Frederick Beck, Robert Nisbet Bain, Oskar Dumrath, Osbert Howarth and Edmund Gosse

“ Thus Sweden, as well as Denmark, had become an absolute monarchy, but with this important difference, that the right of the Swedish people, in parliament assembled, to be consulted on all important matters was recognized and acted upon. The Riksdag, completely overshadowed by the throne, was during the reign of Charles XI. to do little more than register the royal decrees; but nevertheless it continued to exist as an essential part of the machinery of government. ”

“ But when the Hats became the armour-bearers of France in the north, a protector strong enough to counteract French influence became the cardinal exigency of their opponents, the younger Caps, who now flung themselves into the arms of Russia, overlooking the fact that even a pacific union with Russia was more to be feared than a martial alliance with France. For France was too distant to be dangerous. She sought an ally in Sweden and it was her endeavour to make that ally as strong as possible. ”

“ Modern Sweden is bounded by the Baltic; during the 17th century the Baltic was merely the bond between her various widely dispersed dominions. All the islands in the Baltic, except the Danish group, belonged to Sweden. The estuaries of all the great German rivers (for the Niemen and Vistula are properly Polish rivers) debouched in Swedish territory, within which also lay two-thirds of Lake Ladoga and one-half of Lake Peipus. Stockholm, the capital, lay in the very centre of the empire, whose second greatest city was Riga, on theother side of the sea. ”

“ To sink in five years from the position of the champion of Protestantism to that of the common enemy of every Protestant power was a degradation not to be compensated by any amount of military glory. Charles's subsequent endeavour, in stress of circumstances, to gain a friend by dividing his Polish conquests with the aspiring elector of Brandenburg was a reversal of his original policy and only resulted in the establishment on the southern confines of Sweden of a new rival almost as dangerous as Denmark, her ancient rival in the west. ”

“ With returning prosperity the necessity for internal reform became urgent in Sweden. The antiquated Riksdag, where the privileged estates predominated, while the cultivated middle class was practically unrepresented, had become an insuperable obstacle to all free development; but, though the Riksdag of 1840 itself raised the question, the king and the aristocracy refused to entertain it. Yet the reign of Charles XIV. was, on the whole, most beneficial to Sweden ”

“ Finland he at once gave up for lost. He knew that Russia would never voluntarily relinquish the grand duchy, while Sweden could not hope to retain it permanently, even if she reconquered it. But the acquisition of Norway might make up for the loss of Finland; and Bernadotte, now known as the crown prince Charles John, argued that it might be an easy matter to persuade the anti-Napoleonic powers to punish Denmark for her loyalty to France by wresting Norway from her. Napoleon he rightly distrusted, though at first he was obliged to submit to the emperor's dictation. ”

“ This momentous change, which was to give a martial colouring to the whole policy of Sweden for the next hundred and twenty years, dates from a decree of the Riksdag of Linköping establishing, at the urgent suggestion of Charles, a regular army; each district in the country being henceforward liable to provide and maintain a fixed number of infantry and cavalry for the service of the state. The immediate enemy was Poland, now dynastically as well as territorially opposed to Sweden. The struggle took the shape of a War with Poland and Russia. ”

“ Climate.—The climate of the Scandinavian peninsula as a whole is so far tempered by the warm Atlantic drift from the south-west as to be unique in comparison with other countries of so high a latitude. The mountains of the Keel are not so high as wholly to destroy this effect over Sweden, and the maritime influence of the Baltic system has also to be considered. Sweden thus occupies a climatic position between the purely coastal conditions of Norway and the purely continental conditions of Russia; and in some years the climate inclines to the one character, in others to the other. ”

“ Sweden itself may be considered in four main physical divisions—the mountains and highland district, covering all Norrland and the western part of Svealand; the lowlands of central Sweden; the so-called Småland highlands, in the south and south-east; and the plains of Skåne, occupying the extreme southward projection of the peninsula.
The first district, thus defined, is much the largest, and includes the greatest elevations in the country and the finest scenery. The highest mountains are found in the north, the bold Northern Highlands. ”

“ Sloth and carelessness speedily invaded every branch of the administration, destroying all discipline and leading to a general neglect of business. Another characteristic of the de la Gardie government was its gross corruption, which made Sweden the obsequious hireling of that foreign power which had the longest purse. This shameful “subsidy policy” dates from the Treaty of Fontainebleau, 1661, by a secret paragraph of which Sweden, in exchange for a considerable sum of money, undertook to support the French candidate on the first vacancy of the Polish throne. ”

