Sweden

Sweden, 1772 to today. Draft, not yet reviewed

As a reaction to the failed Great Northern War, a parliamentary system was introduced in 1719, followed by three different flavours of constitutional monarchy in 1772, 1789 and 1809, the latter granting several civil liberties. The eastern half of Sweden, present-day Finland, was lost to Imperial Russia in 1809. The last war in which Sweden was directly involved was in 1814, when Sweden by military means forced Norway into a personal union, a union which lasted until 1905. Sweden joined the European Union in 1995, and in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, NATO in 2024.

Seat of power: Stockholm

Rulers

Gustav III of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1771–1792

He seized power from the government in a coup d'état in 1772 that ended the Age of Liberty, and began a campaign to restore a measure of royal autocracy. He legalised Catholic and Jewish presence in Sweden and enacted wide-ranging reforms aimed at economic liberalism, social reform and the restriction, in many cases, of torture and capital punishment. In 1792, he was mortally wounded by a gunshot during a masquerade ball.

Portrait of Gustav III of Sweden: Alexander Roslin, Public domain, file

Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1792–1809

He was King of Sweden from 1792 until he was deposed in a coup in 1809. The occupation of Finland in 1808–09 by Russian forces was the immediate cause of his overthrow, violently initiated by officers of his own army. After his abdication on 29 March 1809, an Instrument of Government was hastily written, which severely circumscribed the powers of the monarchy.

Portrait of Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden: Per Krafft the Younger, Public domain, file

Charles XIII of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1809–1818

He was King of Sweden from 1809 and King of Norway from 1814 to his death. In 1810 a French Marshal, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, was chosen as heir presumptive to Charles XIII.

Portrait of Charles XIII of Sweden: Carl Frederik von Breda, Public domain, file

Charles XIV John of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1818–1844

He was King of Sweden and Norway from 1818 until his death in 1844, and the first monarch of the Bernadotte dynasty. During the Napoleonic Wars, he had fought as a Marshal of France.

Portrait of Charles XIV John of Sweden: CarlsSston, CC0, file

Oscar I of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1844–1859

Throughout his reign he would pursue a liberal course in politics, instituting reforms and improving ties between Sweden and Norway. In an address to him in 1857, the Riksdag declared that he had promoted the material prosperity of the kingdom more than any of his predecessors.

Portrait of Oscar I of Sweden: Arvid Gottfrid Virgin, Public domain, file

Carl XV of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1859–1872

He was the third Swedish monarch from the House of Bernadotte, and the first one to be born in Sweden.

Portrait of Carl XV of Sweden: Mathias Hansen, Public domain, file

Oscar II of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1872–1907

He ruled during a time when both countries were undergoing a period of industrialization and rapid technological progress. His reign also saw the gradual decline of the Union of Sweden and Norway, which culminated in its dissolution in 1905.

Portrait of Oscar II of Sweden: Lars Larsson, Public domain, file

Gustaf V of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1907–1950

His early reign saw the rise of parliamentary rule in Sweden. After the Liberals and Social Democrats secured a parliamentary majority, he allowed a new government to form which de facto stripped the monarchy of virtually all powers and enacted universal and equal suffrage, including for women, by 1919.

Portrait of Gustaf V of Sweden: Herrman Sylwander, Public domain, file

Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1950–1973

Shortly before his death, he gave his approval to constitutional changes which removed the Swedish monarchy's last political powers.

Portrait of Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden: Unknown photographer for Anefo, CC0, file

Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden

Monarch of Sweden, 1973 to today

Shortly after he became king, the new 1974 Instrument of Government took effect, formally stripping the monarchy of its remaining executive powers. The new instrument explicitly limited the king to ceremonial and representative functions, while he retained the right to be regularly informed of affairs of state.

Portrait of Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden: Lula Oficial, CC BY-SA 4.0, file

Culture

Sweden maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides universal health care and tertiary education for its citizens.
Alfred Nobel invented dynamite and instituted the Nobel Prizes.
Between 1850 and 1910, it is thought, more than one million Swedes moved to the United States.
Sweden remained officially neutral during World War II, although its neutrality has been disputed.

Picture

Stockholm City Hall, built from 1911 to 1923, is the venue of the Nobel Prize banquet.

Image: Julian Herzog (Website), CC BY 4.0, file

Sources

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.