The coastal and naval town of Karlskrona with around 35,000 inhabitants is located in the picturesque archipelago of the southern Swedish province of Blekinge. 1679 by the Swedish King Charles XI. Founded with the aim of expanding its sphere of influence to the Baltic Sea region, the city functioned as a naval base for Sweden, a major military power at the time. The attractive landscape of the archipelago includes over 1,500 small and large islands, which appear green and lined with red wooden houses or bare and uninhabited. Karlskrona itself, whose city center lies six kilometers out in the archipelago, extends over 33 islands. The center of the town is on the island of Trossö, which is connected via bridges to the island of Hästö and from there to the mainland. The further inner city areas extend over the nearby islands of Ekholmen, Saltö, Dragsö, Langö and Stumholmen, and are all accessible via bridges. The central square Stortorget in the middle of the old city center is the largest historical square in Sweden with an area of 25,000 square meters. On its edge, among other historical buildings, are the two baroque churches Fredrikskyrkan and Trefaldighetskyrkan as well as the old town hall. The island of Stumholmen, which is close to the center, was owned by the Swedish Navy for centuries and is now freely accessible. The island is home to the large naval museum, centuries-old shipyards and military installations from the 17th century. Together with the historic harbor, large parts of the old city center and the old naval facilities, which have been almost completely preserved in their original form, were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998.