History of UAF

The history of Uppsala Akademiförvaltning goes back as far as 1624, when it was founded to administer the property of the so-called “Gustavian donation,” when King Gustavus Adolphus bequeathed land owned by the crown to Uppsala University.

Uppsala Akademiförvaltning’s beginnings are marked by the year 1624, when the bursar of the academy in Uppsala was given the task of managing an enormous donation from King Gustavus Adolphus: 378 farms, 9 crofter’s holdings, 2 grain mills, 1 saw mill, and 24 meadows, fields, and patches of arable land, as well as the tithes of eight parishes.

This provided the university for the first time with an interest-bearing capital of its own, which granted it an entirely new stability. The proceeds of the donation were so vast that they covered the costs of the university’s operations and investments until far into the 19th century.

Over the years, a large number of other donations, in the form of property, various financial instruments, and ready money, have been received as well. In most of these cases, the proceeds have been intended for use as student scholarships. Proceeds from some of the more significant donations have had a broader purpose, aimed at promoting studies within a department, particular field, or, as was stipulated by King Gustavus Adolphus’s donation, to support the general development of the university.

Since 1997, most of the donations have been set up in the form of foundations, meaning that the funds do not belong to either the state or Uppsala University but are their own juridical person tasked with promoting the activities of the university. It was to handle the routine management of these foundations and their capital that a specific organization was founded, called the Uppsala University Foundations Management of Estates and Funds (Uppsala Akademiförvaltning).