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Swedish prince (1861–1951) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Prince Carl of Sweden and Norway, Duke of Västergötland (27 February 1861 – 24 October 1951) was a Swedish prince. Through his daughters Märtha and Astrid, for whom he arranged dynastic marriages, he is an ancestor of current members of the Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg, Belgian royal family and Norwegian royal family.
| Prince Carl | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duke of Västergötland | |||||
.jpg) Photograph of Prince Carl, c. 1930 | |||||
| Born | 27 February 1861 Arvfurstens palats, Stockholm, Sweden | ||||
| Died | 24 October 1951 (aged 90) Stockholm, Sweden | ||||
| Spouse | |||||
| Issue | |||||
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| House | Bernadotte | ||||
| Father | Oscar II of Sweden | ||||
| Mother | Sophia of Nassau | ||||
Prince Carl was born on 27 February 1861 at his parents' residence in the Arvfurstens palats (Palace of the Hereditary Prince), an 18th century palace located at Gustav Adolfs Torg in central Stockholm. Born into the House of Bernadotte, he was the third son and child of the then Prince Oscar and Princess Sophia. His father was the younger brother and heir presumptive of the reigning king of Sweden-Norway, the sonless King Charles XV, and his mother was the youngest daughter of Wilhelm, Duke of Nassau. Upon the death of Charles XV on 18 September 1872, Carl's father ascended the Swedish and Norwegian thrones as King Oscar II.
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Carl was known as "the Blue Prince" (Blå Prinsen) because he often wore the blue-coloured uniform of the Life Regiment, to which he belonged in a ceremonial manner.[1]
In May 1897, Prince Carl was engaged at the age of 36 to the 18-year-old Princess Ingeborg of Denmark, the second daughter of King Frederik VIII of Denmark. Ingeborg's mother, Louise of Sweden, was a first cousin of Prince Carl, and they were, therefore, first cousins once-removed. The engagement was arranged, and in 1947, on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary, Carl admitted that their marriage had been completely arranged by their respective fathers, and Ingeborg herself added : "I married a complete stranger!"
The couple were married on 27 August 1897 at the chapel of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen and spent their wedding trip (honeymoon) in Germany. The couple had four children:
All of Carl's children grew up to be healthy adults. While all three daughters made dynastic marriages that were encouraged by their parents, and became the matriarchs of their own successful families, the couple's only son gave up his (highly improbable) chance of succeeding to the throne to marry a noblewoman.
In 1905, during the political struggle in which Norway obtained its independence from Sweden, Prince Carl was seriously considered as a candidate for the Norwegian crown. It was thought that electing a Swedish prince as king was a less radical way for Norway to secede from the union, and hence a more peaceful approach. Carl was chosen because his eldest brother would inherit the Swedish throne, and his second brother had renounced his royal status to make an unsuitable marriage. However, Carl's father King Oscar II of Sweden did not approve of the proposal, as he saw the whole "riot" which precipitated the Norwegian crisis as a conspiracy and a betrayal against his rights as King of Norway, and he did not want any of his sons to be involved with people whom he considered his enemies. Therefore, Prince Carl never became King of Norway. Instead, another Prince Carl – Prince Carl of Denmark – was elected after some diplomatic turbulence, taking the name Haakon VII. As history turned out however, the Duke of Västergötland's daughter, Princess Märtha, married Haakon VII's son, who later became King Olav V. Hence, the present King, Harald V of Norway, is a grandchild of the duke.
Prince Carl has the distinction of being a grandfather of three reigning European monarchs: King Harald V of Norway (son of his daughter, Princess Märtha), the late King Baudouin of the Belgians and his brother, King Albert II of the Belgians (sons of his daughter, Princess Astrid). He is also a great-grandfather of King Philippe of the Belgians and Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg.
Norway:
Austria: Grand Cross of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria
Belgium: Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold
Bulgarian Royal Family: Grand Cross of St. Alexander, 1921[6]
Estonia: Order of the Red Cross, 1st Class
Finland: Grand Cross of the Cross of Liberty, 1 October 1918[7]
France: Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour
Greek Royal Family: Grand Cross of the Redeemer
Hungarian Royal Family: Grand Cross of the Royal Hungarian Order of St. Stephen, 1885[8]
Italian Royal Family: Knight of the Annunciation, 5 July 1913[9]
Denmark:[10]
German Imperial and Royal Family:
Baden Grand Ducal Family:[11]
Nassau Ducal Family: Knight of the Gold Lion of Nassau
Saxe-Weimar Grand Ducal Family: Grand Cross of the White Falcon, 1881[12]
Latvia: Commander Grand Cross of the Three Stars
Monaco: Grand Cross of St. Charles, 5 August 1884[13]
Netherlands: Grand Cross of the Netherlands Lion
Turkish Imperial Family: Order of Osmanieh, 1st Class
Poland: Grand Cross of Polonia Restituta
Portuguese Royal Family: Grand Cross of the Tower and Sword
Romanian Royal Family: Grand Cross of the Star of Romania
Russian Imperial Family:
Siam: Knight of the Order of the Royal House of Chakri, 13 July 1897[14]
United Kingdom: Honorary Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order, 18 April 1904[15]
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| Ancestors of Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland |
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