Gustavus III

Gustavus III staged a bloodless coup, using military force and popular support to abolish the parliamentary system dominated by the Caps and Hats parties. He imposed a new constitution that restored significant royal authority, ending the so-called Age of Liberty and establishing an enlightened absolutist regime.

Gustavus III founded the Swedish Academy, modeled on the French Academy, to promote the Swedish language and literature. The Academy became a central institution in Swedish cultural life, later responsible for awarding the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Gustavus III launched a war against Russia, partly to rally national sentiment behind his monarchy. The war was indecisive, culminating in the naval Battle of Svensksund in 1790, a major Swedish victory. The Treaty of V

Gustavus III was shot in the back at a masquerade ball at the Royal Opera House in Stockholm by a disgruntled nobleman, Jacob Johan Anckarstr