Frederica of Baden
Encyclopedia
Friederike Dorothea Wilhelmina of Baden (12 March 1781 – 25 September 1826) was Queen consort
of Sweden
from 1797 to 1809. Daughter of Karl Ludwig of Baden
and Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt
, she was the younger sister of Empress Elisabeth Alexeievna (formerly Princess Louise of Baden
), wife of Tsar Alexander I of Russia
.
. In Stockholm
on 31 October 1797, she married King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden
and became queen. Her husband had arranged the marriage himself because she was the sister of the Russian Empress
, which made a form of alliance with Russia even after he refused to marry the Russian Grand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna, but mostly because he wanted a beautiful consort; in 1795, he refused a marriage with a Princess of Mecklenburg, Duchess Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
, because he had heard that she was not beautiful.
She had been given but a small education by a French-Swiss governess. She was treated with kindness by her mother-in-law, Sophia Magdalena of Denmark
, who remembered how ill she herself had been treated by her own mother-in-law. She was described as stiff, shy, unfriendly and beautiful. The first years, she found it difficult to adapt to the strict court etiquette and played children's games with her ladies-in-waiting.
The marriage is often considered happy, but the King was much more interested in sex than she was. Often, the king was delayed for hours after "having entered the queen's bed chamber" in the mornings, so much that the members of the parliament had to interrupt and ask the king to "spare the queen's health", and she complained of the exhaustion it caused her. In the presence of others, however, he behaved very formal towards her. She was shocked and intrigued by the sexually liberal Swedish court and wrote home to her family that "everyone had a lover" and about the bisexual rumours about the royal Duchess Hedwig Elizabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp; she wrote to her mother, that the Duchess was said to have both male and female lovers and that she herself was probably the only woman of note who did not have three or four lovers. Her husband wanted to preserve her sexual ignorance. When a frivolous play was performed for the queen at the Opera by a French theatre troupe, the king actually closed the Royal Swedish Opera
down in 1806, though officially because of the costs; it remained closed until 1809.
After the birth of her son in 1799, she became more comfortable in her position as queen. In 1800, she was crowned in Norrköping
, and in 1801, she received a visit from her parents. During a trip to Finland
in 1802, she crossed the border to Russia to visit her sisters Elisabeth and Amalie. In 1803–5, she and her husband visited Germany and her home country, and the marriage greatly improved after this. She hosted her exiled sister Princess Marie of Baden
as a guest in 1806–7. She was skillful with the clavichord
, often played for the King. In Sweden, they preferred the Haga Palace
as their residence.
In 1807, during the war with France, Frederica intervened politically. Her sister, the Russian Empress, sent her a letter through their mother, that she should use her influence to advise the king to make peace with France, and that anything else would be a mistake. She did try this, but the king saw this as a way to influence him to a more Napoleon-friendly politic, and this caused a conflict between the king and queen.
She was deposed with her spouse in 1809; she and her children were first kept at Haga
. The spouses where separated because she was suspected to plan a coup. During her house arrest she was given more sympathy than her entire time as queen for her dignified behaviour. She was often visited by the new queen, Hedvig Elizabeth Charlotte, who felt sympathy for her and wished to preserve the right to the throne for Frederica's son. Frederica told her that she was willing to give up her son, and asked to be reunited with her husband; this was granted, by intervetion of Hedvig Elizabeth Charlotte, and she was reunited with her husband after the coronation of the new king.
There were plans by a military party led by General Vegesack to free Frederica and her children from the arrest and pronounce her as regent for her minor son. These plans were in fact presented to her, but she declined: The Queen displayed a nobility in her feelings, which makes her deservable of a crown of honor and placed her above the pitiful earthly royalty. She did not listen to the secret proposals, made to her by a party, who wished to preserve the succession of the crown prince and wished, that she would remain in Sweden to become the regent during the minority of her son... she explained with firmness, that her duty as a wife and mother told her to share the exile with her husband and children.
They were escorted out of the country in the three carriages; the first one with the adults, the second with the former crown prince, and the third with the smaller children.
