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| Gustav IV Adolf | |
|---|---|
 Portrait byPer Krafft the Younger, 1809 | |
| King of Sweden | |
| Reign | 29 March 1792 – 29 March 1809 |
| Coronation | 3 April 1800 |
| Predecessor | Gustav III |
| Successor | Charles XIII |
| Regent | Charles, Duke of Södermanland (later Charles XIII) (1792–1796) |
| Born | (1778-11-01)1 November 1778 Stockholm Palace,Kingdom of Sweden |
| Died | 7 February 1837(1837-02-07) (aged 58) St. Gallen,Swiss Confederacy |
| Burial | 29 May 1884 Riddarholm Church, Stockholm |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | |
| House | Holstein-Gottorp |
| Father | Gustav III |
| Mother | Sophia Magdalena of Denmark |
| Religion | Lutheran |
| Signature |  |
| Swedish royalty |
| House of Holstein-Gottorp |
|---|
 |
| Adolf Frederick |
| Gustav III |
| Gustav IV Adolf |
|
| Charles XIII |
|
Gustav IV Adolf orGustav IV Adolph[1] (1 November 1778 – 7 February 1837) wasKing of Sweden from 1792 until hewas deposed in a coup in 1809. He was also the last Swedish monarch to be the ruler ofFinland.
The occupation of Finland in 1808–09 by Russian forces was the immediate cause of Gustav Adolf's overthrow, violently initiated by officers of his own army. Following his abdication on 29 March 1809, anInstrument of Government was hastily written, which severely circumscribed the powers of the monarchy. The "Instrument" was adopted in 1809 on 6 June, theNational Day of Sweden now as well as in his time. It remained in force until replaced in 1974. The crown, now with strictly limited powers, passed to Gustav Adolf's uncleCharles XIII.[2]
Gustav Adolf was born inStockholm on 1 November 1778 as the son ofGustav III and queenSophia Magdalena. His mother was the eldest daughter ofFrederick V of Denmark andLouise of Great Britain.
Gustav Adolf was under the tutelage ofHedvig Sofia von Rosen and her deputies Brita Ebba Celestina von Stauden andMaria Aurora Uggla until the age of 4. He was then raised under the tutelage of his father and the liberal-minded Nils von Rosenstein. Upon Gustav III's assassination in March 1792, Gustav Adolf succeeded to the throne at the age of 13, under the regency of his uncle,Prince Charles, Duke of Södermanland, who was later to become King Charles XIII when his nephew was forced to abdicate and was banished from the country in 1809.
In August 1796, his uncle the regent arranged for the young king to visitSaint Petersburg. The intention was to arrange a marriage between the young king andGrand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna, a granddaughter ofCatherine the Great. However, the whole arrangement foundered on Gustav Adolf's unwavering refusal to allow his intended bride liberty of worship according to the rites of theRussian Orthodox Church. Nobody seems to have suspected the possibility at the time that emotional problems might lie at the root of Gustav Adolf's abnormal piety. On the contrary, when he came of age that year, thereby ending the regency, there were many who prematurely congratulated themselves on the fact that Sweden had now no disturbing genius, but an economical, God-fearing, commonplace monarch.[3]
Gustav Adolf's prompt dismissal of the generally detestedGustaf Adolf Reuterholm, the duke-regent's leading advisor, added still further to his popularity. On 31 October 1797, Gustav marriedFriederike Dorothea, granddaughter ofKarl Friedrich, Margrave ofBaden, a marriage which seemed to threaten war withRussia but for the fanatical hatred of theFrench republic shared by theEmperor Paul of Russia and Gustav IV Adolf, which served as a bond between them. Indeed, the king's horror ofJacobinism was intense, and drove him to become increasingly committed to the survival of Europe, to the point where he postponed his coronation for some years, so as to avoid calling together adiet. Nonetheless, the disorder of the state finances, largely inherited from Gustav III'swar against Russia, as well as widespread crop failures in 1798 and 1799, compelled him to summon theestates toNorrköping in March 1800 and on 3 April the same year.[3] When the king encountered serious opposition at the Riksdag, he resolved never to call another.
His reign was ill-fated and was to end abruptly. In 1805, he joined theThird Coalition againstNapoleon. His campaign went poorly and the French occupiedSwedish Pomerania. When his ally, Russia, made peace and concluded an alliance withFrance at Tilsit in 1807, Sweden andPortugal were left asGreat Britain's only allies on the European continent. On 21 February 1808,Russia invaded Finland, which was ruled by Sweden, on the pretext of compelling Sweden to join Napoleon'sContinental System.Denmark likewise declared war on Sweden.[citation needed] In just a few months, almost all of Finland was lost to Russia. As a result of the war, on 17 September 1809, in theTreaty of Fredrikshamn, Sweden surrendered the eastern third of Sweden to Russia. Following which the autonomousGrand Duchy of Finland was established withinImperial Russia.
Gustav Adolf was deposed by a conspiracy of army officers.
On 7 March 1809,lieutenant-colonelGeorg Adlersparre, commander of a part of the so-called western army stationed inVärmland, triggered theCoup of 1809 by raising the flag of rebellion inKarlstad and starting to march upon Stockholm. To prevent the king from joining loyal troops in Scania, on 13 March 1809 seven of the conspirators led byCarl Johan Adlercreutz broke into the royal apartments in the palace, seized the king, and imprisoned him and his family inGripsholm Castle; the king's uncle, Duke Charles (Karl), accepted the leadership of a provisional government, which was proclaimed the same day; and a diet, hastily summoned, solemnly approved of therevolution.[3]
On 29 March, Gustav IV Adolf, to save the crown for his son, voluntarily abdicated; but on 10 May, theRiksdag of the Estates, dominated by thearmy, declared that not merely Gustav but his whole family had forfeited the throne,[3] perhaps an excuse to exclude his family from succession based on the rumours of his illegitimacy. A more likely cause, however, was that the revolutionaries feared that Gustav Adolf's son, if he inherited the throne, would avenge his father's deposition when he came of age. On 5 June, Gustav Adolf's uncle was proclaimed KingCharles XIII, after accepting a new liberalconstitution, which was ratified by the diet the next day. In December, Gustav Adolf and his family were transported to Germany. In 1812, he divorced his wife.
In exile Gustav Adolf used several titles, including CountGottorp and Duke ofHolstein-Eutin, and finally settled atSt. Gallen inSwitzerland where he lived in a small hotel in great loneliness and indigence,[3] under the name of Colonel Gustafsson. It was there that he suffered a stroke and died on 7 February 1837. He was buried inMoravia. At the suggestion of KingOscar II and Norway, his body was finally brought to Sweden and interred inRiddarholm Church. Gustav Adolf was the great-grandfather ofVictoria of Baden, Oscar's new daughter-in-law at the time and eventually Queen of Sweden as consort to Oscar's sonGustaf V.
 Coat of arms of King Gustav IV Adolf |
On 31 October 1797, he marriedFrederica Dorothea Wilhelmina of Baden, with whom he had five children:
By 1812, Gustav Adolf divorced his consort, and had several mistresses thereafter, among them Maria Schlegel, who gave him a son, Adolf Gustafsson (1820–1907), styled Count Gustafson, married in 1856 to Ernestine Simon (1823–1911), no children.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Bain, Robert Nisbet (1911). "Gustavus IV.". InChisholm, Hugh (ed.).Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 738.
Gustav IV Adolf Cadet branch of theHouse of Oldenburg Born: 1 November 1778 Died: 7 February 1837 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | King of Sweden 1792–1809 | Vacant Title next held by Charles XIII |
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Heirs who succeeded are shown initalics | ||
