Zettervall was born at
Lidköping in
Västra Götaland County, Sweden. He attended the
Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts where he studied under
Fredrik Wilhelm Scholander (1816–1881) and graduated during 1860. In 1862, he conducted a study trip to
Germany,
France and
Italy. After completing his studies Zettervall took over the restoration of Lund Cathedral from
Carl Georg Brunius. Zettervall got the job after several more experienced architects had declined the job due to fear of Brunius. As the architect of the Cathedral, Zettervall also got other commissions for both church and other works in the Scania region. Some notable ones are
Lund University Main Building (Universitetshuset),
All Saints Church (Allhelgonakyrkan) in
Lund and
Nosaby Church. He was chief of Board superintendent for the administration of state buildings (
Överintendentsämbetet) from 1882–97. Zettervall was the chief architect in the restoration of old buildings and churches in Sweden during the period 1860–90. Among other commissions, Zettervall designed the plans for the renovation
Uppsala Cathedral (1886–1893),
Linköping Cathedral (1877–86),
Skara Cathedral (1886–94) and
Uppsala Cathedral (1885–93), as well as the
Kalmar Castle (1886–90).
Oscar Fredrik Church (
Oscar Fredriks kyrka) in
Gothenburg was constructed on the basis of plans drawn by Helgo Zetterwall. The church was inaugurated on 2 April 1893 and is a prime example of Northern European
Gothic Revival architecture. == Style ==