Swedish nobility
The
Swedish nobility (Adeln) were historically a legally privileged
class in
Sweden, part of the so-called
frälse (a classification defined by tax exemptions and representation in the
diet that also applied to clergy). Today, noble families and their descendants are still part of Swedish society but no longer retain any specific or granted privileges.
Swedish nobility is organized into three classes according to a scheme introduced in
1561:
*
count (greve)*
baron (friherre, baron)* untitled
nobility (obetitlad adel)(A
Swedish duke (hertig) has always been of royal status and counted as such.)
Following the elevation of a commoner into nobility by the
Swedish monarch, the key concept was that of introduction to one's peers in the
House of Knights (Riddarhuset), which formerly was a chamber in the
Riksdag of the Estates, the Swedish Parliament. After
1866 the House of Knights served as official representation for the nobility and was regulated by the
Swedish government, but this regulation has decreased, as have the privileges. Virtually all noble families are introduced (with the exception of some members of foreign nobility who, while having been naturalized into the royal court, have never been introduced), and their members are listed in a calendar published every three years.
The institution of Swedish (and Finish) nobility dates back to
1280, when it was stated in the
Decree of Alsnö that
magnates who could afford to contribute a mounted soldier to the
cavalry were to be exempted from tax - at least from ordinary taxes - just as the
clergy already had been. The archaic Swedish term for nobility,
frälse, also included the clergy with respect to their exemption from tax.
The background for this was that the old system of a
leiðangr fleet and a king constantly on travel through the realm (between the estates of
Uppsala öd) had by this time became outmoded and in need of replacement. The
crown's court and castles were now to be financed through taxes on land.
Soon it was agreed that the king should govern the realm in cooperation with a
Privy Council (or Royal Council), in which the bishops and the most distinguished magnates (i.e. the most prominent contributors to the army) participated. When critical decisions were necessary, the whole
frälse was summoned to the
diets.
Swedish nobility had no hereditary
fiefs. In the case where a noble was granted a castle belonging to the crown, his heirs couldn't later claim their ancestors' civil or military rights. The lands of the magnates who constituted the medieval nobility were their own and not "on lease" from a feudal king. If they by their own means (including the suffering of their local peasantry) built a castle and financed its troops, then the castle was theirs, but its troops were expected to serve as a part of the army of the realm.
For extended periods, the commander of
Viborg at the
Novgorod/
Russian front did, in practice, function as a
margrave, keeping all the crown's income from the fief to use for the defense of the realm's eastern border. But despite heavy German influence during the medieval period, the elaborate
German system with titles such as Lantgraf, Reichsgraf, Burggraf and Pfalzgraf was never applied in Sweden.
At the coronation of
Eric XIV in
1561, Swedish nobility became formally hereditary for the first time upon the creation of the higher titles of
count (greve) and
baron (friherre, baron). The
House of Knights was organized in
1626. The grounds for introduction into this House became either birth into an "ancient" noble family or enoblement by the king. Consequently, a great interest in
genealogy followed.
The Lord High Chancellor,
Axel Oxenstierna, was the architect of the
Instrument of Government of
1634, which laid the foundation of modern Sweden. It guaranteed that all government appointments were to be filled by candidates from the noble classes, a move which helped mobilize support for, rather than opposition to, a centralized national government.
Due to the many wars fought by Sweden, the crown needed some means of rewarding its officers, and since the royal coffers were not bottomless, enoblement and grants of land were useful substitutes for cash payments. During the
17th century, the number of noble families grew by a factor of five. In less than a century, the nobility's share of Swedish land ownership rose from 16% to over 60%, which led to considerably lower tax revenue for the crown. The "reductions" of
1655 and
1680, however, brought land back into the crown's possession.
Following the German model, historically all members of a noble family were generally titled. If the family was of the rank of count or baron, all members received that title as well. However, following the new
Instrument of Government from
1809, a change was made more in line with the British system so that, for later nobility, only the head of the family could hold the title. There also exist Swedish families in which all members are noble but only the head carries the title of "count". But this new rule applies only to nobiliations granted after 1809, so the vast majority of noble families are still of the old type.
In contrast to the
United Kingdom and the
Benelux countries, no hereditary
titles or honours have been granted since
1902, when explorer
Sven Hedin was enobled by the king (that honor was hereditary, but he left no heirs). Since
1975 there has been no legal right of enoblement. Deposed royal princes have been granted
Luxembourgish or
Belgian titles of nobility instead.
The noble estates have yet to be abolished in
Sweden, but their privileged position has been weakened step by step since
1680. The nobility's political privileges were practically abolished by the reformation of the
Riksdag of the Estates in
1866, and the last rights of precedence to certain governmental offices were removed in the
1920s. By then the last tax exemption privileges had also been abolished. However, some minor privileges remained up until
2003, when the law granting these noble privileges was completely abolished.
The perks of nobility today are limited to protection of noble titles and certain elements and styles used in
coats of arms: a helm with an open visor, a coronet showing rank, and the use of supporters. Modern Swedish law makes no distinctions on the grounds of nobility.
*
List of Swedish noble families*
Swedish Royal Family*
Nobility in Finland*
Norwegian nobility*
The House of Knights - Official site
*
Law on Privileges for the Nobility (1723) - at Wikisource (
in Swedish)
*
Constitution for the House of Knights (1866) - at Wikisource (
in Swedish)
