Carin du Rietz
Encyclopedia
Carin or Karin du Rietz (1766–1788) was a Swedish
woman who became a soldier at the Royal guard in the guise of a man. She was the first woman in the Swedish royal guard. Her story was a well known and discussed event in her time, and later regarded to exemplify the vivacious Gustavian age
.
Carl du Rietz and Eva Cronhjelm, she was described as a woman with the stunning intelligence of an Amazon
, with power and courage, temperament and beauty, and a "mind of fire". She grew up in a mansion in Småland
.
She ran away from home three times; the cause was thought to have been the strictness of her parents combined with the "reading of too many novels". The first time, she reached Stockholm
, where she was discovered and captured by her brothers; the second time she escaped to her doting grandparents on Värmdön
. The third time, however, she dressed herself like a man and enlisted in the Royal regiment at court in Stockholm, as the first female ever.
When she did so, the king, Gustav III
, was highly amused by her story. He allowed her to marry a librarian at the royal court, Erik Johan Paulin. They were both described as very happy about this. Paulin had a priest-education, and the king gave him the post of vicar in Kungsbacka
parish. Carin was related to Charlotte Du Rietz
, to whom the monarch had a strong attachment.
De Rietz died in childbirth
shortly after the family moved in to their new home; her husband and child died soon after.
One of the coachmen of the city of Linköping
, Petter Cederlöf, had suddenly taken ill and died within ten hours. The woman taking care of the body then discovered that the man was in fact a woman. It was decided to make it public as a warning. Cederlöf had been hired the spring before after having showed all the necessary papers, amused himself with the maids, and finally proposed and engaged himself with a maid from the city. The fiancee was initially devastated over the death of her dear "Petter", but when she was told, it was reported that: All her tears have suddenly ceased.
Many such stories are told, some of them quite famous; Gustafva Juliana Cederström, (1746-1801) was widely known in the country for having served in several professions as a man, and on the opposite side, there was Lasse-Maja
, a man dressing himself as a woman.
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....
woman who became a soldier at the Royal guard in the guise of a man. She was the first woman in the Swedish royal guard. Her story was a well known and discussed event in her time, and later regarded to exemplify the vivacious Gustavian age
Gustav III of Sweden
Gustav III was King of Sweden from 1771 until his death. He was the eldest son of King Adolph Frederick and Queen Louise Ulrica of Sweden, she a sister of Frederick the Great of Prussia....
.
Background
The daughter of lieutenantLieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Carl du Rietz and Eva Cronhjelm, she was described as a woman with the stunning intelligence of an Amazon
Amazons
The Amazons are a nation of all-female warriors in Greek mythology and Classical antiquity. Herodotus placed them in a region bordering Scythia in Sarmatia...
, with power and courage, temperament and beauty, and a "mind of fire". She grew up in a mansion in Småland
Småland
' is a historical province in southern Sweden.Småland borders Blekinge, Scania or Skåne, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means Small Lands. . The latinized form Smolandia has been used in other languages...
.
She ran away from home three times; the cause was thought to have been the strictness of her parents combined with the "reading of too many novels". The first time, she reached 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...
, where she was discovered and captured by her brothers; the second time she escaped to her doting grandparents on Värmdön
Värmdön
Värmdö is an island in the innermost region of the Stockholm archipelago and covers an area of 180 km², making it the largest island in the archipelago. Värmdö is after Gotland and Öland the third largest island on the eastern coast of Sweden....
. The third time, however, she dressed herself like a man and enlisted in the Royal regiment at court in Stockholm, as the first female ever.
In the Royal Guard
During her time as a guard soldier, she preserved her male identity through her "female cunning", but as the story goes, she had so many troubles with sexual advances from both women and men that in the end she could see no other solution but to reveal her identity to the king himself before she was discovered in some other way. According to the legend, she stepped forward and fell down before the king one day when he passed a row of soldiers, of which she was one. She then revealed her identity to him.When she did so, the king, Gustav III
Gustav III of Sweden
Gustav III was King of Sweden from 1771 until his death. He was the eldest son of King Adolph Frederick and Queen Louise Ulrica of Sweden, she a sister of Frederick the Great of Prussia....
, was highly amused by her story. He allowed her to marry a librarian at the royal court, Erik Johan Paulin. They were both described as very happy about this. Paulin had a priest-education, and the king gave him the post of vicar in Kungsbacka
Kungsbacka
Kungsbacka is a locality and the seat of Kungsbacka Municipality in Halland County, Sweden, with 17,784 inhabitants in 2005.It is one of the most affluent parts of Sweden, in part due to its simultaneous proximity to stunning countryside and the large city of Gothenburg..-History:The first records...
parish. Carin was related to Charlotte Du Rietz
Charlotte Du Rietz
Charlotte du Riez or Du Rietz, née De Geer was a Swedish noblewoman , known as a love object of King Gustav III. It is unknown whether or not she was ever physically involved with the monarch....
, to whom the monarch had a strong attachment.
De Rietz died in childbirth
Childbirth
Childbirth is the culmination of a human pregnancy or gestation period with the birth of one or more newborn infants from a woman's uterus...
shortly after the family moved in to their new home; her husband and child died soon after.
Context and other examples
Du Rietz was far from the only example of women personating and living as men. The 18th May 1780 an incident was reported in the newspaper as a warning example;
As a great benefit to the maids of the city, death newly discovered a terrible fraud, which, if it becomes an example, would alarm the fair sex, humiliate the clothing of males and make medical examinations necessary for both engagements and weddings.
One of the coachmen of the city of Linköping
Linköping
Linköping is a city in southern middle Sweden, with 104 232 inhabitants in 2010. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality with 146 736 inhabitants and the capital of Östergötland County...
, Petter Cederlöf, had suddenly taken ill and died within ten hours. The woman taking care of the body then discovered that the man was in fact a woman. It was decided to make it public as a warning. Cederlöf had been hired the spring before after having showed all the necessary papers, amused himself with the maids, and finally proposed and engaged himself with a maid from the city. The fiancee was initially devastated over the death of her dear "Petter", but when she was told, it was reported that: All her tears have suddenly ceased.
Many such stories are told, some of them quite famous; Gustafva Juliana Cederström, (1746-1801) was widely known in the country for having served in several professions as a man, and on the opposite side, there was Lasse-Maja
Lasse-Maja
Lars Larsson Molin, alias Lasse-Maja , was a notorious Swedish criminal who used to disguise himself in women's clothing, which gave him the female sounding nickname Lasse-Maja; Lasse is the common version of his own male name Lars, and Maja was a common version of the female name Maria...
, a man dressing himself as a woman.