The
Act of Succession is a part of the
Swedish ConstitutionThe Swedish Constitution consists of four fundamental laws :* The 1974 Instrument of Government * The 1810 Act of Succession * The 1949 Freedom of the Press Act * The 1991 Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression...
. It was adopted by the
Riksdag of the EstatesThe Riksdag of the Estates, or Ståndsriksdagen, was the name used for the Estates of the Swedish realm, or Rikets ständer, when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866 the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the Swedish monarch...
on September 26, 1810, and it regulates the right of members of the House of
BernadotteThe House of Bernadotte, the current Royal House of the Kingdom of Sweden, has reigned since 1818. Between 1818 and 1905 it was also the Royal House of Norway.-History:...
to accede to the
SwedishSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
throne. The current
monarch of SwedenThe monarch is the head of state of the Kingdom of Sweden. Sweden, being a constitutional monarchy with a representative democracy based on a parliamentary system has a largely ceremonial monarch, though officially he or she holds the highest public office in Sweden and the highest military rank...
is
King Carl XVI GustafCarl XVI Gustaf has been King of Sweden since 15 September 1973. He is the only son of the late Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha...
.
The Act of Succession was adopted by the
Riksdag of the EstatesThe Riksdag of the Estates, or Ståndsriksdagen, was the name used for the Estates of the Swedish realm, or Rikets ständer, when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866 the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the Swedish monarch...
assembled at
ÖrebroÖrebro [œrə'bruː] is a city, the seat of Örebro Municipality and the capital of Örebro County in Sweden with 98,237 inhabitants in 2005.-History:Örebro received its Royal Charter and city privileges not later than 1404....
in 1810, upon electing Charles XIV John (Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte) as the heir to King
Charles XIIICharles XIII & II , was King of Sweden from 1809 and King of Norway from 1814 until his death...
. This happened at a tumultuous time for Sweden, as only one year earlier the former king,
Gustav IV AdolfGustav IV Adolf 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 ruler of Finland.-Early...
had been deposed and replaced by his uncle, Charles XIII.
The
Act of Succession is a part of the
Swedish ConstitutionThe Swedish Constitution consists of four fundamental laws :* The 1974 Instrument of Government * The 1810 Act of Succession * The 1949 Freedom of the Press Act * The 1991 Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression...
. It was adopted by the
Riksdag of the EstatesThe Riksdag of the Estates, or Ståndsriksdagen, was the name used for the Estates of the Swedish realm, or Rikets ständer, when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866 the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the Swedish monarch...
on September 26, 1810, and it regulates the right of members of the House of
BernadotteThe House of Bernadotte, the current Royal House of the Kingdom of Sweden, has reigned since 1818. Between 1818 and 1905 it was also the Royal House of Norway.-History:...
to accede to the
SwedishSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
throne. The current
monarch of SwedenThe monarch is the head of state of the Kingdom of Sweden. Sweden, being a constitutional monarchy with a representative democracy based on a parliamentary system has a largely ceremonial monarch, though officially he or she holds the highest public office in Sweden and the highest military rank...
is
King Carl XVI GustafCarl XVI Gustaf has been King of Sweden since 15 September 1973. He is the only son of the late Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha...
.
History
The Act of Succession was adopted by the
Riksdag of the EstatesThe Riksdag of the Estates, or Ståndsriksdagen, was the name used for the Estates of the Swedish realm, or Rikets ständer, when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866 the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the Swedish monarch...
assembled at
ÖrebroÖrebro [œrə'bruː] is a city, the seat of Örebro Municipality and the capital of Örebro County in Sweden with 98,237 inhabitants in 2005.-History:Örebro received its Royal Charter and city privileges not later than 1404....
in 1810, upon electing Charles XIV John (Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte) as the heir to King
Charles XIIICharles XIII & II , was King of Sweden from 1809 and King of Norway from 1814 until his death...
