Emigration to America
During the second half of the 1800s and the early 1900s, Sweden was a poor agricultural country. Crop failures, poverty and a lack of land drove more than a million Swedes to emigrate between 1850 and 1920, mainly to the United States, in hope of a better life. This emigration is an important part of Sweden's history and shows how different the country's economic situation was compared to today.
The breakthrough of democracy
Sweden did not become a full democracy overnight. The decision on universal and equal suffrage was made by the Riksdag in 1918, and it was not until the 1921 election that both women and men were able to vote in a Riksdag election for the first time. This is an important distinction to remember: 1918 is the year of the decision, while 1921 is the year of the first election in which everyone entitled to vote actually did so. With this, Sweden became a parliamentary democracy in which power derives from the people.
The "people's home" and the Swedish model
In 1928, the Social Democratic leader Per Albin Hansson formulated the idea of the "people's home" (folkhemmet) — the notion that society should be like a good home, where no one is left out and where security and community apply to everyone, regardless of background. The idea of the people's home came to shape the expansion of the Swedish welfare state during the 20th century.
In parallel, what is known as the "Swedish model" developed in the labor market. It means that employers and trade unions negotiate wages and conditions themselves through collective agreements, rather than the state deciding this by law. The model has its roots in the Saltsjöbaden Agreement of 1938, an agreement between employers and trade unions that laid the foundation for a peaceful and stable labor market in Sweden.
Sweden during the two world wars
Sweden was not a warring party in either the First or Second World War, and declared itself neutral in both conflicts. Despite its neutrality, the country was affected by the war, and Sweden took in refugees from several countries.
One Swede who became world-famous for his humanitarian efforts during World War II is the diplomat Raoul Wallenberg. He worked at the Swedish legation in Budapest and issued protective passports that saved thousands of Hungarian Jews from deportation to concentration camps. Wallenberg himself disappeared into Soviet captivity after the war, and his fate remains not fully clarified.
The Million Programme and housing construction
After World War II, Sweden's economy grew rapidly, and many people moved from the countryside to the cities. To solve the acute housing shortage, the Riksdag decided on what became known as the Million Programme (miljonprogrammet): a plan to build one million homes over ten years, from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s. The Million Programme fundamentally changed the appearance of Swedish cities and created many of the residential areas that still exist today.
Why does this matter for the citizenship test?
Questions about Sweden's modern history are about understanding how today's Sweden — its democracy, welfare and labor market — came to be. The civics section of the citizenship test tests whether you know key years such as 1918 and 1921, concepts such as the people's home and the Swedish model, and figures such as Per Albin Hansson and Raoul Wallenberg.
CitizenPrep helps you practice this type of question with clear explanations in several languages, but remember that our service is study material and not an official government service — we can never guarantee that you will pass the real test. Regular review, however, increases your chances of recognizing the correct answer to questions about Sweden's modern history.