She kept a correspondence with her former mother-in-law, Sophia Magdalena in Sweden, and with queen Hedvig Elizabeth Charlotte, to whom she entrusted her economic interests in Sweden. According to her ladies-in-waiting, she turned down proposals from her brother-in-law Frederick William of Braunschweig-Oels
and Frederick William III of Prussia
. She was rumored to have had a secret marriage with her son's tutor, the French-Swiss JNG de Polier-Vernland. She travelled a lot, using the name Countess Itterburg. She died in Lausanne
of a heart disease. She was buried in Schloss and Stiftskirche in Pforzheim
, Germany.
The communities of Fredrika
(1799), Dorotea
(1799) and Vilhelmina
(1804) located in Lappland were named in her honor.
Gustav would serve as an officer to the Habsburg
s of Austria
, but would only father one daughter, Carola
, the wife
of King Albert I of Saxony
, but she died childless.
Sofia Wilhelmina would marry Leopold I of Baden, and their granddaughter, Victoria of Baden
, would eventually marry Gustav V of Sweden, thus connecting the House of Bernadotte
with the previous Swedish dynasties.
Queen consort
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles. Historically, queens consort do not share the king regnant's political and military powers. Most queens in history were queens consort...
of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
from 1797 to 1809. Daughter of Karl Ludwig of Baden
Karl Ludwig of Baden
Charles Louis, Hereditary Prince of Baden was heir apparent of the Margraviate of Baden. He was born in Karlsruhe....
and Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt
Landgravine Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt
Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt was the daughter of Ludwig IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and Henriette Karoline of Palatine-Zweibrücken.-Marriage and issue:...
, she was the younger sister of Empress Elisabeth Alexeievna (formerly Princess Louise of Baden
Louise of Baden
Elizabeth Alexeievna was the wife of Emperor Alexander I of Russia.-Princess of Baden:...
), wife of Tsar Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....
.
Biography
She was born in KarlsruheKarlsruhe
The City of Karlsruhe is a city in the southwest of Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, located near the French-German border.Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 as Karlsruhe Palace, when Germany was a series of principalities and city states...
. In Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
on 31 October 1797, she married King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden
Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden
Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden also Gustav Adolph was King of Sweden from 1792 until his abdication in 1809. He was the son of Gustav III of Sweden and his queen consort Sophia Magdalena, eldest daughter of Frederick V of Denmark and his first wife Louise of Great Britain. He was the last Swedish...
and became queen. Her husband had arranged the marriage himself because she was the sister of the Russian Empress
Louise of Baden
Elizabeth Alexeievna was the wife of Emperor Alexander I of Russia.-Princess of Baden:...
, which made a form of alliance with Russia even after he refused to marry the Russian Grand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna, but mostly because he wanted a beautiful consort; in 1795, he refused a marriage with a Princess of Mecklenburg, Duchess Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Duchess Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Duchess Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was the maternal grandmother of Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom....
, because he had heard that she was not beautiful.
She had been given but a small education by a French-Swiss governess. She was treated with kindness by her mother-in-law, Sophia Magdalena of Denmark
Sophia Magdalena of Denmark
Sofia Magdalena of Denmark and Norway was a Queen consort of Sweden as the spouse of Gustav III of Sweden....
, who remembered how ill she herself had been treated by her own mother-in-law. She was described as stiff, shy, unfriendly and beautiful. The first years, she found it difficult to adapt to the strict court etiquette and played children's games with her ladies-in-waiting.
The marriage is often considered happy, but the King was much more interested in sex than she was. Often, the king was delayed for hours after "having entered the queen's bed chamber" in the mornings, so much that the members of the parliament had to interrupt and ask the king to "spare the queen's health", and she complained of the exhaustion it caused her. In the presence of others, however, he behaved very formal towards her. She was shocked and intrigued by the sexually liberal Swedish court and wrote home to her family that "everyone had a lover" and about the bisexual rumours about the royal Duchess Hedwig Elizabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp; she wrote to her mother, that the Duchess was said to have both male and female lovers and that she herself was probably the only woman of note who did not have three or four lovers. Her husband wanted to preserve her sexual ignorance. When a frivolous play was performed for the queen at the Opera by a French theatre troupe, the king actually closed the Royal Swedish Opera
Royal Swedish Opera
Kungliga Operan is Sweden's national stage for opera and ballet.-Location and Environment:...
down in 1806, though officially because of the costs; it remained closed until 1809.
