What was it possible for a woman to achieve at an early modern court? By analysing the experiences of a wide range of women at the court of Sweden, this book demonstrates the opportunities open to women who served at, and interacted with, the court; the complexities of women's agency in a court society; and, ultimately, the precariousness of power. In doing so, it provides an institutional context to women's lives at court, charting the full extent of the rewards that they might obtain, alongside the social and institutional constrictions that they faced. Its longue durée approach, moreover, clarifies how certain periods, such as that of the queens regnant, brought new possibilities. Based on an extensive array of Swedish and international primary sources, including correspondence, financial records and diplomatic reports, it also takes into account the materialities used to create hierarchies and ceremonies, such as physical structures and spaces within the court. Comprehensive in its scope, the book is divided into three parts, which focus respectively on outsiders at court, insiders, and members of the royal family.
- Cover
- Table of Contents
- Genealogical charts
- Dramatis personae
- Note on names
- Acknowledgements
- List of illustrations
- Introduction: Women living with power
- Opportunities
- Growing interest
- Sources and the challenge of invisibility
- Outsiders
- 1. Rituals of royal compassion
- Who and when
- Institutionalisation
- The quality of compassion
- 2. Why be at court? The example of the Königsmarcks
- Insiders
- 3. All the Queen’s women
- The creation of the Swedish court in the sixteenth century
- The women in service
- The recruitment process
- Pay and perquisites
- Marriage
- The appeal of the court
- 4. Noblewomen crossing borders
- Change over time
- Princely women visiting and residing in Sweden
- Swedish noblewomen in service abroad
- Clean break or gradual erosion?
- From melting pot to enclave
- 5. Servants of power
- Everyday power – and more
- Maids of Honour as power brokers
- Everyday power – and high politics
- Power struggles on several levels
- Emerentia Düben
- Juliana Schierberg
- Anna Catharina Bärfelt
- Measures of success
- 6. Left behind
- Reputational damage
- Beata Sophia Horn, trapped at court
- Ageing and unmarried
- 7. Filth among the apples: Hierarchy and gender at court
- A Swedish Table of Ranks
- Formal hierarchies
- Royal decisiveness
- Increasing formality
- Marks of status
- Negotiating the hierarchy
- 8. A small circle with wide horizons
- Living under surveillance
- Socialised into a group
- Widening interests and attitudes
- Changes in appearance
- The best school in the world
- 9. Fumbling for power: Being a royal mistress
- A golden age of adultery
- A passing fancy
- An emotional anchor
- A lesser sort of marriage
- The extraordinary success of Karin Månsdotter
- Pimped to a king
- The role of a royal mistress
- Royals
- 10. The performance of a lifetime: Being Queen Consort
- Being foreign
- Being sociable
- Being self-assured
- Being a success
- 11. The winding road: Royal marriage negotiations
- A queen’s worth
- How to pick a marriage partner
- Successful failures
- 12. The broken mirror: Gender differences in the system of royal apartments
- Mirroring apartments
- Royal apartments outside Stockholm
- Renovations
- A mirror cracked
- In-built gender
- 13. Death and beyond
- A Swedish Artemisia manquée
- Commemorating a dynasty
- Dynastic memory
- 14. The court as substitute family
- The Princess, her sister and the need for trust
- A court of her own
- Court rather than family
- A long-lost sister
- The entertaining princess
- 15. Epilogue
- Glossary
- Court positions
- Abbreviations
- Coinage
- The calendar
- Bibliography
- Manuscript sources
- Published sources
- Index
- List of illustrations
- Figure 1: Women at court took part very visibly in public ceremonies, such as the coronation of Queen Hedvig Eleonora.
Juriaen Ovens, Coronation of Hedvig Eleonora, c. 1654. Copyright Nationalmuseum (Stockholm).
- Figure 2: The secret to Aurora von Königsmarck’s success was her mastery of codes of court life, not just her beauty.
David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl, Aurora Königsmarck, late seventeenth century. Copyright Skoklosters slott.
- Figure 3: Kerstin Abrahamsdotter Rommel was a Maid of Honour to the adventurous Princess Cecilia and her daughter Gertrud Laxman served as a Maid of Honour to the Duchess.
Unknown painter, Kerstin Abrahamsdotter Rommel and Her Daughter Gertrud Laxman, epi
- Figure 4: One of several impoverished aristocratic sisters serving at court, Ebba Maria Sparre made a good match marrying a wealthy elderly courtier.
David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl, Ebba Maria Sparre, late seventeenth century, Svenska Porträttarkivet. Copyrigh
- Figure 5: The Chamberer Sara Larsdotter came from the part of the elite breaking into noble status and married an ennobled official. The gloves in her hand still exist and are thought to be a gift from the Queen.
