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The 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.
Following the Finnish War in 1809
Sweden suffered the traumatic loss of Finland, which had constituted the eastern half
of the Swedish realm. The agony and resentment towards King Gustav IV Adolf precipitated a coup d'état and Gustav Adolf's uncle, the childless Charles XIII replaced him. This was merely a temporary solution
and in 1810 the Swedish Riksdag of the Estates chose the Marshal
of France, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte as heir apparent
to the Swedish throne.
Bernadotte, who was born in the town of Pau, in the province of Béarn, France, had through the tumultuous French Revolution
risen to become not only one of Napoleon's generals, but
also a Marshal of France and Prince of Ponte Corvo, a town in northern
Italy. As the Crown Prince of
Sweden he assumed the name Charles (Karl Johan), acted officially as regent
for the remainder of Charles XIII's reign and secured a union between Sweden and Norway in 1814. Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte reigned as King Charles XIV of Sweden and Carl III Johan of Norway from February 5,
1818 until his death on March 8, 1844.
The coat of arms of the House of Bernadotte combines the coat of arms of
the House of Vasa, (left, with the hint of a French-like
tricolour in the background) and the coat of arms of Bernadotte as the Prince of
Ponte Corvo (right). It is visible as an inescutcheon in the
Greater Coats of Arms of the Realm.
King Charles XIV, father of the dynasty.
Kings of Sweden
Kings of Norway
Family tree (only royal parts)
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