After the birth of her son in 1799, she became more comfortable in her position as queen. In 1800, she was crowned in Norrköping
Norrköping
Norrköping is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County. The city has a population of 87,247 inhabitants in 2010, out of a municipal total of 130,050, making it Sweden's tenth largest city and eighth largest...
, and in 1801, she received a visit from her parents. During a trip to Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
in 1802, she crossed the border to Russia to visit her sisters Elisabeth and Amalie. In 1803–5, she and her husband visited Germany and her home country, and the marriage greatly improved after this. She hosted her exiled sister Princess Marie of Baden
Princess Marie of Baden (1782–1808)
Marie of Baden , was a Duchess consort of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Brunswick-Oels. She was married to Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, 1 November 1802...
as a guest in 1806–7. She was skillful with the clavichord
Clavichord
The clavichord is a European stringed keyboard instrument known from the late Medieval, through the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical eras. Historically, it was widely used as a practice instrument and as an aid to composition, not being loud enough for larger performances. The clavichord produces...
, often played for the King. In Sweden, they preferred the Haga Palace
Haga Palace
Haga Palace , formerly known as the Queen's Pavilion , is located in Hagaparken, Solna Municipality in Metropolitan Stockholm, Sweden. The palace, built in 1802 1805, was modelled after ballet-master Gallodiers Italian villa in Drottningholm by architect Carl Christoffer Gjörwell on appointment by...
as their residence.
In 1807, during the war with France, Frederica intervened politically. Her sister, the Russian Empress, sent her a letter through their mother, that she should use her influence to advise the king to make peace with France, and that anything else would be a mistake. She did try this, but the king saw this as a way to influence him to a more Napoleon-friendly politic, and this caused a conflict between the king and queen.
She was deposed with her spouse in 1809; she and her children were first kept at Haga
Haga
Haga is a surname and place name common to Norway, Sweden and Japan.It is also the Assamese word for stool . Haga may refer to:-People:*Arild Haga , Norwegian revue writer...
. The spouses where separated because she was suspected to plan a coup. During her house arrest she was given more sympathy than her entire time as queen for her dignified behaviour. She was often visited by the new queen, Hedvig Elizabeth Charlotte, who felt sympathy for her and wished to preserve the right to the throne for Frederica's son. Frederica told her that she was willing to give up her son, and asked to be reunited with her husband; this was granted, by intervetion of Hedvig Elizabeth Charlotte, and she was reunited with her husband after the coronation of the new king.
There were plans by a military party led by General Vegesack to free Frederica and her children from the arrest and pronounce her as regent for her minor son. These plans were in fact presented to her, but she declined: The Queen displayed a nobility in her feelings, which makes her deservable of a crown of honor and placed her above the pitiful earthly royalty. She did not listen to the secret proposals, made to her by a party, who wished to preserve the succession of the crown prince and wished, that she would remain in Sweden to become the regent during the minority of her son... she explained with firmness, that her duty as a wife and mother told her to share the exile with her husband and children.
They were escorted out of the country in the three carriages; the first one with the adults, the second with the former crown prince, and the third with the smaller children.
In exile
The family settled in Baden, but her husband was restless and did not want to stay. She herself refused further sexual intercourse as she "did not wish to give birth in exile." She also wished to live a life more in the style of a queen, while he preferred a more simple family life. They were separated in 1810, and divorce proceedings begun in 1811. They were divorced in 1812. Secretly, she supported him financially after the separation. After the divorce, she entrusted her children to the formal guardianship of the Russian czar.She kept a correspondence with her former mother-in-law, Sophia Magdalena in Sweden, and with queen Hedvig Elizabeth Charlotte, to whom she entrusted her economic interests in Sweden. According to her ladies-in-waiting, she turned down proposals from her brother-in-law Frederick William of Braunschweig-Oels
Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel
Prince Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel was a German prince and Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Oels. Nicknamed "The Black Dude", he was a military officer who led the Black Brunswickers against Napoleonic domination in Germany...
and Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III was king of Prussia from 1797 to 1840. He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel .-Early life:...
