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| Successionsordningen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Riksdag of the Estates | |
| |
| Citation | Successonsordning (1810:0926) |
| Territorial extent | Sweden Norway (1814–1905) |
| Enacted by | Riksdag of the Estates |
| Enacted | 26 September 1810 |
| Assented to | 26 September 1810 |
| Amended by | |
| 1921:21 1937:40 1949:111 1965:45 1974:154 1979:935 | |
| Keywords | |
| Constitution of Sweden Monarchy of Sweden | |
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The1810 Act of Succession (Swedish:1810 års successionsordning,lit. 'the 1810order of succession') is one of fourFundamental Laws of the Realm (rikets grundlagar) and thus forms part of theSwedish Constitution. The Act regulates theline of succession to the Swedish throne and the conditions which eligible members of theSwedish royal family must abide by in order to remain in it.
It was jointly adopted by theRiksdag of the Estates, convened inÖrebro on 26 September 1810, andCharles XIII, as a logical consequence following the election on 21 August ofJean Baptiste Bernadotte asCrown Prince.
The actual contents of the Act, save the solemnpreamble, has been thoroughly rewritten over the years: the most notable change occurred in 1980 when the core principle ofagnatic primogeniture (male succession only) was changed in favor ofabsolute primogeniture (eldest child regardless of sex).[1]
The Act of Succession was adopted by theRiksdag of the Estates assembled atÖrebro in 1810, upon electingCharles XIV John (Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte) as the heir to KingCharles XIII. This happened at a tumultuous time for Sweden, as only one year earlier the former king,Gustav IV Adolf (and his sons) had been deposed and replaced by his childless uncle, Charles XIII. At the same time theFinnish War was coming to an end andFinland, then a part ofSweden proper, was held byRussia. Theauthoritarian constitution of 1772 was abolished and power was returned to parliament by the newInstrument of Government adopted on 6 June 1809. From 1814 to 1905 the Act of Succession also regulated succession to theNorwegian throne, due to the union ofSweden-Norway.
The Act in the current version specifies that:
If any of these provisions are violated: all rights of succession for the person concerned and all descendants are lost.
In its original version, the Act mandated that a Swedish prince could only marry into families deemed to be ofequal rank, or forfeit for himself and his future descendants alldynastic rights. The key wording was a prohibition of marrying a "private man's daughter" (Swedish:enskild mans dotter), a term which in Swedish jurisprudence was understood to exclude all non-royal persons, including the aristocracy. In 1937 the statutory provision which in effect had required a spouse of royal birth was changed and the prohibition only extended to a "private Swedish man's daughter" (Swedish:enskild svensk mans dotter).
A total of five Swedish princes lost theirstyle ofHRH, title as Prince of Sweden,personal Ducal title, and all rights of succession to the throne because they violated the uncompromisable constitutional provision, regardless of whether theKing-in-Council did consent or not:Oscar in 1888,Lennart in 1932,Sigvard in 1934,Carl in 1937 andCarl Johan in 1946. There is since 1980 no statutory limitation, based on either nationality or royal rank, on whom a prince or princess can marry, apart from the fact that permission must be granted.
In 1980, the rule of succession was changed fromagnatic primogeniture toabsolute primogeniture.[1] This change in effect madeVictoria (born 1977) heir apparent and Crown Princess, passing over her younger brotherPrince Carl Philip (born 1979) who had been the heir apparent and Crown Prince for less than one year.
