Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden

Gustaf VI Adolf
King of Sweden
Reign	29 October 1950 – 15 September 1973
Predecessor	Gustaf V
Successor	Carl XVI Gustaf
Spouse	Princess Margaret of Connaught Lady Louise Mountbatten
Issue
Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten Sigvard Bernadotte Ingrid, Queen of Denmark Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland Carl Johan Bernadotte
Full name
Oscar Fredrik Wilhelm Olaf Gustaf Adolf
House	Bernadotte
Father	Gustaf V
Mother	Victoria of Baden
Born	(1882-11-11)11 November 1882 The Royal Palace in Stockholm
Died	15 September 1973(1973-09-15) (aged 90) Helsingborgs lasarett, Helsingborg, Sweden
Burial	Royal Burial Grounds, Solna
Religion	Lutheranism (Church of Sweden)

Gustaf VI Adolf (Oscar Fredrik Wilhelm Olaf Gustaf Adolf, 11 November 1882 – 15 September 1973) was King of Sweden from 29 October 1950 until his death. He was the eldest son of Gustaf V and his wife, Victoria of Baden, and had been Crown Prince of Sweden for the preceding 43 years in the reign of his father. He was the last king to reign under the Instrument of Government of 1809, which formally acknowledged a potentially powerful role for the monarch. However, at the time of his accession the parliamentary system in Sweden had been firmly established for more than three decades, and thus the role of the monarchial head of state was in practice reduced to a figurehead role.

He was also the last Swedish king to date to choose a spouse of equal birth.

Gustaf VI Adolf was a lifelong amateur archeologist particularly interested in Ancient Italian cultures. Later in his life he was a keen supporter of the Civil Rights, meeting with Martin Luther King in Stockholm. His death came only days before the election of 1973, which is suggested to have swayed it in support of the incumbent Social Democratic government.

Birth

Gustav Adolf photographed with his younger brother Vilhelm in 1885.

He was born at the Royal Palace in Stockholm and at birth created Duke of Skåne. A patrilineal member of the Bernadotte, he was also a descendant of the House of Vasa through maternal lines. Through his mother Victoria, he was a descendant of Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden of the deposed House of Holstein-Gottorp.

Crown Prince (1907-1950)

In 1938 he was elected an honorary member of the Virginia Society of the Cincinnati.

Reign (1950-1973)

On 29 October 1950, Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf became king at age 67 upon the death of his father, King Gustaf V. He was at the time the world's oldest heir apparent to a monarchy. His personal motto was Plikten framför allt, "Duty before all".

During Gustaf VI Adolf's reign, work was underway on a new Instrument of Government – eventually taking effect in 1975 after the king's death – to replace the 1809 constitution and produce reforms consistent with the times. Among the reforms sought by some Swedes was the replacement of the monarchy or at least some moderation of the old constitution's provision that "The King alone shall govern the realm."

Gustaf VI Adolf's personal qualities made him popular among the Swedish people and, in turn, this popularity led to strong public opinion in favour of the retention of the monarchy. Gustaf VI Adolf's expertise and interest in a wide range of fields (architecture and botany being but two) made him respected, as did his informal and modest nature and his purposeful avoidance of pomp. The monarchy was, however, made subordinate to a democratic state. Additional powers of the monarch were removed when Sweden's constitutional reform became complete in 1975.

The King died in 1973, ten weeks shy of his 91st birthday, at Helsingborg Hospital after a deterioration in his health that culminated in pneumonia. He was succeeded on the throne by his 27-year-old grandson Carl XVI Gustaf, son of the late Prince Gustaf Adolf. In a break with tradition, he was not buried in Riddarholmskyrkan in Stockholm, but in the Royal Burial Grounds in Haga alongside his two deceased wives.

Personal interests

Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf meets some English footballers (c. 1910-1915).

The King's reputation as a "professional amateur professor" was widely known; nationally and internationally, and among his relatives. Gustaf VI Adolf was a devoted archaeologist, and was admitted to the British Academy for his work in botany in 1958. Gustaf VI Adolf participated in archaeological expeditions in China, Greece, Korea and Italy, and founded the Swedish Institute at Rome.

Gustaf VI Adolf had an enormous private library consisting of 80 000 volumes and – nearly more impressively – he actually had read the main part of the books. He had an interest in specialist literature on Chinese art and East Asian history. Throughout his life, King Gustaf VI Adolf was particularly interested in the history of civilization, and he participated in several archaeological expeditions. His other great area of interest was botany, concentrating in flowers and gardening. He was considered an expert on the Rhododendron flower. At Sofiero (the king's summer residence) he created one of the very finest Rhododendron collections.

