Swedish Royalty: Carl XVI Gustaf

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Swedish Text



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Parents
Carl was the youngest child and only son of the Hereditary Prince Gustaf Adolf and Princess Sibylla of Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha.


Prince Gustaf Adolf



Princess Sibylla (1908-72)
Princess Sibylla (Sibylla Calma Marie Alice Wettin) of Saxe-Coburg Gotha was born in 1908. Her parents were Prince Leopold (Leopold Charles Edward Wettin), Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1884- ). The Prince was a grandson of Queen Victoria. His father was Prince Leopold. Her father did not fare well in World War I. He abdicated as Duke of Saxe-Coburg at the end of te War in 1918. His British titles (Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and Baron Arklow were removed in 1919. Princess Sibylla's mother was Princess Schleswig-Holste Victoria Adelheid (1885- ). Princess Sibylla died in 1972.


Childhood
Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus was born on April 30, 1946 at Haga Palace. His father died in 1947, when Carl Gustaf was less than a year old. HBC has at this time little information about Carl's childhood. He apparently was a keen Scout as a boy which perhaps build his strong interest in environmental issues.


Sisters



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Childhood Clothing
We do not have a great deal of information about Car's childhood clothing, but some available information provides us some information. Carl appaers to have worn less fancy clothes than were worn by royal children in previous years. He wore snow suits and long pants suits of various styles. He also appears to have worn a rather British-styled school uniform.


Snow suits
Sweden as a Scandinavian country is located at norhern latitudes. There is as a result, a good bit of snow. Carl had a snowsuit which appears to have ankle-length elasticized legs. He wore it with a sticking cap that had a very large pom.


Suits
Carl appears to have worn long pants suits, even at an early age. One photograph shows him in a long pants suit even before his curls were cut. One long pants suit is rather like a tuxedo.


Schoolwear
Carl as was common with royalty had tudors as a little boy. His parents then broke precedent and was sent to a boarding school. Some images suggest a rather British looking uniform, but we are not sure just what the uniform regulations were at the school.


Hair Styles
While Carl as a young boy commonly wore long pants, he appears to have worn rather childish hair styles. Available images show him wearing very curly hair styles--although not real long.


Education
Crown Prince Carl Gustaf received his early education from tutors and then entered a private boarding school in Sigtuna. The school was not far from Stockholm--Broms and Sigtuna Boarding School. We have no information on what Carl thought of the school. He completed his education there in 1966. He then began his military service in the Army, Navy and Air Force, his main emphasis being Naval Training. , and passed his university entrance examination in 1966. After his military training, the Crown Prince pursued a specially designed 1-year educational programme including a number of courses in history, sociology, political science, fiscal law and economics at the University of Uppsala. Later the Crown Prince continued studying national economy at the University of Stockholm.


Military Service
After that the Crown Prince fulfilled his military service which meant two and a half years of training in the army, navy and air force. He concentrated mainly on his naval training and has since then kept his great interest in life at sea.


Royal Training



Reign



Scouting
The King as a boy was a keen Scout. As king he has stronly supported Scouting in Sweden and around the world. He has served as Honorary President of the World Scout Foundation. The King is one of the world's most enthusiastic supporters of Scouting. He often appears at Scouting events wearing his uniform.


Marriage
Carl at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games he met his future wife Miss Silvia Sommerlath. Miss Sommerlath was the daughter of the late Walther Sommerlath, a West German businessman, and his widow Alice, nee de Toledo. Their engagement was announced on March 12 1976, and on June 19 that same year they were married at the Stockholm Cathedral.


Children
King Gustaf VI has three children. According to the Act of Succession which in 1980 superseded that of 1810, succession to the throne of Sweden is fully cognatic. This means that the eldest child of the King and Queen is heir to the throne, regardless of gender. Accordingly, the Crown Princess Victoria, born on 14 July 1977, is heir to the Swedish throne.


Crown Princess Victoria



Prince Carl



Princess Madeleine