| King of Sweden | |
|---|---|
| Monarchy | |
 Royal Coat of Arms of Sweden | |
.jpg/118px-Carlos_Gustavo_da_Suécia_(meio_corpo).jpg) | |
| Incumbent: Carl XVI Gustaf | |
| Style: | His Majesty |
| Heir apparent: | Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden |
| First monarch: | Eric the Victorious (first monarch of undisputed historicity) |
| Formation: | Unknown |
| Sweden |
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The monarch is the head of state of the Kingdom of Sweden. The greater national coat of arms ( stora riksvapnet) and the lesser national coat of arms ( lilla riksvapnet) are the official coats of arms Majesty is an English word derived ultimately from the Latin Maiestas, meaning Greatness. An heir apparent is an Heir who (short of a fundamental change in the situation cannot be displaced from inheriting the term is used in contrast to Heir presumptive Eric the Victorious ( VI) Old Norse: Eiríkr inn sigrsæli, Modern Swedish Erik Segersäll, (945?- c 995 was the first Swedish king "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Politics of Sweden takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic Constitutional monarchy. The Swedish Constitution consists of four fundamental laws ( Swedish: grundlagar, singular grundlag) The Riksdag (officially Sveriges riksdag literally The National Diet of Sweden is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The Speaker of the Parliament of Sweden (Riksdag is the speaker (talman of the national parliament in Sweden. Per Erik Gunnar Westerberg (born 2 August, 1951) is a Swedish Moderate Party politician and as of 2006 the current Speaker of the Riksdag This is a list of Members of the Riksdag, the national Parliament of Sweden. The government of Sweden is a Constitutional monarchy based on Parliamentary democracy. The Prime Minister (statsminister literally "Minister of the State" is the Head of government in Sweden. John Fredrik Reinfeldt ( pronounced) (born 4 August 1965 in Österhaninge) is the current Prime Minister of Sweden and leader of the liberal The cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt is the current Cabinet of Sweden. The government of Sweden is a Constitutional monarchy based on Parliamentary democracy. The Government agencies in Sweden are state controlled organizations who act independently to carry out the policies of the Swedish Government. The Counties of Sweden, or Län, are the first level administrative and political Subdivisions of Sweden. A County Administrative Board ( Länsstyrelse) is a Government appointed board of a County in Sweden. A County Council, or Landsting, is an elected assembly of a County in Sweden. The Municipalities of Sweden ( kommun) are the Local government entities of Sweden. The Sami Parliaments ( Sámediggi in Northern Sami, Sämitigge in Inari Sami, Sää´mte´ǧǧ in Skolt Elections in Sweden gives information on Elections and election results in Sweden. Results of the general election to the Riksdag, the parliament of Sweden, held Sunday September 15, 2002. A general election was held in Sweden on September 17, 2006, to elect members to the Swedish parliament. The next general election to the Swedish Riksdag will be held on Sunday September 19 2010. Political parties in Sweden lists political parties in Sweden. The foreign policy of Sweden is based on the premise that national Security is best served by staying free of alliances in peacetime in order to remain a Neutral The European Union is a unique entity possessing elements of Intergovernmentalism, Supranationalism and a Multi-party Parliamentary democracy Information on politics by country is available for every Country, including both De jure and De facto independent Head of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a Monarchic or Republican Nation-state "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Sweden, being a constitutional monarchy with a representative democracy based on a parliamentary system has a largely ceremonial monarch, though officially he or she holds the highest public office in Sweden and the highest military rank. A constitutional monarchy, or a limited monarchy, is a form of Constitutional Government, wherein either an elected or hereditary Monarch is Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principles of the people's representatives A parliamentary system, also known as parliamentarianism (and parliamentarism in American English) is a System of government in which The Act of Succession of 1810 designates the House of Bernadotte as the Swedish royal house; it also states that the king (and thus implicitly any queen regnant) must be a Protestant Christian. The Act of Succession, or Successionsordningen, is a part of the Swedish Constitution. List of current queens regnant A queen regnant (plural "queens regnant" is qualifying reference to a female Monarch possessing and exercising all of the monarchal Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation.
The current monarch of Sweden is King Carl XVI Gustaf.
