Sweden's 1809 Coup: King Gustav IV Adolf Dethroned

In 1809, Sweden lost Finland to Russia, and a group of Swedish officers decided their king had failed. This episode traces the dramatic March 13 coup in Stockholm: how Colonel Georg Adlersparre marched from Värmland, how seven conspirators in the capital arrested King Gustav IV Adolf, and how his uncle became Charles XIII — ushering in the personal union with Russia and the eventual adoption of the Bernadotte dynasty. We look at the causes: the disastrous Finnish War, the king's inflexible anti-Napoleon stance, and the economic collapse. And we examine the lasting consequences: Sweden's 1809 Instrument of Government, which lasted until 1974, and the country's shift from absolutism to constitutional monarchy. This is the story of a quiet revolution that reshaped Sweden's modern identity.

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