{{Infobox settlement | official_name = Valdemarsvik | image_skyline = Valdemarsvik , Sparbankstorget.jpg | image_caption = | pushpin_map = Sweden Östergötland#Sweden | pushpin_label_position = | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = Sweden | subdivision_type3 = Municipality | subdivision_name3 = Valdemarsvik Municipality | subdivision_type2 = County | subdivision_name2 = Östergötland County | subdivision_type1 = Province | subdivision_name1 = Östergötland<br/>and Småland | area_footnotes = <ref name=scb>{{cite web |url=http://www.scb.se/Statistik/MI/MI0810/2010A01/Tatorternami0810tab1_4.xls |title=Tätorternas landareal, folkmängd och invånare per km<sup>2</sup> 2005 och 2010 |date=14 December 2011 |publisher=Statistics Sweden |language=sv |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127055525/http://www.scb.se/Statistik/MI/MI0810/2010A01/Tatorternami0810tab1_4.xls |archive-date=27 January 2012 |url-status=live |access-date=10 January 2012 }}</ref> | area_total_km2 = 2.89 | population_as_of = 31 December 2020 | population_footnotes = <ref name="scb_urban_area_population_area_population_density">{{cite web | title=Statistiska tätorter 2020, befolkning, landareal, befolkningstäthet| publisher=Statistics Sweden | url=https://www.scb.se/MI0810 |date=31 December 2020 | access-date=3 June 2024}}</ref> | population_total = 2,751 <!-- This is the official figure from Statistics Sweden (Statistiska centralbyrån). --> | population_density_km2 = auto | timezone = CET | utc_offset = +1 | timezone_DST = CEST | utc_offset_DST = +2 | coordinates = {{coord|58|12|N|16|36|E|region:SE|display=inline,title}} | website = }} '''Valdemarsvik''' is a locality, situated alongside the bay of {{Ill|Tjust archipelago|lt=Valdemarsviken|sv|Tjusts skärgård}} which connects to the Baltic Sea. It is the seat of Valdemarsvik Municipality which is located in Östergötland County, Sweden. The coastal area is a popular summer destination, particularly with Swedish tourists.
==History== thumb|left|A 1913 postcard of Valdemarsvik Valdemarsvik is surrounded by water. However, after the end of the last glacial period, it lay beneath the sea level. As a result of post-glacial rebound, the water withdrew as the land rose. The resulting appearance of fertile soil drew settlers in the Bronze Age, around 1500 BC.<ref name="Val1" />
The surrounding archipelago has had a bloody history: remains of shipwrecks at the bottom of the sea and Viking Age remnants witness of battles from that time. Industrialization occurred during the 1630s, when Valdemarsvik became a trade port for copper and leather; one of Sweden's largest tanneries was located in Valdemarsvik. The town's name was first mentioned in 1664.<ref name="Val1">{{cite web |title=Historik – Valdemarsviks kommun |url=http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Om-kommunen/Historik/ |publisher=Valdemarsvik Municipality |access-date=24 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514184645/http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Om-kommunen/Historik/ |archive-date=14 May 2011 |language=sv |url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Tourism and entertainment== Sailing to the {{Ill|Tjust archipelago|sv|Tjusts skärgård}} to swim and fish is a popular summertime activity. Boat excursions and jetski rentals are also available.
{{Blockquote |text=No one I know who has experienced Gryt's archipelago disagrees with me saying: It has been—and is—a blessing to experience this archipelago, this living porch, stretching out into the endless ocean. |author=Henning Mankell, author and seasonal resident of the archipelago of Gryt<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100126000144/http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/ |archive-date=26 January 2010 |title=Turist i Valdemarsviks kommun – Valdemarsviks kommun}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/Information/ |title=Allmän turistinformation – Valdemarsviks kommun |access-date=17 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514181400/http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/Information/ |archive-date=14 May 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/Se-och-gora/ |title=Se och göra – Valdemarsviks kommun |access-date=17 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514185850/http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/Se-och-gora/ |archive-date=14 May 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> }}
Other recreational activities include bicycle rentals, golf, cinemas, canoeing, and horse riding. There are museums in the locality that can be visited. The glass artist, sculptor and painter {{Ill|Milan Wobruba|sv}} has a studio, where visitors have the opportunity to be involved in glass blowing and the manufacture of glass. An "October Market", held every 4 October, is both a market, with a range of goods to be sold, and a fair, featuring acrobats, cotton candy, live music and various amusement rides.{{cn|date=January 2024}}
Many of Valdemarsvik's restaurants and cafés are open all year round; other are open during the tourist season. Also, each year there is exists a special "food competition". Dishes are to be made, the ingredients should, as far as possible, be locally produced and which a jury then assesses. The winning dish is then served at most restaurants in the municipality.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/Ata/ |title=Äta – Valdemarsviks kommun |access-date=17 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514175944/http://www.valdemarsvik.se/sv/Publik/Turism/Ata/ |archive-date=14 May 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
The football club Valdemarsviks IF is located in Valdemarsvik.{{cn|date=January 2024}}
== References == {{commons category-inline}} {{Reflist}}
{{Localities in Valdemarsvik Municipality}} {{Östergötland County}} {{authority control}}
Category:Municipal seats of Östergötland County Category:Market towns in Sweden Category:Populated places in Valdemarsvik Municipality