Sweden

Swerighe(Swenska)
Sweden (English)

Subdivision of:	Scandinavian Realm
Cities:
Capital:	Stockholm
Largest:	Stockholm
Other:	Uppsala, Westerås, Ørebro, Skara, Linkjøping, Sundsvall, Janskipping
Languages:
Official:	Riksmål
Others:	Swenska
GOVERNOR:	Frederik Reinfeldt
Area:	100,532 sq mi
Population:	8,142,817 inhabitants
Established:	Pre-historic, feudal state consolidation

The Kingdom of Sweden is one of the founding member states of the Commonwealth of the Scandinavian Realm. It is a land of forests, bounded in the north by Samme and Finland, in the east by the Baltic Sea, in the west by Norway, and in the south by Denmark.(1)

Though most of Sweden is forested lands, making the forest industry important to Sweden's economy, it is also well-known for technological innovations, and produces automobiles, aeroplanes, and telecommunications equipment - among other things. Sweden's homogenuous population, like the rest of Scandinavia, enjoys a very high standard of living as well as a very well-developed welfare system.

The vast majority of Swedes are glad to be a part of the Scandinavian Realm, but a few radical (albeit very small) groups agitate for a free Sweden. These groups also tend to write Swedish exclusively, refusing to write in Riksmål.

Administration

Government

DESCRIPTION ON HOW THE SUB-NATIONAL ENTITIY IS GOVERNED

Administrative Divisions

Sweden is divided into 16 historical provinces, each ruled by their local councils. In alphabetical order the provinces are (council seats in brackets):

• Dal (Åmål)
• Dalarna (Hedemora)
• Gæstrikland (Gævle)
• Gotland (Visby)
• Hælsingland (Hudiksvall)
• Medelpad (Sundsvall)
• Nærke (Ørebro)
• Småland (Kalmar)
• Sødermanland (Nykjøping)
• Uppland (Uppsala)
• Værmland (Karlstad)
• Væstergøtland (Skara)
• Væstmanland (Væsterås)
• Ångermanland (Hærnøsand)
• Øland (Borgholm)
• Østergøtland (Linkjøping)

History

Archaelogical evidence garnered over the last 100 years has proved conclusively that the area now associated with Sweden was settled during the Stone Age, as the great ice sheets receded. It is believed that the settlers were hunters and foragers, living off the land and sea.

Large trading communities seem to date from the 'Bronze Age', indicating a dense population and trading communities.

Viking culture later flourished in Sweden, trading, raiding and colonizing the Baltic, tending mostly to an easterly direction, invading what would become Finland, Nassland, Russia, the Republic of the Two Crowns, and even pushing up the rivers to raid Kiev. The english name of Sweden itself is believed to stem from an Old-English back-formation of a plural form of swede Sweoðeod.

The first attempt at a Scandinavian union came when Denmark, Sweden, and Norway electing the same monarch in the Kalmar Union. This personal union was difficult to maintain, as during the 15th century Sweden resisted attempts to a centralised Danish rule, escalating to armed rebellion, which resulted in the decimation of the union in 1523. Gustavus Eriksen Vase, known as king Gustav I of Sweden, re-established separation of the Swedish Crown from the union. Keen on strengthening royal power as well as the Swedish state, he succeeded in the introduction of reformation, which introduced Evangelic Lutheranism in Sweden (1527), and a constitutional reform, which changed the hitherto elective kingdom into a hereditary kingdom, him being the founder of the Vase Dynasty.

A strong state church based upon Evangelic Lutheranism was created. The strong state church, a weak and poor nobility, an influential class of free farmers and a strong King together would shape how Swedish society would develop in the 16th and 17th centuries.(2)

In the 1550s the state of the Livonian Order fell apart, facing a Russian invasion. While most of Livonia turned to the Republic of the Two Crowns for protection, the city of Reval and Northern Estonia accepted Swedish King Erik as their protector, an event which marked the begin of Swedish expansion in the Baltic region. In 1617, an ongoing war with Russia was ended in the Peace of Stolbova, which added Ingria, including the area around future St. Petersburg, to the Swedish Realm. In 1621, the Swedes now took on the Republic of the Two Crowns and in 1621 conquered Riga and Livonia. In 1645, Denmark-Norway attempted to invade and reclaim the Swedish crown in order to recreate the Kalmar Union, but only succeeded in losing the islands of Øsel and Gotland to Sweden. Sweden had established a DOMINIUM MARIS BALTICI BOREALIS, a Dominion of the (lands surrounding the) Northern (part of the) Baltic Sea(3). Sweden even engaged in colonial policy as well. In 1637 the colony of New Sweden was established in America. Sweden's neighbours grew restless with its bellicose behavior toward the other Baltic states. So in the beginning of the 18th century, Denmark-Norway, the Republic of the Two Crowns, and Russia together put an end to Sweden's aggressive behaviour by defeating it in the Great Nordic War (1699-1721). Charles XII died in battle in 1718, which left Sweden with a political vacuum. At the conclusion of the war in 1721, Sweden had to acknowledge the loss of her Baltic possessions to Russia. Sweden no longer was a great power, her situation being very precarious.

