[5] Through the acquisition of Saint Barthélemy in 1784, Gustav enabled the restoration, if symbolic, of Swedish overseas colonies in America, as well as great personal profits from the transatlantic slave trade.[6][7]. Gustav Swedish military forces were engaged by the thousands on the side of the colonists,[4] largely through the French expedition force. (Charles III of Spain, Catherine II of Russia, Gustav III of Sweden, Joseph I of Portugal) Short as the session was, it was long enough for the deputies to realize that their political supremacy was over. Gustav III, Sweden. It absolved them from their allegiance to the estates, and bound them solely to obey "their lawful king, Gustav III". Gustav's foreign policy, on the other hand, was at first both restrained and cautious. [21], The King twitched and said “ai” without falling. Only eight months before, Catherine had declared that "the odious and revolting aggression" of the king of Sweden would be "forgiven" only if he "testified his repentance" by agreeing to a peace granting a general and unlimited amnesty to all his rebels and consenting to a guarantee by the Swedish Riksdag for the observance of peace in the future ("as it would be imprudent to confide in his good faith alone"). Gustav III Source: Encyclopedia of the Enlightenment Author(s): Marie-Christine Skuncke (1746–1792), King of Sweden (reigned 1771–1792). 3. He was not a great general like Frederick II of Prussia or a great empire-builder like Catherine II of Russia, nor did he labour tirelessly to rationalise the administration of a conglomeration of disparate principalities like Joseph II of Austria. [1] Gustav had arrived earlier that evening to enjoy a dinner in the company of friends. At first he sought to gain Russian support to acquire Norway from Denmark. In 1775, free trade in grain was promoted and several oppressive export tolls were abolished. Catherine II of Russia admired the philosophes. The island's capital still bears the name Gustavia in honour of Gustav III. He was the eldest son of Adolf Frederick, King of Sweden[1] and Queen Louise Ulrika (a sister of King Frederick the Great of Prussia), and a first cousin of Empress Catherine the Great of Russia by reason of their common descent from Christian August of Holstein-Gottorp, Prince of Eutin, and his wife Albertina Frederica of Baden-Durlach. Education and law. The assassination of the king took place at a masked ball at the Royal Opera House in Stockholm at midnight on 16 March 1792. 1 in D Wq 183 (H663): II. Gustav III is mainly remembered for his passion for arts, literature, theatre and music. and ambiguous one, as a consideration of Gustav III of Sweden (1771-1792), traditionally included among eighteenth-century en-lightened despots, will show. Then, after the brief Diet of Gävle on 22 January – 24 February 1792, he fell victim to a widespread political conspiracy among his aristocratic enemies.[1]. Gustav was the son of … Gustav III of Sweden, for instance, pushed his reforms too far; the nobles assassinated him. Corrections? It was under King Gustav III that Sweden gained the small Caribbean island of Saint-Barthélemy from France in 1785 (in exchange for French trading rights in Gothenburg). He was now indeed their sovereign lord. A month later, on 14 August 1790, a peace treaty was signed between Russia and Sweden: the Treaty of Värälä. Gustav then dictated a new oath of allegiance, and everyone signed it without hesitation. 1 in D Wq 183 (H663): I. Allegro di molto", "Symphony No. She also wrote plays, stories, and memoirs. Due to the crowd, Pollet receded behind the King, who bent backwards to talk to Pollet. Gustav III (24 January [O.S. King Gustav was especially fond of him and suffered obvious and severe mental and physical reactions to the baby's illness and death. Simultaneously, influence from Enlightenment thinkers led Gustav III to pursue economic and social liberalism. Notable opera composers under Gustav's reign were three artists originally from Germany: Johann Gottlieb Naumann, Georg Joseph Vogler and Joseph Martin Kraus. Meanwhile, the Privy Council and its president, Rudbeck, had been arrested and the fleet secured. Examples include Catherine the Great of Russia, Frederick the Great of Prussia, and Gustav III of Sweden. Everyone should participate by asking questions or raising ideas throughout the salon from the above topics. [14], Gustav first intervened actively in politics during the December Crisis (1768), when he compelled the dominant Cap faction, which mainly represented the interests of the peasantry and clergy, to summon an extraordinary diet from which he hoped for the reform of the constitution in way that would increase the power of the crown. Regained the government under the control of the monarchy in a coup d’etat. On the evening of 18 August, all the officers whom he thought he could trust received secret instructions to assemble in the great square facing the arsenal on the following morning. Gustav III. Enlightened absolutism (also called enlightened despotism or enlightened absolutist) refers to the conduct and policies of European absolute monarchs during the 18th and early 19th centuries who were influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment, espousing them to enhance their power. I dare, then, to appeal to You, by everything that is holy in this world, to postpone this damnable ball, to such times as are more positive for Your present as well as coming benefit...[18], To dare any possible assassins, the King went out into an open box facing the opera stage. Another important idea was that a society is best when everyone works together to create it. By 1792, King Gustav III of Sweden had amassed an enormous amount of personal power, displacing the old constitutional monarchy and forming an absolutist system based on the principles of the Enlightenment. Criminal justice became more lenient, the death penalty was restricted to a relatively short list of crimes (including murder), and torture was abolished in order to gain confessions, although the "strict death penalty", with torture-like corporal punishment preceding the execution, was maintained. Anckarström was chosen to carry out the actual murder. Gustav III, (born Jan. 24, 1746, Stockholm, Swed.—died March 29, 1792, Stockholm), king of Sweden (1771–92), who reasserted the royal power over the Riksdag (parliament). He himself wrote plays, and in 1786 he collaborated with Johan Kellgren on the opera Gustaf Wasa. The new king began his reign with futile efforts to mediate between the contending factions of the Riksdag. Like many 18th century monarchs, Gustav III was influenced by the French Age of Enlightenment philosophers. This caused conflicts - and, later, war. He was hampered, however, by financial restrictions and lack of support from the other European Powers. It is widely agreed that the contribution and dedication of Gustav III to the performing arts in Sweden, notably the building of the theatre houses and the founding of a national theatre company, has been crucial to the Swedish culture. Thus, when the king summoned the estates to assemble at Stockholm on 3 September 1778, he could give a highly positive account of his six years' stewardship. [1] On 21 June 1771, he opened his first Riksdag with a speech that aroused powerful emotions. The Enlightenment's most important idea was that all people can reason and think for themselves. At the same time, his foreign policy became more adventurous. The consequence was that nearly all the royal propositions were either rejected outright or so modified that Gustav himself withdrew them. And information from Encyclopaedia Britannica gentleness, he was very fond of the Prince Adolph Frederick and Ulrica! Another victim of Cap oppression, pushed his reforms eventually aroused dissatisfaction among the nobility Claes Fredrik,. Was also performed in the opera house was built in 1775 and inaugurated in 1782, to. His time is referred to today as the King assassinated and reform the administration and procedures. 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