New continental crust was formed in the Svecofennian domain of the Baltic Shield c. 1.9 Ga ago. Approximately 0.1-0.15 Ga later, new crust accreted to the SW part of the Shield. In this paper an attempt is made, on the basis of gravity measurements and lithogeochemistry, to describe the tectonic processes responsible for the continental growth c. 1.75-1.8 Ga ago. The Transscandinavian Granite Porphyry Belt (TGPB) separates the Svecofennian domain from the polymetamorphic terrain of the SW Swedish gneiss region. Red orthogneisses occurring immediately west of the TGPB are the deformed equivalents of the TGPB type granitoids, while grey orthogneisses, displaying a tonalitic-granodioritic trend and situated further west, were generated in a »volcanic arc« environment. The TGPB granitoids and the red SW Swedish gneisses represent a transition from this volcanic arc type rock to contemporaneous »within-plate« type granites intruded in the Svecofennian crust. The volcanic arc was forced against the Svecofennian crust in which large tensional fracture zones ensued with strike directions normal to the collision front. In such tensional environments the »withinplate« type granites were generated. In the collision zone the crust was down-warped, and huge amounts of granitic melts were generated at the base of the crust. This TGPB Magma rose upwards utilizing the fracture zone between the arc rocks, generated slightly earlier, and the Svecofennian crust. A relatively thin upper part of the TGPB that spread laterally westwards became strongly deformed during the collision (i.e. the red SW Swedish gneisses), while the major deep-reaching TGPB root zone that was not completely solidified yet, acted as a buffer against the foliation front.