Swedish country houses are among Europe's best-kept secrets. Little known to the outside world and rarely illustrated, they survive in surprisingly large numbers, often with their original furniture and decoration. This book is the first to tell their story.

The twenty examples examined in detail range in type from royal palace to farmhouse, and in date from 15th-century Torpa to 19th-century Stjernsund. They all reflect the talents of many important architects and designers who together forged a distinctive national style.