Louise of the Netherlands | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Queen consort of Sweden and Norway | |||||
Tenure | 8 July 1859 - 30 March 1871 | ||||
Born |
The Hague, United Kingdom of the Netherlands |
5 August 1828||||
Died | 30 March 1871 , Sweden, United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway |
(aged 42)||||
Burial | Riddarholmen Church | ||||
Spouse | Charles XV of Sweden | ||||
Issue |
Louise, Queen of Denmark Prince Carl Oscar, Duke of Södermanland |
||||
|
|||||
House | Orange-Nassau | ||||
Father | Prince Frederick of the Netherlands | ||||
Mother | Princess Louise of Prussia | ||||
Religion | Dutch Reformed Church |
Full name | |
---|---|
Wilhelmina Frederika Alexandrine Anna Louise |
Louise of the Netherlands (Wilhelmina Frederika Alexandrine Anna Louise; 5 August 1828 – 30 March 1871) was the Queen of Sweden and Norway as spouse of King Charles XV of Sweden and IV of Norway.
Princess Louise was born on 5 August 1828 in The Hague. Her father was Prince Frederick of the Netherlands, the second child of King William I of the Netherlands and Wilhelmina of Prussia. Her mother Louise was the eighth child of King Frederick William III of Prussia and Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Her education was to large extent entrusted to her Belgian governess Victoire Wauthier, and she studied French, German, English, Russian and piano.
In 1849, Louise was selected as a suitable marriage partner for Crown Prince Charles of Sweden and Norway, the son of King Oscar I of Sweden and Norway and Josephine of Leuchtenberg. The marriage was arranged after the negotiations to arrange a marriage between Charles and a Prussian princess had failed. King Oscar I of Sweden wished to secure royal family connections between the new Bernadotte dynasty and the old royal dynasties of Europe, and a Protestant princess was also seen as a necessary queen of the Protestant Sweden-Norway after two Catholic predecessors. Louise fulfilled these credentials, and a great dowry was expected from the rich House of Orange-Nassau. Cabinet secretary L Manderström was sent to inspect her, and diplomatically let it be known in his report that Louise had an excellent education and a good character but that she was not attractive. In August 1849, a meeting was arranged between Louise and Charles in the Hague. Reportedly, Louise fell in love with Charles and felt an immediate attraction, while Charles in contrast was disappointed in her appearance. Charles, however, was convinced to agree to the marriage by the King.