Charles XIII

King of Sweden from 1809 and of Norway from 1814; he adopted the French marshal Bernadotte as his heir.

Biography

Charles was born in Stockholm in 1748, a younger son of King Adolf Frederick and Louisa Ulrika of Prussia. Named grand admiral as an infant, he sided with his elder brother Gustav III in the royalist coup of 1772, securing the southern provinces, and was created Duke of Södermanland. He commanded the Swedish fleet in the Russo-Swedish War of 1788-1790, fighting at Hogland and Öland.

After Gustav III was assassinated in 1792, Charles served as regent for his nephew Gustav IV Adolf until 1796. In practice he left government to his favourite Gustaf Adolf Reuterholm, and the regency is remembered as one of the bleakest periods of Swedish rule. He was known for his interest in mysticism and Freemasonry, and later founded the Order of Charles XIII for Masonic knights.

When Gustav IV Adolf was overthrown in 1809, Charles was made regent and then elected king, already aged and in poor health. Childless, he adopted first the Danish prince Charles August and, after his death, the French marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, who ran the government from 1810. Through the union with Norway Charles also became Norway's king in November 1814. He died in 1818 and Bernadotte succeeded him as Charles XIV John.