Sophia Magdalena of Denmark (; ; 3 July 1746 – 21 August 1813) was Queen of Sweden from 1771 to 1792 as the wife of King Gustav III.
Born into the House of Oldenburg, the royal family of Denmark-Norway, Sophia Magdalena was the first daughter of King Frederick V of Denmark and Norway and his first consort, Princess Louise of Great Britain. Already at the age of five, she was betrothed to Gustav, the heir apparent to the throne of Sweden, as part of an attempt to improve the traditionally tense relationship between the two Scandinavian realms. She was subsequently brought up to be the Queen of Sweden, and they married in 1766. In 1771, Sophia's husband ascended to the throne and became King of Sweden, making Sophia Queen of Sweden. Their coronation was on 29 May 1772.
The politically arranged marriage was unsuccessful. The desired political consequences for the mutual relations between the two countries did not materialize, and on a personal level the union also proved to be unhappy. Sophia Magdalena was of a quiet and serious nature, and found it difficult to adjust to her husband's pleasure seeking court. She dutifully performed her ceremonial duties but did not care for social life and was most comfortable in quiet surroundings with a few friends. However, she was liked by many in the Caps party, believing she was a symbol of virtue and religion. The relationship between the spouses improved somewhat in the years from 1775 to 1783, but subsequently deteriorated again.
After her husband was assassinated in 1792, Sophia Magdalena withdrew from public life, and led a quiet life as dowager queen until her death in 1813.
Early life
Birth and family
thumb|left|Sophia Magdalena's childhood home, [[Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, 1750.]]
Princess Sophie Magdalene was born on 3 July 1746 at her parents' residence Charlottenborg Palace, located at the large square, Kongens Nytorv, in central Copenhagen. She was the second child and first daughter of Crown Prince Frederick of Denmark and his first consort, the former Princess Louise of Great Britain, and was named for her grandmother, Queen Sophie Magdalene. She received her own royal household at birth.
Just one month after her birth, her grandfather King Christian VI died, and Princess Sophie Magdalene's father ascended the throne as King Frederick V. She was the heir presumptive to the throne of Denmark from the death of her elder brother in 1747 until the birth of her second brother in 1749, and retained her status as next in line to the Danish throne after her brother until her marriage. She was therefore often referred to as Crown Princess of Denmark. She was known to dislike the reforms of 1789, and she did let it be known to its representatives. At the celebrations of the Victory at Fredrikshamn in 1790, she refused to be escorted by riksråd Count Joakim Beck-Friis, who was in favor of the reform, and demanded to be escorted by Count Axel von Fersen the Elder, who was in opposition to it.
In the autumn of 1790, the King chose to remain in the summer residence of Drottningholm Palace well in to the autumn because of the social boycott. Finally, the Queen returned to the capital without his consent. He accused her of having been manipulated by the female courtiers into participating in the political demonstration, and refusing him the company of her ladies-in-waiting by leaving. This applied especially to Hedvig Ulrika De la Gardie and Augusta von Fersen, who did not participate in the boycott: he suspected Hedvig Eleonora von Fersen to have persuaded the Queen to participate in the boycott. This is however is not considered to have been true: though the Queen did oppose to the act of 1789, she is reported never to have allowed any one to speak of politics in her presence. The reason to why she wished to leave was reportedly due to her health, as Drottningholm was quite cold by that time of the year and she had been afflicted by an ear infection. The King did in any case suspect her of being in political opposition to him, and before his trip to Aachen in 1791, he ordered that his son was to be separated from her during his absence abroad. When she was made aware of this, Sophia Magdalena caused a public scene when she visited him in his box at the opera and demanded to be given access to her son. This led to a heated argument and she left the box with the words: "I will have my vengeance, monsieur! I give you my sacred vow on that!"
Succession issues
thumb|[[Cornelius Høyer: Gustav III, Queen Sophie Magdalene and Crown Prince Gustav Adolf in Hagaparken 1784–1785]]
Sophia Magdalena is mostly known in Swedish history for the scandal created around the consummation of her marriage and the questioned legitimacy of her son. Her marriage was a then normal arranged royal match for political convenience, in which Sophia Magdalena at first was described by her spouse as "cold as ice". Sophia Magdalena's religious upbringing and introverted character made her avoid the lively and spontaneous Gustavian court life, which made her even less attractive in the eyes of her outgoing spouse.