“ Hence his alliance with Denmark to defend Stralsund in 1628. There is much of unconscious exaggeration in all this. As a matter of fact the Polish republic was no danger whatever to Protestantism. Sigismund’s obstinate insistence upon his right to the Swedish crown was the one impediment to the conclusion of a war which the Polish Diet heartily detested and very successfully impeded. Apart from the semi-impotent Polish court, no responsible Pole dreamed of aggrandisement in Sweden. ”

“ Journalism The Gustavian period. began to develop; the Swedish Academy was founded; the drama first learned to flourish in Stockholm; and literature began to take a characteristically national shape. This fruitful period naturally divides itself into two divisions, equivalent to the reigns of the two kings. The royal personages of Sweden have commonly been protectors of literature; they have strangely often been able men of letters themselves. Gustavus III. (1746–1792) , the founder of the Swedish Academy and of the Swedish theatre, was himself a playwright of no mean ability. ”

“ At the beginning of the Glacial period the height of Scandinavia above the level of the sea was greater than at present, Sweden being then connected with Denmark and Germany and also across the middle of the Baltic with Russia. On the west the North Sea and Cattegat were also dry land. On the elevated parts of this large continent glaciers were formed, which, proceeding downwards to the lower levels, gave origin to large streams and rivers, the abundant deposits of which formed the diluvial sand and the diluvial clay. ”

“ The high agricultural development of the plains of Skåne appears from the fact that although that province occupies only one-fortieth of the total area of Sweden, it produces 30% of the entire wheat crop, 33% of the barley, 18% of the rye and 13% of the oats. A system of rotation (cereal, roots, grass) is commonly followed, each division of land lying fallow one year as a rule; not more than two ripe grain-crops are commonly taken consecutively. ”

“ The mass of the Swedish people was penetrated by a justifiable fear that the external, artificial greatness of their country might, in the long run, be purchased with the loss of their civil and political liberties. ”

“ The Swedes, irritated by his misrule, superseded him by his nephew, Albert of Mecklenburg (1365) . In Sweden, Magnus's partialities and necessities led directly to the rise of a powerful landed aristocracy, and, indirectly, to the growth of popular liberties. Forced by the unruliness of the magnates to lean upon the middle classes, the king summoned (1359) the first Swedish Riksdag, on which occasion representatives from the towns were invited to appear along with the nobles and clergy. ”

“ Dairy-farming is profitable, England and Denmark being the principal foreign consumers of produce, and the industry is carefully fostered by the government. A board of agriculture had been in operation for many years when in 1900 a separate department of agriculture was formed. There are one or more agricultural societies in each län, and there are various state educational establishments in agriculture, such as the agricultural high schools at Ultuna near Upsala, and at Alnarp near Lund in Skåne, an important agricultural centre, with dairy schools and other branch establishments. ”

“ In 1660, after five years of incessant warfare, Sweden had at length obtained peace and with it the opportunity of organizing and developing her newly won empire. Unfortunately, the regency which was to govern her during Minority of Charles XI. the next fifteen years was unequal to the difficulties of a situation which might have taxed the resources of the wisest statesmen. Unity and vigour were scarcely to be expected from a many-headed administration composed of men of mediocre talent whose contrary opinions speedily gave rise to contending factions. ”

“ Remains dating from the Stone Age are found scattered over the southern half of Sweden, but it is only along the south coast and in the districts bordering on the Cattegat that they occur in any considerable quantity. The antiquities of the Bronze Age are much more widely distributed and reach as far as the north of Helsingland. It is evident that the country must at this time have been fairly populous. ”

“ In ecclesiastical architecture Sweden possesses the noble cathedrals of Lund, Upsala and Linköping; while that of Skara, near the southern shore of Lake Vencr, dates originally from 1150, and that of Strengnäs on Lake Mälar was consecrated in 1291. There is a remarkably perfect Romanesque church, with aisles, eastern apse and ambulatory, at Varnhem in Skaraborg Län, and there are a few village churches of the same period in this district and in Skåne. The monastic church at Vadstena on Lake Vetter is a beautiful example of Gothic of the 14th and 15th centuries. ”

