 1929 – 8 March 2020) was a Swedish and French actor. He had a 70-year career in European and American cinema, television, and theatre, appearing in more than 150 films and several television ...

and

Elliott Gould Elliott Gould (; né Goldstein; born August 29, 1938) is an American actor. Gould's breakthrough role was in the film ''Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice'' (1969), for which he received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. The ...

in Visby. Visby is referenced in the

Yorushika is a Japanese rock duo founded in 2017. The group is composed of N-buna, a Vocaloid producer, and Suis, a female vocalist. They are known for their juxtaposition of "passionate" and "upbeat" production and instrumentation fused with heavier l ...

song, "Rain with Cappuccino".

Sports

Current sport

The following sports clubs are located in Visby: *

Endre IF Endre may refer to: People Hungary Endre is a Hungarian masculine given name. It is a Hungarian form of ''Andrew'' and may refer to: * Endre (vice-palatine), 13th-century nobleman * Endre Ady, poet * Endre Botka, footballer * Endre Elekes, Oly ...

(floorball) *

Visby Ladies Visby BBK is a women's basketball club in Visby, Sweden. The club was established in 1992 out of the Visby AIK basketball section. The women's team, playing as Visby Ladies, won the Swedish women's national basketball championship during the season ...

(women's basketball) *

Visby IBK Visby () is an urban area in Sweden and the seat of Gotland Municipality in Gotland County on the island of Gotland with 24,330 inhabitants . Visby is also the episcopal see for the Diocese of Visby. The Hanseatic city of Visby is arguably the ...

(floorball) *

Visby/Roma HK Visby/Roma HK is a Swedish ice hockey club located in Visby on Gotland. The club currently plays in group East of Hockeyettan Hockeyettan is the third tier of ice hockey in Sweden. As of the 2015–16 season, the league consists of 39 teams ...

(ice hockey) *

FC Gute FC Gute, previously named ''Visby IF Gute'', is a Sweden, Swedish Association football, football club located in Visby on the island of Gotland. They currently play in the fourth-tier league Swedish football Division 2, Division 2 Norra Svealand. ...

(football) *

IFK Visby IFK Visby is a Swedish football club located in Visby on the island of Gotland. Background IFK Visby currently plays in Division 4 Gotland which is the sixth tier of Swedish football. They play their home matches at the Västerhejde IP in Visby. ...

(football) *

Visby AIK Visby AIK is a Swedish football club located in Visby on the island of Gotland. Background Visby AIK currently plays in Division 4 Gotland, sometimes called "Gotlandsfyran", which is the sixth tier of Swedish football. They play their home match ...

(football) * Visby Klätterklubb (Climbing)

Former sport

Motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four clockwise, anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that ...

took place at the Gamla Speedway Track in Galgberget (directly opposite the junction of Hangarvägen and Lummelundsväg). The venue existed from 1951 until 2007 and hosted the

Bysarna Bysarna were a Swedish motorcycle speedway team based at the Visby#Sports, Gamla Speedway Track, in Galgberget, Visby, Galgberget, north of Visby on the island of Gotland in Sweden. They were four times Swedish Speedway Team Championship, league ...

speedway team, who were four times league champions of Sweden.

Notable people

A number of notable people have originated from Visby, they are included in the Gotland list.

Gallery

;History File:Fornsalen - Hafen von Visby.jpg, Reconstruction of Visby harbour during the Middle Ages File:Visby 16arh.jpg, Visby as seen on an engraving from File:Suecia 3-034 ; Visby.jpg, Visby circa 1700, in ''

Suecia Antiqua et Hodierna ''Suecia Antiqua et Hodierna'' ("Ancient and Modern Sweden") is a collection of engravings collected by Erik Dahlbergh during the middle of the 17th century. ''Suecia Antiqua et Hodierna'' can be described as a grand vision of Sweden during its p ...

'' File:Wisby. Stadsvy , 1800-talets andra hälft, med Visby domkyrka - Nordiska museet - NMA.0091069.jpg, City view including

in the second half of the 19th century ;Main sights File:Visby Dom v O.JPG,

, view from the east File:Visby ringmur östra delen norrut.jpg, City wall of Visby File:St Nicolaus kyrkoruin Visby Gotland.jpg, Ruins of St. Nicholas' Church File:Ruine St.Drotten 2.jpg, Ruins of St. Drotten's Church ;General views File:Gatumiljo fran Visby, Gotland, Sverige, Johannes Jansson (1).jpg, The old pharmacy, Strandgatan File:Liljehornska huset.jpg, The Liljehornska house, Strandgatan File:Gråbrodern 4 Hultgrenska huset St Hansgatan Visby Gotland.jpg, The Hultgrenska house, St Hansgatan File:Norra murgatan 38, Visby, Gotland.jpg, Norra Murgatan File:Stora Torget och Södra Kyrkogatan, Visby.jpg, The Main Square and Södra Kyrkogatan ;Visby harbour

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External links

Gotland Tourist Association
– Visby
Visby – a world heritage town
* {{Authority control County seats in Sweden Members of the Hanseatic League Municipal seats of Gotland County Populated places in Gotland County Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea Romanesque architecture in Sweden Swedish municipal seats World Heritage Sites in Sweden Viking Age populated places Coastal cities and towns in Sweden Pirate dens and locations Cities in Sweden