. She was rumored to have had a secret marriage with her son's tutor, the French-Swiss JNG de Polier-Vernland. She travelled a lot, using the name Countess Itterburg. She died in Lausanne
Lausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
of a heart disease. She was buried in Schloss and Stiftskirche in Pforzheim
Pforzheim
Pforzheim is a town of nearly 119,000 inhabitants in the state of Baden-Württemberg, southwest Germany at the gate to the Black Forest. It is world-famous for its jewelry and watch-making industry. Until 1565 it was the home to the Margraves of Baden. Because of that it gained the nickname...
, Germany.
The communities of Fredrika
Fredrika
Fredrika is a locality situated in Åsele Municipality, Västerbotten County, Sweden with 254 inhabitants in 2005....
(1799), Dorotea
Dorotea
Dorotea is a locality and the seat of Dorotea Municipality in Västerbotten County, Sweden, with 1,571 inhabitants in 2005...
(1799) and Vilhelmina
Vilhelmina
Vilhelmina is a locality and the seat of Vilhelmina Municipality in Västerbotten County, Sweden with 3,633 inhabitants in 2005.- References :...
(1804) located in Lappland were named in her honor.
Children
- Crown Prince Gustaf, after 1809 known as Gustaf Gustafsson of Vasa (9 November 1799–1877), married Princess Louise Amelie of BadenPrincess Louise Amelie of BadenPrincess Louise Amelie Stephanie of Baden was a daughter of Karl, Grand Duke of Baden and his wife Stéphanie de Beauharnais.-Family:...
- Princess Sofia WilhelminaSophie of SwedenPrincess Sophie Wilhelmine of Sweden , was a Swedish princess and a consort Grand Duchess of Baden.- Biography :Sophie was born in Stockholm, Sweden, on 21 May 1801. She was the daughter of King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden and Queen consort Frederica of Baden...
(21 May 1801–65), married Grand Duke Leopold I of Baden - Prince Carl Gustaf, Grand Duke of Finland (DrottningholmDrottningholmDrottningholm, literally "Queen's Islet", is a locality situated in Ekerö Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden, with 410 inhabitants in 2005....
, 2 December 1802 – HagaHagaHaga is a surname and place name common to Norway, Sweden and Japan.It is also the Assamese word for stool . Haga may refer to:-People:*Arild Haga , Norwegian revue writer...
, 10 September 1805) - Princess AmaliaPrincess Amalia Maria Charlotta of SwedenAmalia Maria Charlotta of Sweden was a Swedish princess, daughter of King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden and Frederica of Baden....
(StockholmStockholmStockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, 22 February 1805 – ViennaViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, 31 August 1853), unmarried - Princess Cecilia (22 June 1807–44), married Augustus, Grand Duke of OldenburgAugustus, Grand Duke of OldenburgAugustus, Grand Duke of Oldenburg was the Grand Duke of Oldenburg from 1829 to 1853.-Family:Augustus was born to the then Prince Peter of Holstein-Gottorp and his wife Duchess Frederica of Württemberg, a daughter of Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg...
.
Gustav would serve as an officer to the Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
s of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, but would only father one daughter, Carola
Carola of Vasa
Carola of Vasa was a titular princess of Sweden, and the queen consort of Saxony...
, the wife
Queen consort
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles. Historically, queens consort do not share the king regnant's political and military powers. Most queens in history were queens consort...
of King Albert I of Saxony
Albert I of Saxony
Albert was a King of Saxony and a member of the House of Wettin.He was the eldest son of Prince John, Albert (full name: Frederick Augustus Albert Anton Ferdinand Joseph Karl Maria Baptist Nepomuk Wilhelm Xaver Georg Fidelis) (Dresden, 23 April 1828 – Schloss Sibyllenort (Szczodre), 19 June...
, but she died childless.
Sofia Wilhelmina would marry Leopold I of Baden, and their granddaughter, Victoria of Baden
Victoria of Baden
Victoria of Baden was a Queen consort of Sweden by her marriage to King Gustaf V of Sweden. She was politically active in a conservative fashion during the development of democracy and known as a pro-German during the First World War.-Birth:Princess Viktoria was born on 7 August 1862 at the castle...
, would eventually marry Gustav V of Sweden, thus connecting the House of Bernadotte
Bernadotte
The House of Bernadotte, the current royal house of Sweden, has reigned since 1818. Between 1818 and 1905, it was also the royal house of the Norway...
with the previous Swedish dynasties.