“ Proofs of extensive Scandinavian settlement in Russia are to be found partly in the Russian names assigned to the Dnieper rapids by Constantine Porphyrogenitus, partly in references to this people made by foreign representatives at the court of Byzantium. The fact that many of the names which occur in Russian chronicles seem to be peculiarly Swedish suggests that Sweden was the home of the settlers, and the best authorities consider that the original Scandinavian conquerors were Swedes who had settled on the east coast of the Baltic. ”

“ In a word, the natural equilibrium of Swedish society was seriously threatened by the preponderance of the nobility; and the people at large looked to the new king to redress the balance. A better arbiter between the various estates than Charles X. Charles X., 1654-1660. it would have been difficult to find. It is true that, primarily a soldier, his whole ambition was directed towards military glory; but he was also an unusually sharp-sighted politician. He affected to believe that only by force of arms could Sweden retain the dominion which by force of arms she had won ”

“ Sweden possesses little coal, and pig-iron is produced with charcoal only; its quality is excellent, but Sweden's proportion to the world's produce is hardly more than 1%, whereas in the 17th and 18th centuries, before the use of coal elsewhere, it was much greater. As an industry, however, the production both of pig-iron and of wrought iron and steel is increasingly prosperous. ”

“ Oats, rye, barley, mixed grain and wheat are the grain-crops in order of importance. During the 19th century the percentage under wheat showed a general tendency to increase; that under oats increased much in the later decades as livestock farming became common, rye maintained a steady proportion, but barley, formerly the principal grain-crop, decreased greatly. This last is the staple crop in Norrland, becoming the only grain-crop in the extreme north; in the richer agricultural lands of the midlands and south rye is predominant in the east, oats in the west. ”

“ Later in the century there is record of a king named Björn á Haugi who is said to have been the son of Eric and to have reigned fifty years. Björn's sons and successors were Olaf and Eric the Victorious. Styrbiörn Starki, the son of Olaf, being refused his share of the government by Eric after his father's death, made himself a stronghold at Jomsborg in Pomerania and spent some years in piratical expeditions. Eventually he betook himself to Harold Bluetooth, then king of Denmark, and endeavoured to secure his assistance in gaining the Swedish throne by force of arms. ”

“ Constitution and Government.—Sweden is a limited monarchy, the constitution resting primarily on a law (regerings-formen) of the 6th of June 1809. The king is irresponsible, and executive power is vested in him alone. All his resolutions, however, must be taken in the presence of the cabinet (statsråd) . The cabinet councillors are appointed by the king and are responsible to the parliament (Riksdag) . ”

“ The more characteristic Swedish sports are naturally those of the winter. These include ski-running (skidlöpning) , skating and skate-sailing, tobogganing and sledging. The numerous inland waters and sheltered channels within the skärgård have caused the high development of sailing as a summer sport, the Royal Swedish Yacht Club having its headquarters in Stockholm. Athletic sports are in high favour, especially such winter sports as snow-shoeing (ski) , and, among ball games, lawn-tennis, and to some extent football, together with the game of pärk, peculiar to Gotland, are played. ”

“ The remainder of the reign of Charles XI. is remarkable for a revolution which converted the government of Sweden into a semi-absolute monarchy. The king emerged from Charles XI. and the Swedish Constitution. the war convinced that if Sweden were to retain her position as a great power she must radically reform her whole economical system, and, above all, circumscribe the predominant and mischievous influence of an aristocracy which thought far more of its privileges than of its public duties. ”

“ The fisheries, both fresh-water and sea, are important, and fall for consideration as an industry. The herring, cod, flatfish, mackerel and sprat are taken in the seas, and also great numbers of a small herring called strömming. In the brackish waters of the east coast sea fish are found, together with pike, perch and other fresh-water forms. The crayfish is common in many places in central and southern Sweden. Pearls are sometimes found in the fresh-water mussel (Margaritana margaritifera) ; thus a tributary of the Lilla Lule River takes its name, Perle River, from the pearls found in it. ”

“ The Labour Movement. Socialists, who had formerly confined their activity to questions affecting the working classes and their wages, took, however, in 1902 an active part in the agitation for the extension of the franchise. Processions of many thousands of workmen were organized, in Stockholm and in other towns of the kingdom, just before the Riksdag began the discussion on the above-mentioned bill of the government, and when the bill was introduced in the chambers a general and well organized strike took place and continued during the three days the debate on the bill lasted. ”