Gustaf VI Adolf | |||||
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King Gustaf VI Adolf in 1962
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King of Sweden | |||||
Reign | 29 October 1950 – 15 September 1973 | ||||
Predecessor | Gustaf V | ||||
Successor | Carl XVI Gustaf | ||||
Prime Ministers |
See list
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Born |
, , Sweden |
11 November 1882||||
Died | 15 September 1973 Helsingborg Hospital, Helsingborg, Sweden |
(aged 90)||||
Burial | 25 September 1973 Royal Cemetery, Solna |
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Spouse |
Margaret of Connaught (m. 1905; her death 1920) Louise Mountbatten (m. 1923; her death 1965) |
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Issue |
Prince Gustaf Adolf Sigvard Bernadotte Ingrid, Queen of Denmark Prince Bertil Carl Johan Bernadotte |
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House | Bernadotte | ||||
Father | Gustaf V of Sweden | ||||
Mother | Victoria of Baden |
Full name | |
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Oscar Fredrik Wilhelm Olaf Gustaf Adolf |
Styles of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden |
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Reference style | His Majesty |
Spoken style | Your Majesty |
Alternative style | Sir |
Gustaf VI Adolf (Oscar Fredrik Wilhelm Olaf Gustaf Adolf; 11 November 1882 – 15 September 1973) was King of Sweden from 29 October 1950 until his death. He was the eldest son of King Gustaf V and his wife, Victoria of Baden, and had been Crown Prince of Sweden for the preceding 43 years in the reign of his father.
Gustaf VI Adolf was a lifelong amateur archeologist particularly interested in Ancient Italian cultures.
He was born at the and at birth created Duke of Scania. A patrilineal member of the Bernadotte family, he was also a descendant of the House of Vasa through maternal lines. Through his mother, Victoria, he was a descendant of Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden of the deposed House of Holstein-Gottorp.
Gustaf Adolf became Crown Prince of Sweden on 8 December 1907, on the death of his grandfather, King Oscar II.
In 1938 he was elected an honorary member of the Virginia Society of the Cincinnati.
On 29 October 1950, Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf became king at age 67 upon the death of his father, King Gustaf V. He was at the time the world's oldest heir apparent to a monarchy (this in turn was broken by Charles, Prince of Wales on 2 November 2016). His personal motto was Plikten framför allt, "Duty before all".
During Gustaf VI Adolf's reign, work was underway on a new Instrument of Government to replace the 1809 constitution and produce reforms consistent with the times. Among the reforms sought by some Swedes was the replacement of the monarchy or at least some moderation of the old constitution's provision that "The King alone shall govern the realm."