Vättern in the context of "South Swedish Highland"

Mälaren (UK: /ˈmɛlərɛn/ MEL-ər-en, US: /ˈmeɪlɑːrən/ MAY-lar-ən, Swedish: [ˈmɛ̂ːlarɛn] or [ˈmɛ̂ːlaɳ]), historically referred to as Lake Malar in English, is the third-largest freshwater lake in Sweden (after Vänern and Vättern). Its area is 1,140 km (440 sq mi) and its greatest depth is 64 m (210 ft). Mälaren spans 120 km (74.6 mi) from east to west. The lake drains, from south-west to north-east, into the Baltic Sea through its natural outlets Norrström and Söderström (as it flows around Stadsholmen island) and through the artificial Södertälje Canal and Hammarbyleden waterway. The easternmost bay of Mälaren, in central Stockholm, is called Riddarfjärden. The lake is located in Svealand and bounded by the provinces of Uppland, Södermanland and Västmanland. The two largest islands in Mälaren are Selaön (91 km (35.1 sq mi)) and Svartsjölandet (79 km (30.5 sq mi)). Mälaren is low-lying and mostly relatively shallow.

Being a quite narrow and shallow lake, Mälaren has bridge crossings between Eskilstuna and Västerås with two crossings on the western end at Kvicksund and three separate bridges between Strängnäs and Enköping in the central part of the lake. On the eastern end, the entirety of Ekerö Municipality is set on islands within Mälaren. That urban area also has a bridge connection to the mainland in Stockholm along with bridges between various islands in the municipality.

Västergötland (Swedish: [ˈvɛ̂sːtɛrˌjøːtland] ), also known as West Gothland or the Latinized version Westrogothia in older literature, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden (landskap in Swedish), situated in the southwest of Sweden.

Västergötland is home to Gothenburg, the second largest city in Sweden, which is situated along a short stretch of the Kattegat strait. The province is bordered by Bohuslän, Dalsland, Värmland, Närke, Östergötland, Småland and Halland, as well as the two largest Swedish lakes Vänern and Vättern. Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden is Duchess of Västergötland.

Vänern (/ˈveɪnərn/ VAY-nərn, US also /ˈvɛnərn/ VEN-ərn, Swedish: [ˈvɛ̂ːnɛɳ]) is the largest lake in Sweden, the largest lake in the European Union and the third-largest lake in Europe after Ladoga and Onega in Russia. It is located in the provinces of Västergötland, Dalsland, and Värmland in the southwest of the country. With its surface located at 44 metres (144 ft) above sea level and a maximum depth of 106 metres (348 ft), the lowest point of the Vänern basin is 62 metres (203 ft) below sea level. The average depth is a more modest 27 metres (89 ft), which means that the lake floor is above sea level on average.

Vänern drains into Göta älv towards Gothenburg and the Kattegat opening strait between the Atlantic Ocean’s North Sea and the Baltic Sea. It is the only one of the ten largest lakes in Sweden not to drain out to the eastern coastline. The Göta Canal built in the 19th century forms a waterway that runs to Vättern wholly rising when proceeding eastward, and then a navigable river linking the east coast with Vänern. The main inflow of water comes from Klarälven entering Vänern near Karlstad with its source in Trøndelag in Norway.

Jönköping (/ˈjɜːn(t)ʃɜːpɪŋ/, Swedish: [ˈjœ̂nːˌɕøːpɪŋ] ) is a city in southern Sweden with 112,766 inhabitants (2022). Jönköping is situated on the southern shore of Sweden's second largest lake, Vättern, in the province of Småland.

The city is the seat of Jönköping Municipality, which has a population of 144,699 (2022) and is Småland's most populous municipality. Jönköping is also the seat of Jönköping County which has a population of 367,064 (2022). Jönköping is the seat of a district court and a court of appeal as well as the Swedish National Courts Administration. It is also the seat of the Swedish Board of Agriculture.

Eric the Victorious (Old Norse: Eiríkr inn sigrsæli, Modern Swedish: Erik Segersäll; c. 945 – c. 995) was a Swedish monarch as of around 970. Although there were earlier Swedish kings, he is the first Swedish king in a consecutive regnal succession, who is attested in sources independent of each other, and consequently Sweden's list of rulers usually begins with him. His son Olof Skötkonung, however, is considered the first ruler documented to definitely have been accepted both by the original Swedes around Lake Mälaren and by the Geats around Lake Vättern. Adam of Bremen reports a king named Emund Eriksson before Eric, but it is not known whether he was Eric's father. The Norse sagas' accounts of a Björn Eriksson are considered unreliable.

Östergötland County (Swedish: Östergötlands län) is a county or län in southeastern Sweden. It has land borders with the counties of Kalmar to the southeast, Jönköping to the southwest, Örebro to the northwest, and Södermanland to the northeast. It also has a sea border with Västra Götaland to the west (across lake Vättern), and borders the Baltic Sea to the east.

Östergötland County has a population of 456,550 (September 30, 2017) and the capital and biggest city is Linköping. Linköping and neighbouring twin city Norrköping together form one of Sweden's metropolitan areas; The Linköping-Norrköping Corridor is therefore sometimes marketed as The Fourth Metropolitan Region of Sweden, the other three being Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö. Princess Estelle is Duchess of Östergötland.