Like his son, Prince Bertil, Gustaf VI Adolf maintained wide, lifelong interests in sports. He enjoyed tennis and golf, and fly fishing for charity.

Family and issue

Then Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf with his first wife, Princess Margaret of Connaught, and children in 1912.

Gustaf Adolf married Princess Margaret of Connaught on 15 June 1905 in St. George's Chapel, at Windsor Castle. Princess Margaret was the daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of the United Kingdom.

Crown Princess Margaret died suddenly on 1 May 1920 of an infection following surgery. At the time, she was eight months pregnant and expecting her sixth child.

King Gustaf VI Adolf with his second wife, Louise Mountbatten, in the 1950s.

He married Lady Louise Mountbatten, formerly Princess Louise of Battenberg, on 3 November 1923 at St. James's Palace. She was the sister of Lord Mountbatten and aunt of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. It was Lady Louise who became Queen of Sweden. Both Queen Louise and her stepchildren were great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.

King Gustaf VI Adolf and Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden had five children:

Name	Birth	Death	Notes
Gustaf Adolf !Prince Gustav Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten	01906-04-2222 April 1906	1947-01-26 !26 January 1947(1947-01-26) (aged 40)	died in a plane crash at Copenhagen Airport, father of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden
Sigvard !Prince Sigvard, Duke of Uppland	01907-06-077 June 1907	2002-02-04 !4 February 2002(2002-02-04) (aged 94)	later Count Sigvard Bernadotte af Wisborg
Ingrid !Princess Ingrid	01910-03-2828 March 1910	2000-11-07 !7 November 2000(2000-11-07) (aged 90)	later Queen of Denmark; wife of Frederick IX of Denmark and mother of the present Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and Queen Anne-Marie of Greece
Bertil !Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland	01912-02-2828 February 1912	1997-01-05 !5 January 1997(1997-01-05) (aged 84)	married Lillian Davies, no issue
Carl Johan !Prince Carl Johan, Duke of Dalarna	01916-10-3131 October 1916	2012-05-05 !5 May 2012(2012-05-05) (aged 95)	later Count Carl Johan, Bernadotte af Wisborg, married Countess Gunilla Wachtmeister af Johannishus, had adopted issue

Gustaf Adolf's second marriage to Louise produced only one stillborn daughter on 30 May 1925.

While his first wife visited her native Britain in the early years of their marriage, it was widely rumored in Sweden that Gustaf Adolf had an affair there with operetta star Rosa Grünberg. Swedish vocalist Carl-Erik Olivebring (1919–2002) in a press interview admitted to being an extramarital son of Gustaf VI Adolf, a claim taken seriously by the king's biographer Kjell Fridh (1944–1998).

King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden was the grandfather of both his direct successor King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Styles of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden Reference style His Majesty Spoken style Your Majesty Alternative style Sir

Titles and styles

His title used in official documents was: Gustaf Adolf, by the Grace of God, King of Sweden, of the Goths and of the Wends (Swedish: Gustaf Adolf, med Guds nåde, Sveriges, Götes och Vendes Konung).

Honours

This article incorporates information from the equivalent article on the Italian Wikipedia.

Swedish

State Orders

• Grand Master (and Knight with Collar from birth) of the Order of the Seraphim
• Lord and Master (and Commander Grand Cross from birth) of the Order of the Sword
• Grand Master (and Commander Grand Cross from birth) of the Order of the Polar Star
• Lord and Master (and Commander Grand Cross) of the Order of Vasa

Quasi-Official Orders

• Lord and Master (and Knight by birth) of the Order of Charles XIII
• High Protector (and Honorary Knight) of the Order of Saint John in Sweden

Swedish Medals

• Oscar II and Queen Sofia golden wedding memory sign
• Oscar II's 35-year reign jubilee memory sign
• His Majesty King Gustaf V's 70th birthday instituted memory sign

Foreign

• Austria
  • Great Star of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria (1960)
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary (Austro-Hungarian Empire)
• Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold
• • Knight of the Order of the Elephant (1903)
  • Grand Commander of the Order of Dannebrog (24 March 1952)
• Collar of the Order of Mohammed Ali
• Commander Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of the White Rose
• Knight Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour
• Germany
  • Grand Cross Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
  • Knight of the Order of the Black Eagle
  • Commander of the Order of the Red Eagle
  • Knight Grand Cross of the House Order of Fidelity
  • House and Merit Order of Peter Frederick Louis
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Saxe-Ernestine House Order
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Rue Crown
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Redeemer
• Knight Grand Cross decorated with Collar of the Order of the Falcon
• Grand Collar of the Order of Pahlavi
• Order of Al Rafidain
• Italy
  • Knight Grand Cross decorated with Grand Cordon of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (14 June 1966)
  • Knight of the Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation (1905)
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus (1905)
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown of Italy (1905)
• Collar of the Order of the Chrysanthemum
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Netherlands Lion
• • Commander of the Order of St. Olav
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Norwegian Lion
• Knight of the Order of Osmanieh, 1st Class
• Order of the Sun with diamonds
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Tower and Sword
• • Knight of the Order of St. Andrew
  • Knight of the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Stanislaus
  • Knight of The Class of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class
  • Knight of the Order of the White Eagle
• Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece (1910, 1126th Knight)
• Royal Knight of the Order of the Royal House of Chakri
• • Stranger Knight of the Order of the Garter (1954, 915th Knight)
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
  • Royal Victorian Chain
  • Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order

