Charles XIV John of Sweden

“ In the quarter of a century during which he kept the throne, Sweden and Norway, in the development of their resources, kept pace with the most prosperous nations of Europe.
Charles XIV. died in 1844, at the ripe age of eighty, and his son, Oscar I., succeeded. He was a man in sympathy with the new order of things, and gave the people immediately the reforms they had so long desired. His father had never succeeded in making himself a Swede, but lived a foreigner among his people till the last. ”

“ 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 ”

“ When William became king of England, Sweden was a member of the alliance against Louis XIV., but contributed to the great European war only a few thousand soldiers, according to agreement, preserving, together with Denmark, an armed neutrality. Charles XI. lived to the proud moment when the powers selected Sweden as an arbiter in the deliberations for peace in Riswick, a worthy satisfaction gained over the earlier insolence of Louis XIV.
Charles XI. improved the administration by filling the offices of the excellent institutions with excellent men. ”

“ 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 ”

“ The jealous opposition of the King of Sweden has recently given way to feelings the very opposite. The difficulty which his ambition threatened to occasion has been solved in a manner which will happily secure the Scandinavian kingdoms against any such danger in the future, and, moreover, gives promise of uniting them on equal terms and by mutual consent into one powerful and harmonious kingdom. Prince Christian, the heir to the crown of Denmark, has a tolerably large family; Charles of Sweden has only one daughter. ”

“ A Swedish despatch fell into the hands of the Danes. Denmark dreaded the union of Russia and Sweden; Saxony saw that she would lose Poland; Hanover, that her projects upon Bremen and Verden, Prussia that hers on Stettin would fail. Frederick of Hesse would no longer be heir to the crown of Sweden; while the power of Charles by so great a marriage would swell to a height dangerous to the aspirations of the Swedish aristocracy. ”

“ The heir to the throne was John’s eldest son, Sigismund, already king of Poland and a devoted Catholic. The fear lest Sigismund might re-catholicize the land alarmed the Protestant majority in Sweden, and Charles came forward as their champion, and also as the defender of the Vasa dynasty against foreign interference. It was due entirely to him that Sigismund was forced to confirm the resolutions of the council of Upsala, thereby recognizing the fact that Sweden was essentially a Protestant state (see Sweden: History) . In the ensuing years Charles’s task was extraordinarily difficult. ”

“ Accustomed in his hereditary dominions to absolute power, he was perhaps too confident that he could govern Poland like Saxony.
The beginning of his reign raised malcontents, his very first acts irritated the party which was opposed to his election, and alienated almost all the rest. The Poles resented the fact that their towns were filled with Saxon garrisons and their frontiers with troops. The nation, far more anxious to maintain their own liberties than to attack their neighbours, did not consider the king’s attack on Sweden and his invasion of Livonia as advantageous to the State. ”

“ A handsome and imposing man, with black wavy hair, an eagle nose, keen, penetrating eyes and the manner of one accustomed to command, also a clear and eloquent speaker, polished in address and courteous in his dealings with all, they felt that in him they had a true king; while his reputation as one of the leading soldiers in Napoleon's great army gave them assurance that, if war should arise, their armies would be ably led.
Sweden, when Bernadotte set foot on its soil, was in a helpless state of decadence, having become little better than a dependency of France. ”

“ The Congress of Vienna went one step further. It took Norway (which since the union of Calmar of the year 1397 had been united with Denmark) away from Denmark and gave it to Charles XIV of Sweden as a reward for his betrayal of Napoleon, who had set him up in the king business. This Swedish king, curiously enough, was a former French general by the name of Bernadotte, who had come to Sweden as one of Napoleon's adjutants, and had been invited to the throne of that good country when the last of the rulers of the house of Hollstein-Gottorp had died without leaving either son or daughter. ”

“ 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. ”

“ There were about 12,000 or 13,000 Swedes defending Pomerania, and the other districts which Charles held in Germany; here was the seat of war. But this storm alarmed the Emperor and his allies. It is a law of the Empire that whoever invades one of the provinces should be [Pg 197] considered an enemy to the whole Germanic body.
But there was still greater difficulty involved, for all these princes, except the Czar, were then leagued against Louis XIV, whose power had for some time been as formidable to the Empire as that of Charles himself. ”

“ But since I'm King of Swedish ground
A poorer man was never found."
But his career was not yet ended. He was again to sit on the throne. Friends arose in his favor, the people again grew dissatisfied with Danish rule, and the archbishop, his greatest enemy, died. Charles was recalled and returned from Finland, a third time standing on Swedish ground as king.
He had still a hard fight before him. A Swedish nobleman, Erik Wase, sought to win the throne for himself, and Christian of Denmark sent a new army to Sweden ”

“ By this measure some of the foremost families in Sweden were ruined, and the crown was made almost independent of the diet, for it recovered no fewer than ten counties, seventy baronies, and many smaller estates. Charles became virtually an absolute sovereign, and on the whole he made an excellent use of his power. For more than a century Sweden had been almost constantly engaged in war. She now enjoyed a period of repose, and profited greatly by the king's vigorous administration. ”