. This happened at a tumultuous time for Sweden, as only one year earlier the former king,
Gustav IV AdolfGustav IV Adolf 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 ruler of Finland.-Early...
had been deposed and replaced by his uncle, Charles XIII. At the same time the
Finnish WarThe Finnish War was fought between Sweden and Russia from February 1808 to September 1809. As a result of the war, the eastern third of Sweden was established as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland within the Russian Empire...
was coming to an end and
FinlandFinland , officially the Republic of Finland
, is a Nordic country and democracy situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. It borders Sweden on the west, Russia on the east, and Norway on the north, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland...
, then a part of
Sweden properSweden proper, or Egentliga Sverige, is a term used to distinguish those territories that were fully integrated into the Kingdom of Sweden, as opposed to the dominions and possessions of, or states in union with, Sweden....
, was held by Russia. The authoritarian constitution of 1772 was abolished and power was returned to parliament by the new
Instrument of GovernmentThe Instrument of Government adopted on June 6, 1809 by the Riksdag of the Estates was the constitution of Sweden from 1809 to 1974. It came about following the disastrous outcome in the Finnish War, when King Gustav IV Adolf was forced to abdicate and was succeeded by his uncle, Charles...
adopted on June 6, 1809. From 1814 to 1905 the Act of Succession also regulated succession to the
NorwegianNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a country in Northern Europe occupying the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, as well as Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard under the Spitsbergen Treaty...
throne, due to the union of
Sweden-NorwayThe Union between Sweden and Norway , was the union of the kingdoms of Sweden and Norway between 1814 and 1905, when they were united under one monarch in a personal union, following the Treaty of Kiel, the declaration of Norwegian independence from Denmark, a brief war with Sweden, the Convention...
.
Provisions
The act specifies that the monarch and the
royal familyThe Swedish Royal Family consists of a number of persons in the Swedish Royal House of Bernadotte, closely related to the King of Sweden. They are entitled to royal titles and style , and some perform official engagements and ceremonial duties of state.-History:Until the 1620s Swedish provinces...
shall belong to the "pure evangelical faith", i.e., the
Church of SwedenThe Church of Sweden is the largest church in Sweden. The Church of Sweden professes the Lutheran branch of Christianity, and is a member of the Porvoo Communion. With almost 6.9 million members, it is the largest Lutheran church in the world. Until 2000 it held the position of state church. As of...
, and that the royal offspring are to be brought up within the realm. The heir to the throne is not able to marry or embark on foreign travel without consent of the monarch. He or she is also prevented from becoming the head of state in another country, either by election or marriage, without the consent of the monarch and the
governmentThe government of Sweden is a constitutional monarchy based on parliamentary democracy. The affairs of the government of Sweden are directed by a cabinet of ministers, which is led by the Prime Minister...
, by forfeit of all rights of succession for themselves and their heirs.
Reforms
In 1980, the rule of succession was changed from
agnatic to
equal primogeniturePrimogeniture is the common law right of the first-born son to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings. It is the tradition brought by the Normans to England in 1066. According to the Norman tradition, the first-born son inherited the entirety of a parent's wealth, estate,...
. This means that the eldest child of the monarch,
regardless of sex, is the first in line of succession. This created
VictoriaVictoria, Crown Princess of Sweden, Duchess of Västergötland is the heiress to the Swedish throne...
(born 1977) crown princess over her younger brother
Prince Carl PhilipPrince Carl Philip, Duke of Värmland is the second child of three children and only son of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden. Born Crown Prince of Sweden, he retained his title and first place in succession for seven months until 1 January 1980...
(born 1979). At the same time the rights of succession to the throne were restricted to
Carl XVI GustafCarl XVI Gustaf has been King of Sweden since 15 September 1973. He is the only son of the late Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha...
and his descendants. However, a special addendum was made for
Prince Bertil, Duke of HallandPrince Bertil of Sweden , Duke of Halland, was the third son of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and his first wife, Princess Margaret of Connaught...
, an uncle to the king, so that he became third (and, from the birth of
Princess MadeleinePrincess Madeleine, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland is the youngest child and second daughter of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden....
in 1982 to his death in 1997, fourth) in line to the throne. By 1995, changes in other parts of the constitution lowered the age of maturity for government from 25 to 18 years, the same age as the civil maturity. This meant that Victoria was able at the age of 18 to act as a regent, in place of her father when he was out of the country.
See also
External links