Honorary degrees

Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf receives his doctor's diploma as an honorary doctorate from the University of Chicago from the university's president, Professor Max Mason, 1926

In 1918, Gustaf VI Adolf received an honorary doctorate at Lund University, in 1926 an Honorary Doctorate at Yale, Princeton and Clark Universities, at Cambridge in 1929 and in 1932 at the University of Dorpat.

Arms

Upon his creation as Duke of Skåne, Gustaf Adolf was granted a coat of arms with the arms of Skåne in base. These arms can be seen on his stall-plates both as Knight of the Swedish order of the Seraphim in the Riddarsholmskyrkan in Sweden, but also the Frederiksborg Chapel in Copenhagen, Denmark, as an Knight of the Danish Order of the Elephant. Upon his accession to the throne in 1950, he assumed the Arms of Dominion of Sweden.

Arms of Gustaf Adolf as Duke of Skåne.	Arms of Gustaf VI Adolf as King.

Ancestors

32. Henri Bernadotte

16. Charles XIV John of Sweden

33. Jeanne de St. Vincent

8. Oscar I of Sweden

34. François Clary

17. Désirée Clary

35. Françoise Rose Somis

4. Oscar II of Sweden

36. Alexandre de Beauharnais

18. Eugène de Beauharnais

37. Joséphine Tascher de la Pagerie

9. Josephine of Leuchtenberg

38. Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria

19. Princess Augusta of Bavaria

39. Landgravine Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt

2. Gustaf V of Sweden

40. Charles Christian, Prince of Nassau-Weilburg

20. Frederick William, Prince of Nassau-Weilburg

41. Princess Carolina of Orange-Nassau

10. William, Duke of Nassau

42. Wilhelm Georg, Count of Sayn-Hachenburg, Burgrave of Kirchberg

21. Burgravine Louise Isabelle of Kirchberg

43. Isabella Auguste Reuss of Greiz

5. Sofia of Nassau

44. Frederick I of Württemberg

22. Prince Paul of Württemberg

45. Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel

11. Princess Pauline of Württemberg

46. Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg

23. Catherine Charlotte of Saxe-Hildburghausen

47. Duchess Charlotte Georgine of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

1. Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden

48. Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Baden-Durlach

24. Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Baden

49. Princess Amalia of Nassau-Dietz

12. Leopold, Grand Duke of Baden

50. Baron Ludwig Heinrich Philipp Geyer von Geyersberg

25. Louise Caroline of Hochberg

51. Countess Maximiliana Christiane of Sponeck

6. Frederick I, Grand Duke of Baden

52. Gustaf III of Sweden

26. Gustaf IV Adolf of Sweden

53. Sophia Magdalena of Denmark

13. Sophie of Sweden

54. Charles Louis, Hereditary Prince of Baden

27. Frederica of Baden

55. Landgravine Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt

3. Victoria of Baden

56. Frederick William II of Prussia

28. Frederick William III of Prussia

57. Frederika Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt

14. William I, German Emperor

58. Charles II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg

29. Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

59. Landgravine Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt

7. Princess Louise of Prussia

60. Karl August, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

30. Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

61. Landgravine Louise of Hesse-Darmstadt

15. Augusta of Saxe-Weimar

62. Paul I of Russia

31. Maria Pavlovna of Russia

63. Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg

References

Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden House of Bernadotte Born: 11 November 1882 Died: 15 September 1973
Regnal titles
Preceded by Gustaf V	King of Sweden 1950–1973	Succeeded by Carl XVI Gustaf
Swedish royalty
Preceded by Gustaf	Crown Prince of Sweden 1907–1950	Succeeded by Carl Gustaf
Vacant Title last held by Charles XV	Duke of Skåne 1882–1950	Vacant
Sporting positions
Preceded by William Grenfell Edward VII of the United Kingdom	President of Organizing Committee for Summer Olympic Games 1912	Succeeded by Henri de Baillet-Latour