Their marriage was not consummated until 1775, nine years after the wedding. The status quo between Gustav III and his consort was nurtured by the Queen Dowager, Louisa Ulrika, who did not want competition in her influence over her son. There were rumors that the King was a homosexual or sexually underdeveloped. His sexuality, which had much effect on Sophia Magdalena's life, as a royal marriage was designed to produce offspring, has been much debated. His sexual inexperience has been blamed on immaturity or him also being asexual.
As a teenager, Gustav had a crush on Axel von Fersen's mother, Hedvig Catharina De la Gardie, though this affection was never physical. In 1768, he had another infatuation with the noble Charlotte Du Rietz, but this is not believed to have been sexually consummated either. Various documents written during his lifetime alleged that he was bisexual or homosexual.
His sister-in-law, Princess Charlotte, claims that the King did participate in homosexual activity after his trip to Italy in 1784 and that there were several rumors about this: she claims that she herself had witnessed that the park at Drottningholm Palace had become a place where male courtiers searched for homosexual partners, and in a letter to Sophie von Fersen, she writes in code:
In 1791, Sophia Magdalena herself paid a surprise visit to the King during his stay at the Gustav III's Pavilion, where the King had spent more time since he came in conflict with the nobility after the 1789 parliament; and where he was reputed to indulge in orgies. She found the King in bed, and he asked one of his favorites, Count Fabian Wrede, to show her around. In the King's private chamber, however, the Queen found the actor and page of the King, Lars Hjortsberg, sleeping, naked. The Queen reacted by interrupting the tour by saying to Wrede that he apparently did not know his way around Haga, as he had obviously showed her the chamber of the staff rather than the King by mistake.
Some sources explain that both the Queen and the King had serious anatomical problems resulting in erotic complications. Erik Lönnroth has concluded that there is no factual proof for the rumors that Gustav III was inclined toward homosexuality or bisexuality, nor that Gustav Adolf was illegitimate.
thumb|Sophia Magdalene in her crown on a special coin
During the Coup of Gustav III on 19 August 1772, Sophia Magdalena was at Ekolsund Castle. After having been told of the successful coup where her consort had reinstated absolute monarchy, she confided to her Mistress of the Robes, Countess Anna Maria Hjärne, that she was afraid that she would now be divorced by Gustav, because she knew she was not liked by him, because she had not given birth, and because she knew she was being slandered before him. Gustav III was told of this and her words led to a conflict. At a following ball at Ekolsund, the King told Count Axel von Fersen the Elder, that he did plan to divorce her on the grounds of pro-Danish plots and adultery with riksråd Count Fredrik Sparre and Marcus Gerhard Rosencrone of the Danish legation in Stockholm. Von Fersen, however, convinced him not to by saying that she should not be regarded to participate in pro-Danish plots just for her love of her Danish chamber-maids, and that as a neglected wife, she should not be blamed for enjoying the compliments of Count Ribbing, which were not grounds for suspicions of adultery. During this period, it had been noted that Count Ribbing was often seen in the company of the Queen and had paid her compliments and made her laugh, among other things by caricaturing her Mistress of the Robes Countess Anna Maria Hjärne. Countess Hjärne had informed the King that the Queen was pregnant, "And the riksråd Ribbing is her favorite."
The King had given Countess Ulrica Catharina Stromberg the task to investigate this, and she was told by the chamber madame of Sophia Magdalena, Charlotta Hellman, that: "information, which were dubious, especially since the clearest evidence could be gathered from the linen of the Queen". called upon Munck to help him with a reconciliation with his spouse, instruct the couple in the ways of sexual intercourse, and physically show them how to consummate their marriage. Munck, a Finnish nobleman and, at the time, a stable master was, at that point, the lover of Anna Sofia Ramström, the Queen's chamber maid. Through Anna Sofia Ramström, Munck contacted Ingrid Maria Wenner, who was assigned to inform the queen of the king's wish, because she was married and the confidant of the queen.
