King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia travelled to the town of Örebro where on August 21, 1810 French general Jean Baptiste Bernadotte was elected by parliament as Crown Prince and therefore future King of Sweden. The Bernadotte's still reign in the Scandinavian country, although they no longer rule.
The House of Bernadotte originally reigned in both Sweden and Norway until 1905. Oslo, the capital of the other Bernadotte kingdom, also will mark the bicentenary. An art exhibition featuring some 400 works of art depicting various Bernadotte rulers begins at the National Museum of Fine Arts in Stockholm on Sep 29.
In historical and modern terms the year 1810 is incredibly important in Sweden as it brought to an end to 200 years of war for Sweden and signalled the start of a long period of peace. In this year also, a number of vital changes were made to the Swedish constitution, one of them being a law on freedom of expression, that put Sweden on the path to democracy.
The celebrations centered on Örebro Castle, where Crown Princess Victoria and husband Prince Daniel made their first official public appearance since their wedding on June 19. Victoria had another reason to celebrate: she was cleared of the corruption accusations launched by some disenchanted Swedes, who took issue with Victoria accepting a businessman's private jet and yacht for her honeymoon.
Also present in Örebro were Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine. © GPD: Source: Visit Sweden; Photos by © Royal Press Europe, Albert Nieboer
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