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History
Sweden has been a kingdom since prehistoric times, including when the country was not yet named Sweden. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. As early as the 1st century, Tacitus wrote that the Suiones had a king, but the order of succession to the later historic kings of Sweden is not known, except for what is accounted for in the historically controversial Norse sagas (see Mythological kings of Sweden and Semi-legendary kings of Sweden). Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (ca 56 &ndash ca 117 was a senator and a Historian of the Roman Empire. The Swedes (svear Old Norse: svíar; Old English: Sweonas; Suiones Suehans or Sueones) were an ancient North The sagas (from Icelandic saga, plural sögur) are stories about ancient Scandinavian and Germanic history about early Viking voyages In sources such as Heimskringla and Ynglinga saga there appear early Swedish kings who belong in the domain of Mythology, but it is often suggested that The semi-legendary kings of Sweden are the long line of Swedish kings who preceded Eric the Victorious, according to sources such as the Norse Sagas,
Originally, the Swedish king had little power, and that was restricted to the functions of a warchief, judge and priest at the Temple at Uppsala (see Germanic king). The Temple at Uppsala was a religious site in Gamla Uppsala (Old Uppsala near modern Uppsala, Sweden, that was created to worship the Norse gods Germanic monarchy, also called barbarian monarchy, was a monarchical systemof government which was predominant among the Germanic tribes of Late Antiquity It is a testimony to this lack of influence that there are thousands of runestones commemorating commoners, but no chronicle about the Swedish kings, prior to the 14th century, and only a few runestones that may mention kings: Gs 11 (Emund the Old), U 11 (Haakon the Red) and U 861 (Blot-Sweyn). A runestone is typically a raised stone with a runic inscription but the term can also be applied to inscriptions on boulders and on bedrock Emund the Old, Emund den gamle, Old Swedish: Æmunðær slemæ (king of Sweden 1050 - 1060) was an illegitimate son of Olof This rune stone is located by the ruins of the old king's dwelling of Hovgården, on the island of Adelsö in Sweden. The Norsta runestone is an 11th century Runestone inscribed in Old Norse with the Younger Futhark that stands near Wik Castle Blot-Sven (Blot-Sven "Sweyn the Sacrificer" was a Swedish king c
The power of the king was however, greatly strengthened by the introduction of Christianity during the 11th century, and the following centuries saw a process of consolidation of power in the hands of the king. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings
The king was traditionally elected at the Stones of Mora, and the people had the right to both elect king and to depose him. Stones of Mora was the place where the Swedish kings were elected The stones were, however, destroyed ca 1515.
The office is hereditary since 1544. The present Bernadotte dynasty was established during the Napoleonic Wars through the Constitution of 1809 and the Act of Succession of 1810, in a bloodless Revolution after present day Finland, then the eastern half of the Realm, was lost to Russia. The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions The Instrument of Government, or Regeringsformen, adopted on June 6, 1809 by the Riksdag of the Estates was the constitution of The Act of Succession, or Successionsordningen, is a part of the Swedish Constitution. Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. The Realm of Sweden or Svenska väldet is a term that historically was used to comprise all the territories under the control of the Swedish monarchs The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya
The 19th century Constitution divided the powers of government between the Riksdag and the Monarch. The Riksdag is the official Swedish term of the Parliament of Sweden and the Parliament of Finland (in Finland alongside The monarch is the Head of state of the Kingdom of Sweden. Sweden being a Constitutional monarchy with a Representative democracy based on a Following the break-through of Parliamentarism in 1917 the king's powers were considerably reduced, and he became a constitutional monarch with only limited political authority. A parliamentary system, also known as parliamentarianism (and parliamentarism in American English) is a System of government in which A constitutional monarchy, or a limited monarchy, is a form of Constitutional Government, wherein either an elected or hereditary Monarch is
Head of state
In 1974 a new Instrument of Government became part of the Constitution which abolished the Privy Council as the government institution and stripped the Monarch of virtually all formal powers, while still retaining him as Head of State. The Swedish Constitution consists of four fundamental laws ( Swedish: grundlagar, singular grundlag) The High Council of Sweden or Council of the Realm (in Swedish Riksrådet until 1687 sometimes Latinised as Senatus Regni Sueciae) consisted originally Many of the king's previous political functions were transferred to the Speaker of the Riksdag. The Speaker of the Parliament of Sweden (Riksdag is the speaker (talman of the national parliament in Sweden. The monarch leads the Privy Council in a session that establishes the new government following a general election or cabinet reshuffle. The king also chairs the Committee for Foreign Affairs (Utrikesnämnden), a body which serves to officially inform the head of state and the leaders of the opposition of government affairs. Bills passed in the Swedish parliament become law without having to acquire royal assent.
A more recent constitutional reform changed the rules for succession to equal primogeniture. Primogeniture is the Common law right of the Firstborn son to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings This allowed for female succession to the throne and thus installed Princess Victoria as heir apparent over her younger brother Prince Carl Philip. An heir apparent is an Heir who (short of a fundamental change in the situation cannot be displaced from inheriting the term is used in contrast to Heir presumptive
The line of succession
Main article: Line of succession to the Swedish Throne
Present monarch: His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf (since September 15, 1973), born 1946
- HRH Crown Princess Victoria, Duchess of Västergötland, daughter of the King, born 1977
- HRH Prince Carl Philip, Duke of Värmland, son of the King, born 1979
- HRH Princess Madeleine, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland, daughter of the King, born 1982
See also
- List of Swedish monarchs
- Swedish monarchs family tree
- List of Swedish governments
- Royal mottos of Swedish monarchs
- Swedish Royal Family
External links
- The Royal Court of Sweden - Official site
- The Act of Succession - At the Riksdag
- Res Publica : Sweden an international anti-monarchy Web directory
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