Prince Oscar, Duke of Gotland
Encyclopedia
Prince Oscar Carl August Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg (Drottningholm
Drottningholm
Drottningholm, literally "Queen's Islet", is a locality situated in Ekerö Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden, with 410 inhabitants in 2005....
, 15 November 1859 – Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, 4 October 1953) was the second son of King Oscar II of Sweden
Oscar II of Sweden
Oscar II , baptised Oscar Fredrik was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death and King of Norway from 1872 until 1905. The third son of King Oscar I of Sweden and Josephine of Leuchtenberg, he was a descendant of Gustav I of Sweden through his mother.-Early life:At his birth in Stockholm, Oscar...
and Sofia of Nassau
Sofia of Nassau
Sophia of Nassau was Queen consort of Sweden and Norway...
. He was born a Prince of Sweden and Norway and was then Prince Oscar, Duke of Gotland
Gotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
.
Title
Through Oscar's marriage in BournemouthBournemouth
Bournemouth is a large coastal resort town in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. According to the 2001 Census the town has a population of 163,444, making it the largest settlement in Dorset. It is also the largest settlement between Southampton and Plymouth...
on 15 March 1888 to Swedish noblewoman
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
Ebba Munck af Fulkila (Jönköping
Jönköping
-Notable people:*Lillian Asplund, RMS Titanic survivor*John Bauer, illustrator, painter*Amy Diamond, singer*Agnetha Fältskog, ABBA*Carl Henrik Fredriksson, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Eurozine*Anders Gustafsson, kayaker, Olympian...
, 15 March 1858 – Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, 16 October 1946), lady-in-waiting to the Crown Princess, without the consent of his father the King, he gave up his right of succession to the Swedish throne and his royal title.
Ebba was a lady in waiting of the crown princess, Victoria of Baden
Victoria of Baden
Victoria of Baden was a Queen consort of Sweden by her marriage to King Gustaf V of Sweden. She was politically active in a conservative fashion during the development of democracy and known as a pro-German during the First World War.-Birth:Princess Viktoria was born on 7 August 1862 at the castle...
, who in 1885 visited her brother-in-law in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, where he was to undergo a medical examination. Ebba and Oscar visited the Norwegian sailor
Sailor
A sailor, mariner, or seaman is a person who navigates water-borne vessels or assists in their operation, maintenance, or service. The term can apply to professional mariners, military personnel, and recreational sailors as well as a plethora of other uses...
church during their stay in Amsterdam and fell in love: Ebba was religious and influenced Oscar in this regard. When Oscar told his family that he wished to marry Ebba, they were scandal
Scandal
A scandal is a widely publicized allegation or set of allegations that damages the reputation of an institution, individual or creed...
ized and he was forced to take a two years consideration period, and Ebba was dismissed as a lady in waiting. In 1887, Oscar told his family that he had not changed his mind, and the royal house gave its consent to the marriage on condition that Oscar's brothers signed a document promising that they should never enter a similar marriage, which they did. On January 21, 1888, a ball
Ball
A ball is a round, usually spherical but sometimes ovoid, object with various uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for simpler activities, such as catch, marbles and juggling...
was arranged on the Royal Palace of Stockholm where Ebba and Oscar were allowed to dance with each other, and on January 29, 1888, the engagement was formally announced. The match was regarded as a great sorrow within the royal house, but it received a lot of sympathy from the public. It was said that a bridge had been placed between the people and the royal house: "The Munck bridge", and the fact that Oscar had to give up his royal title made people say that the king no longer had four sons but only three, as one of them "married and had to quit". When the couple left Stockholm, a large crowd had gathered on the train station to see them off and show their support.
They were married 15 March 1888 in Saint Stephens Church in Bournemouth
Bournemouth
Bournemouth is a large coastal resort town in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. According to the 2001 Census the town has a population of 163,444, making it the largest settlement in Dorset. It is also the largest settlement between Southampton and Plymouth...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
by the vicar Gustaf Beskow, who was close to the queen, Sofia of Nassau
Sofia of Nassau
Sophia of Nassau was Queen consort of Sweden and Norway...
, in the presence of Oscar's mother, Queen Sophia, his brothers, two of his brothers, Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland
Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland
Prince Carl of Sweden and Norway, Duke of Västergötland , was the third son of King Oscar II of Sweden-Norway and Sophia of Nassau.-History:...
, Prince Eugen, Duke of Närke
Prince Eugén, Duke of Närke
Prince Eugen Napoleon Nicolaus of Sweden and Norway, Duke of Närke was the youngest son of King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway....
and his cousin, the Danish crown princess Louise of Sweden, as well as the mother and brother of Ebba.
He and his wife were invested with the new titles of Prince and Princess Bernadotte
Bernadotte
The House of Bernadotte, the current royal house of Sweden, has reigned since 1818. Between 1818 and 1905, it was also the royal house of the Norway...
on their wedding day. It has never been determined if this was a title of nobility or another form of unofficial courtesy title (such as some later dynasty members
Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler
Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler , was born at Haga Palace outside Stockholm. She is the first child of Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and granddaughter of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and Princess Margaret of Connaught .-Life and...
have been given). On 2 April 1892, he was also given a hereditary title as Count of Wisborg
Bernadotte af Wisborg
The title Count of Wisborg is, since 1892, borne by the male-line descendants of four princes of Sweden who married morganatically without the consent of the King of Sweden and thereby lost the right of succession to the throne of Sweden for themselves, their children and their descendants...
by his uncle Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Adolphe I, Grand Duke of Luxembourg was the last Duke of Nassau, and the fourth Grand Duke of Luxembourg.-Biography:...
, previously Duke of Nassau. Wisborg was derived from Visborg
Visborg
Visborg refers to a fortress in the town of Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland. There was no one fortress called "Visborg", rather it refers to successive fortresses built in Visby...
, castle ruins in Oscar's former Duchy of Gotland.
His wife was the daughter of Carl Jacob Munck af Fulkila and wife baroness Henrika Ulrika Antoinetta Cederström. They had five children;
- Countess Maria Sophie Henrietta Bernadotte af WisborgBernadotte af WisborgThe title Count of Wisborg is, since 1892, borne by the male-line descendants of four princes of Sweden who married morganatically without the consent of the King of Sweden and thereby lost the right of succession to the throne of Sweden for themselves, their children and their descendants...
(1889-1974) - Count Carl Oscar Bernadotte af WisborgBernadotte af WisborgThe title Count of Wisborg is, since 1892, borne by the male-line descendants of four princes of Sweden who married morganatically without the consent of the King of Sweden and thereby lost the right of succession to the throne of Sweden for themselves, their children and their descendants...
(1890-1977) - Baroness Ebba Sopie Fleetwood (1892-1936)
- Mrs Elsa Victoria Cedergren (1893-1996)
- Count Folke Bernadotte af WisborgFolke BernadotteFolke Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg was a Swedish diplomat and nobleman noted for his negotiation of the release of about 31,000 prisoners from German concentration camps during World War II, including 450 Danish Jews from Theresienstadt released on 14 April 1945...
(1895-1948).