“ The Duke certainly needed them; his dominions were already ravaged, his castle at Gottorp taken and the town of Tonning closely besieged, the King of Denmark being there in person, to enjoy a conquest of which he felt certain. This spark enflamed the empire. On one side the Saxon troops of the King of Poland and those of Brandenburg, Volfenbuttel and Hesse-Cassel marched to join the Danes. On the other the King of Sweden’s 8,000 men, the troops of Hanover and Zell, and three Dutch regiments came to the help of the Duke. ”

“ Charles XII, king of Sweden, was born June 27, 1682, the son of Charles XI. Ascending the throne when 15 years old, his boyishness tempted Denmark, Poland and Peter the Great of Russia to attack Sweden, at that time the great power of the north. ”

“ The seeming officer of the janissaries said to him, “Christian, be assured that the Sultan my master has the soul of an Emperor, and that if the King of Sweden is in the right he will do him justice.” Villelongue was soon released, and some weeks after there was a sudden change in the seraglio, which the Swedes attribute to this conference. The mufti were deprived, the Kan of Tartary banished to the Rhodes, and the serasquier Pasha of Bender to an island in the Archipelago. ”

“ To CHARLES X., KING OF SWEDEN, Aug. 1656:—A letter very much in the strain of that just sent to the States-General of the United Provinces. Although, knowing what a champion the Protestant Faith has in his Swedish Majesty, the Protector cannot but rejoice in the news of his successes, there is one drawback. It is the accompanying news of the misunderstanding between his Majesty and the Dutch, now come to such a pass, he hears, that open conflict is likely, especially in the Baltic. ”

“ The big King of Sweden had a standing quarrel, with his big cousin of Poland, which broke out into hot War; little Preussen lay between them, and was like to be crushed in the collision. Swedish King was Karl Gustav, Christina's Cousin, Charles XII's Grandfather: a great and mighty man, lion of the North in his time; Polish King was one John Casimir; chivalrous enough, and with clouds of forward Polish chivalry about him, glittering with barbaric gold. Friedrich III, Danish King for the first time being, he also was much involved in the thing. ”

“ Once aroused to action, he was ready to move before even his would-be conquerors, in those slow-going days, imagined he had thought of resistance. Money and men were raised, the alliance of England and Holland was secretly obtained, a council of defence was appointed to govern Sweden during the absence of the king, and on April 23, 1700, two months before his eighteenth birthday, King Charles bade his grandmother and his sisters good-by and left Stockholm forever. ”

“ Norway was in no sense subject to Sweden, but had simply accepted the king of Sweden as its monarch. They were not one nation, but two nations under one king, being otherwise independent in every respect, each with its own constitution, its own parliament, and its own laws.
In fact, Norway has had a constitution since 1818, granted by Bernadotte when he came to the throne, while Sweden was not granted one until over forty years later. And while the constitution of Norway makes it the most democratic monarchy in Europe, that of Sweden gives much greater power to the throne. ”

“ KING OF SWEDEN
BOOK I Outline of Swedish history up to the time of Charles XI—Charles’s education—His enemies—Character-sketch of the Czar, Peter Alexiowitz—His peculiarities—Alliance of Russia, Poland, Denmark against Charles XII.
THE kingdom which is made up of Sweden and Finland is, according to our measurement, about 200 leagues broad and 300 long, and stretches from south to north as far as the 55th degree or thereabouts. ”

“ In many villages there were only old men, women and children left; in some places the women ploughed unaided. [Pg 304] It was still more difficult to get a fleet. But to bring that about commissions were given to privateers, who enjoyed great privileges to the ruin of the country, but who provided him with some ships. This was the last effort of Sweden to meet the great expense; all the houses were searched, and half their provisions carried into the King’s warehouses. All the iron in the country was bought up for his use and paid for in paper, which he sold for ready money. ”

“ Some time after he was admitted to the court of King Augustus. Charles XI was dead, but the sentence of Patkul was not annulled, and he was still most resentful. He pointed out to the King of Poland how easily Livonia could be conquered; the people were in despair, and eager to shake off the Swedish yoke; the King was only a child, and unable to defend himself. These proposals were well received by a prince who had long meditated this conquest. Preparations were immediately made for a sudden invasion of Sweden, empty formalities of ultimata and manifestoes being dispensed with. ”

“ At great expense, the best fleet ever under Swedish command was constructed by Wachtmeister, who enjoyed the full confidence of the king. His excellent means wherewith to conduct a successful war, Charles XI. used to maintain a dignified peace, of which his country was badly in need. Bengt Oxenstierna held the reins of diplomacy, which had no attraction for Charles XI. The old alliance with France was broken off and close connections with William of Orange established for the maintenance of peace. Sweden regained its prestige, rising to a power whose support was sought by all. ”

“ The strong for [Pg 244] tresses were captured, the armies surrendered and registered in Swedish service. After two months Charles X. entered the old capital of Cracow, John Casimir fled from his country, and, carried away by the frenzy of success, Charles Gustavus had himself crowned king of Poland. West Prussia was captured, and the elector of Brandenburg, who held East Prussia in fief, and the duke of Courland were forced to become the vassals of Sweden, in 1656. ”