Skövde is situated some 150 km northeast of Gothenburg, between Sweden's two largest lakes, Vänern and Vättern. It lies on the eastern slope of a low mountain ridge, Billingen (304 m[2]), which cuts through the plain between the lakes. The Western Main Railway (Västra Stambanan) was built through Skövde in the 1850s, which gave the town a dramatic industrial and population boost.