In 1946, a boy was born in the Swedish city of Stockholm. His fate could well have gone unnoticed, and his life passed in one of the city forges. But this was not the ordinary son of a blacksmith, and not none other than Karl Gustav. His family belonged to the ancient royal dynasty. During his reign, Karl managed to gain the glory of a sensitive and cheerful ruler. In the memory of the Swedes, he will remain a king for a long time, who, to everyone’s surprise, could not read at all.
Early biography of Carl Gustav
A boy born in the palace, from birth, knew about his destiny. It was Prince Carl Gustav. Sweden was never able to see how his father rules, since he died in a plane crash only a year after the birth of his son. Having never recognized his father, Karl fell into a truly feminine society. He was surrounded by his mother, Princess Sibylla Saxe-Coburg-Gotta, and four sisters. Their name was Margaret, Christine, Brigitte, Desiree. The family and all relatives were very pleased that the male heir was finally born.
Like all the children of his country, he loved to play, wanted to drive a steam locomotive or to be a driver. At three, Carl played the harmonica perfectly, and at four he was already a real scout. But his future required to throw the games aside and begin to study all the royal subtleties. His reigning grandfather personally prepared a program of education and training. At a very early age, he was taught the basics of science by court tutors, and after Karl studied in boarding houses of a private type.
Carl received his primary education at Sigtun Boarding School. Then he spent two and a half years in military service. There was a guy in the navy, and in the ranks of the air force, and even among the ordinary army. Of particular interest to him was the navy (he still has a reverent attitude towards him).
After military service, Karl spent a year at Uppsala University, studying in a specialized curriculum. This program included courses in political science, history, economics, tax law, and sociology. At Stockholm University, Karl set about studying the national economy.
The future king was able to gain international experience by studying the work of his country's representative office in the United Nations, the Swedish embassy in the capital of England - London, in the Swedish government in Africa.
Spouse
Karl Gustav met his future wife in 1972 in the city of Munich, at the Olympic Games. It was 30-year-old Sylvia Sommerlat, a native of Heidelberg. She was the daughter of a businessman and worked as a translator in games. Most of her life, the girl lived in Brazil, since her father married a Brazilian.
Returning to Germany, Sylvia settled in the city of Dusseldorf, where she graduated from high school. In Munich, she attended Spanish translator courses and found her first job at the Argentine Consulate. Her subsequent work at the Olympics completely changed her life, because there, at the stadium, Sylvia felt the prince's eyes on herself. By the way, he was three years younger than her. Karl examined the girl with binoculars, standing very close by, and this seemed very funny to her. She would have known that this funny young man is the future king Carl Gustav!
Her future husband then used binoculars not for laughter, but simply because his shortsightedness did not allow him to see everything around. The prince all the time was looking for a reason to come to Germany to enjoy the company of his beloved. The lovers played the wedding four years later. The couple gave birth and raised three children: Princess Victoria (hereditary), Princess Madeleine and Prince Carl Philip.
Ascension to the throne
In order to prepare for accession to the throne, Carl Gustav studied many aspects. He thoroughly understood how Sweden functions, learned the subtleties of the art of managing it. In order to understand everything about the everyday life of his people, the king visited a special program for schools, laboratories, the judiciary, enterprises, employers 'unions and workers' unions. Key attention was paid to the work of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, government and parliament.
In 1973, his grandfather died, and then Karl became king of Sweden.
King Carl Gustav: A History of Reign
It is simply impossible to say about Karl that he did something important during the years of his reign, passed a law that changed the course of the country, or won an important battle. In Sweden, the king does not appear as a politician or commander in chief, but personifies the unity of the whole nation.
This lesson is not as easy as it might seem at first glance. A lot of time and energy is spent on endless royal receptions, visiting ceremonies. Carl 16 Gustav was not idle. He visited various institutions, organizations, institutions. The king did not neglect the old tradition of traveling to even the smallest regions of the country.
Unexpected illness
In 1997, the fact that Carl Gustav had a mild form of dyslexia became officially recognized. This disorder never allowed him to read at least one, even a children's book. The same problems with reading and writing suffered from his daughter, Princess Victoria.
The princess at one time admitted to reporters that she had to endure the ridicule of classmates. The girl had all her life to think that she was stupid and could not do anything at the same pace as her peers.
No royal blood
Many, having forgotten history, no longer perceive the Bernadotte dynasty as foreigners. But in reality they are precisely them, and it’s certainly impossible to call them even Swedes.
The current rulers of Sweden have no blood connection with the once-reigning Charles XII, the representative of the purebred Swedish royal dynasty. In the 19th century, the country was defeated in the war with Russia and lost Finland. At the same time, the ruler Gustav IV Adolf was overthrown. Instead, Charles XIII began to rule. His age was already pretty decent, and he had no children.
Due to the lack of a prince, the nobility had to turn for help to the ruler of neighboring France, Napoleon. He sent to Stockholm a French marshal named Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte. By origin, he was just the son of an assistant solicitor. Jean-Baptiste and became the founder of the current ruling dynasty, King Charles XIV Johan.