With the death of Charles XII, there were several claimants to the Swedish throne. Ulrika Eleonora, Charles XII's sister, was payed homage as Queen by the estates. At the same time, a growing sense of scandinavism began circulating the elite and learned circles. Through the decease of the Swedish royal blood line, the way to a new union with Denmark-Norway was paved. First, the last of the House of Vase(4), Queen Ulrika Eleonora, abdicated in 1720. She was then succeeded by her husband, Frederik, from the House of Hesse. When it became clear that they would have no children, European powers tried to bribe the Swedish politicians to favour their respective candidates to the Swedish throne. While many politicians were favourable to the Danish-Norwegian candidate, which would have recreated the Kalmar Union already in 1751, Sweden's defeat in the Russo-Swedish War (1741-1743) made it more wise to choose the Russian candidate, Adolf Frederik, from the House of Holstein-Gottorp. The Holstein-Gottorps were, however, closely related to the Danish-Norwegian Oldenburg dynasty. So in 1809, when the childless King Gustav IV was deemed unfit to take the throne and his rule was overthrown, the estates could choose between the Danish-Norwegian King Frederik VI or the childless Prince Karl, Gustav's uncle. The decision was made to take Frederik as King, and finally unite Scandinavia once again. The new union became known as the Scandinavian Realm.

New Sweden reacted by joining with the North American League about a decade later, rather than face perceived oppression at the hands of Denmark-Norway. New Sweden's greater independence within the Scandinavian Realm sparked similar movements by Qvenland and Finland, which reduced the size of Sweden further.

In 1863, the senior line of the House of Oldenburg went extinct with the death of King Frederik VII. Sweden's Statsråd (State Council) decided to continue to remain within the Scandinavian Realm by paying homage to the candidate elected by the Scandinavian Rigsråd (Realm Council), Christian IX, from the House of Glücksburg, which is a junior line of the House of Oldenburg.

NOTES:

(1) Sweden in its current form *there* is a lot smaller than *here*. Jamtland is part of Norway *there* and has never been part of Sweden. Similarly, Eastern Denmark (Scania, Halland, Blekinge, and Bornholm) is part of Denmark *there* and has never been a part of Sweden. The Samme (Lapp) and Qven (Bothnian) lands are no longer part of Sweden and have become a separate states of the Scandinavian Realm.

(2) Absolutism was never introduced in Sweden. Since the Thirty Years War never took place in IB, the Scanian Wars also never took place, and without those wars, absolutism would never have been introduced in Denmark-Norway, which inspired Sweden to do the same *here*. Instead, most of the political power has always remained with the council and the estates.

(3) Unlike *here*, Sweden in IB did not conquer lands in the southern shores of the Baltic Sea because the Thirty Years War never took place. Consequently, while Sweden did become a regional power in IB, it did not become a major European power like *here*.

(4) The House of Pfalz never came to the Swedish throne *there*. Since the Thirty Years War never took place in IB, King Gustav II Adolf Vase would not have fallen in a Battle of Lützen in 1632, leaving his only child and daughter Christina, who abdicated in 1654 in favour of her cousin, Karl Gustaf von Pfalz-Zweibruecken. Instead, the Vases would have continued ruling *there*, if we assume that King Gustav II Adolf Vase would have had a son. By assuming the same names of Scandinavian monarchs as *here*, his son would have been called Karl X Gustav.

Geography

Borders

Sweden is limited by: North: Norway, Samme, Finland. West: Norway. South: Denmark. East: Baltic Sea, Bay of Bothnia.

Economy

While the forestry industry is a very large part of the Swedish economy, the swedes are also known for two lines of cars, Volvo and Sålb‎, as well as their eco-friendly chain store, IKEA.

Culture

• Official Name (Riksmål): Kongedømmet Sverige
• Official Name (English): The Kingdom of Sweden
• Unofficial Name (Swedish): Kungariket Sverige
• Population: ca. 7 million
• Capital: Stockholm
• Official language: Riksmål
• Other languages: Swedish, Sami, Suomi
• Organizations: Commonwealth of the Scandinavian Realm