Unknown painter, Sara Larsdotter, Svenska
- Figure 6: A foreign Maid of Honour, Amalia von Hatzfeldt made a brilliant marriage to a Count Lewenhaupt, a relative of the royal family.
Unknown painter, Amalia von Hatzfeldt, 1596. Copyright Skoklosters slott.
- Figure 7: Coming from Germany and marrying a German courtier at the Swedish court, the former Maid of Honour Maria von der Grünau was one of the people who established a court dynasty.
Unknown painter, Maria von der Grünau with Three Children, early seven
- Figure 9: The niece of the favourite Emerentia von Düben, Ulrika Eleonora von Düben reached favourite status herself and was ruthless in shutting out any possible competitors to the Queen’s favour.
Gustaf Lundberg, Ulrika Eleonora von Düben, Svenska Portr
- Figure 10: The daughter of a bishop and serving as a Chamberer, Catharina Wallenstedt represented the rising non-aristocratic elite (though she and her siblings were ennobled). She was also a trenchant letter writer.
David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl, Catharina W
- Figure 8: The great favourite Emerentia von Düben devoted her life to service at court and had a spectacular career as the always present shadow of Queen Ulrika Eleonora.
Possible copy after David von Krafft, Emerentia von Düben, Svenska Porträttarkivet.
- Figure 11: A court veteran who never married as her two fiancés died before they could marry her, Beata Charlotta Taube displayed an even temper but could show a melancholic side to friends. A courtier deplored that her funeral turned into an undignified
- Figure 12: Eva Magdalena ‘Lona’ Ekeblad was born into a court family. She served for decades at court and never married. The latter out of choice as she declined at least one offer of marriage.
Pehr Köhler, Eva Magdalena Ekeblad. Copyright Bodil Beckman/N
- Figure 16: Referred to in letters as ‘Aunt’, Brita Stina Sparre, Count Törnflycht, was a long-time presence at court.
Pehr Krafft the Elder, Brita Stina Sparre. Copyright Nationalmuseum (Stockholm).
- Figure 13: The dining in public was a major court ceremony and hierarchy was manifested though seating. The women of the royal family are sitting by the table while the Court Mistresses and the Ladies of the Palace are sitting watching and the Maids of Ho
- Figure 14: Victimized by the Queen for her mercantile background, Countess Hamilton (born af Petersens) was a Lady of Honour for two decades.
Unknown painter, Johanna Maria af Petersens, Svenska Porträttarkivet. Copyright Nationalmuseum (Stockholm).
- Figure 15: Chief Court Mistress Charlotta Fredrika Sparre was born into the court and married a member of the court family Fersen. The miniature portrait of the Queen that she wears indicates her favour and high status.
Anton Ulrik Berndes, Charlotta Fred
- Figure 17: A Maid of Honour whose parents traded her charms for influence, Hedvig Taube became a royal mistress who was both admired for her charm and reviled for her relationship with the King.
Lorens Pasch the Elder, Hedvig Taube, 1731, Svenska Porträtt
- Figure 18: The formidable Lovisa Ulrika both impressed and terrorized the people surrounding her.
Alexander Roslin, Lovisa Ulrika, 1775. Copyright Åsa Lundén/Nationalmuseum (Stockholm).
- Figure 19: Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotta kept up a voluminous correspondence in her many years as Duchess and later as Queen.
Duc de Pienne, Queen Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotta, Vadstena landsarkiv. Copyright Fabian Persson.
- Figure 22: Taken in by the court with her siblings as a reward for her father’s royalists activities, Catharina Sophia Sinclair became a court veteran and fought hard to establish her daughters there as well.
Possibly Stålbom, Catharina Sophia Sinclair, 1
- Figure 20: In the manner of a Becky Sharpe, Lolotte Forsberg managed to climb and reach a position both in the heart and court of Princess Sophia Albertina.
Giovanni Domenico Bossi, Fredrica Charlotta (Lolotte) Forsberg, 1799. Copyright Hans Thorwid/Natio
- Figure 21: Emotional and a bit spoilt, Princess Sophia Albertina also had qualities of upholding royal hospitality and staying true to her friends.
Unknown painter, Sophia Albertina, early nineteenth century. Copyright Nationalmuseum (Stockholm).
- Figure 23: The daring Ulla von Höpken (née Fersen) was admired for her free spirit and her beauty. She did not hesitate to take advantage of the freedom provided by life at court.
Johan Tobias Sergel, Ulla von Höpken, 1781. Copyright Nationalmuseum (Stock
- List of tables and genealogical charts
- Genealogical_chart_1
The Vasa and Palatine dynasties
- Genealogical_chart_2
The Holstein-Gottorp dynasty
- Table 1. Royal marriage partners in Sweden and Denmark
Royal/Imperial families – bold
Electoral families – italic
Ducal families – bold and italic
Noble families – small caps
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