When it became known that Munck participated in the reconciliation between the royal couple, there were rumours that he was the father of Sophia Magdalena's firstborn. where it was claimed that the whole nation was aware of the rumour that the King had asked Munck to make the Queen pregnant. There was also a rumour that the King and Queen had divorced in secret and that the Queen had married Munck. known only to a few initiated persons, were the primary factor in their delay in producing an heir. At the time, the rumors became more persistent, however, when the royal couple presented Munck with gifts: the King promoted him, and the Queen gave Munck a pension, a diamond ring, and a watch with her image.
A few socialites took the Queen Mother's side in supporting and spreading the rumors, such as Anna Charlotta Schröderheim and Eva Helena Löwen.
The circle around the King's brother, Duke Charles, the future Charles XIII of Sweden, who desired the throne, also encouraged these rumors. Their mother was quoted as saying, during the pregnancy of Sophia Magdalena, that there were rumors among the public that the future child was illegitimate, and that she herself believed that the King had hired Munck to impregnate the Queen, and that she would never accept that the throne would come into the hands of "a common nobleman's illegitimate offspring".
The Queen Mother ordered Duke Charles to interrogate Munck, and word spread to the King, who was shocked. Sophia Magdalena was equally shocked by the accusations. She swore she would never speak to the Queen Dowager again, and indeed she never did.
The King arranged for his mother to make a public apology for her accusation in the presence of the rest of the Royal Family the 12 May 1778. The scene gained a lot of attention and broke the bonds between Gustav III and his mother. The scandal disturbed celebrations, as did an accident with the public banquet. The public was invited to a great feast to celebrate the birth of the heir, but too many people were let in, and the crowd panicked. Between sixty and one hundred people were trampled to death in the crowd.
Sven Anders Hedin, a medical doctor at the royal court, and married to one of the Queen's chambermaids, Charlotta Hellman, contributed two statements which have been quoted in connection with the scandal. In the summer of 1780, during the King's absence abroad, he passed through the private apartments of the Queen, which were expected to be empty at that hour. There, he claimed to have seen the Queen and Baron Munck embracing each other through the not-quite closed door to her bedroom. At this point, Munck had started an affair with the ballerina Giovanna Bassi, to whom Sophia Magdalena showed great dislike.
Queen Dowager
thumb|Portrait of Sophia Magdalena by [[Niclas Lafrensen the younger, 1792]]
On 16 March 1792 Gustav III was attacked and mortally wounded. Sophia Magdalena was reportedly shocked and horrified by the attack. The conspirators intended to make her the regent of her son during his minority. As a Guardian government had been necessary by putting a minor monarch on the throne, their plan was to offer this role to Sophia Magdalena by taking military control and offering the Queen dowager the role of presiding over the guardian council instead of her brother-in-law Duke Charles. Directly after she was told of the attack, Sophia Magdalena sent for the king's favorite, Gustav Mauritz Armfelt, and was taken by him to the sick bed of the King. There, she took the hands of the King between hers and cried out to Armfelt: "How horrifying! Such a cruel atrocity!" She was kept informed of his state by Armfelt, but she was prevented from further visits because Gustav did not wish to receive visits from women because of the smell from his wounds. At the death of Gustav III 29 March 1792, she attempted to visit him, but she was blocked by her brother-in-law Duke Charles, who fell on his knees before her to stop her from entering the bed room.
Sophia Magdalena caused a scandal as it was noted that she did not dress in mourning except when she was forced to do so at visits and on formal occasions.
It was also used to inspire the classic Swedish novel The Queen's Tiara () by Carl Jonas Love Almquist, published in 1834. The novel features one of Swedish literature's most enduringly popular characters, the intersex Tintomara who is portrayed as a half sibling of Gustav IV Adolf through Count Munck.
Family
Issue
{| style="text-align:center; width:100%" class="wikitable"
! width=20% | Name !! width=100px | Portrait !! Lifespan !! Notes
|-
| Gustav Adolf<br /> King of Sweden
|| 100px
||1 November 1778 –<br /> 7 February 1837
||Married Frederica of Baden in 1797. Divorced in 1812. Had issue.
|-
| Carl Gustav<br />Duke of Småland
|| 100px
||25 August 1782–<br /> 23 March 1783
|| Died in infancy.
|-
|}
Ancestry
References
Citations
Bibliography
Primary sources
- on WorldCat