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CountFredrik Axel von Fersen (5 April 1719 – 24 April 1794)[1] was aSwedish statesman and soldier ofBaltic German descent. He served asLord Marshal of theRiksdag of the Estates, and although he worked closely with KingGustav III before and through theRevolution of 1772, he later opposed the king.
A son of Lieutenant-GeneralHans Reinhold von Fersen and his wife Countess Eleonora MargaretaWachtmeister (1684–1748), he entered theSwedish Life Guards in 1740, and from 1743 to 1748 was in theFrench service in theRoyal-Suedois, where he rose to the rank of brigadier.[2] His brother was CountCarl von Fersen (1716-1786).
In theSeven Years' War Fersen distinguished himself during the operations roundUsedom andWollin in 1759, when he inflicted serious loss on thePrussians. But it is as a politician that he is best known. A member of theHat party, at theRiksdag of 1755–1756, he was electedLord Marshal and served three non-consecutive terms in that post before theRevolution of 1772. In 1756 he defeated the projects of the court for increasing the royal power; but, after the disasters of the Seven Years' War, returned to court.[2]
On the accession of theCaps to power in 1766, Fersen refused to employ the Guards to keep order in the capital when KingAdolf Frederick of Sweden, driven to desperation by the demands of the Caps, abdicated, and a seven days’ interregnum ensued. At the ensuing Riksdag of 1769, when the Hats returned to power, Fersen was again elected marshal of the diet, but he made no attempt to redeem his pre-election pledges toCrown Prince Gustavus (later Gustav III) that he would carry out a very necessary reform of the constitution, and thus involuntarily contributed to the subsequent establishment of absolutism. When Gustav ascended the throne in 1772, and attempted to reconcile the two factions by a composition which aimed at dividing all political power between them, Fersen said he despaired of quickly bringing the people back to the path of virtue and patriotism, after more than half a century of licence and corruption. Nevertheless, he consented to open negotiations with the Caps, and was the principal Hat representative on the abortive composition committee. During the revolution of August 1772, Fersen remained a passive spectator of the overthrow of the constitution, and was one of the first whom Gustavus summoned to his side after his triumph.[2]
He obstructed the measures of Gustav III, whom he is said to have treated with colossal insolence, for several years. There was a slight collision between them as early as the diet of 1778, but at the diet of 1786, Fersen led the opposition against the king's financial measures, which were consequently rejected. He and twenty of his friends were arrested in 1789, leading to the collapse of the opposition; however, he was quickly released and thereafter remained aloof from politics.[3]
His bookHistoriska Skrifter is mainly autobiographical, but its historical accounts are often biased.[3][4]
He was one of the richest men in the realm. He was the lord of four grand houses in Sweden:Löfstad [inherited through his wife],Steninge,Ljung andMälsåker. He also owned mines, land, forests and iron foundries in Sweden and Finland, and a large share ofSweden's East India Company, the country's most profitable undertaking ever.[citation needed]
Fersen was the father ofAxel von Fersen the Younger andSophie von Fersen, two of his four children with his wifeHedvig Catharina De la Gardie. His other two children wereFabian Reinhold von Fersen andHedvig Eleonora von Fersen.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Bain, Robert Nisbet (1911). "Fersen, Fredrik Axel, Count von". InChisholm, Hugh (ed.).Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 10 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 290–291.
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| Preceded by | Lord Marshal of the Riksdag of the Estates 1755–1756 1760–1762 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Lord Marshal of the Riksdag of the Estates 1771–1772 | Succeeded by |
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| Preceded by First holder | Swedish Academy, Chair No 7 1786–1794 | Succeeded by Axel Gabriel Silverstolpe |
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