Count Fabian Reinhold von Fersen (7 October 1762,

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

– 10 March 1818, Stockholm) was a Swedish count, politician, officer and courtier. He was the son of

Axel von Fersen the Elder 250px, Fredrik Axel von Fersen Count Fredrik Axel von Fersen (5 April 171924 April 1794) was a Swedish statesman and soldier. He served as Lord Marshal of the Riksdag of the Estates, and although he worked closely with King Gustav III before and ...

and

Hedvig Catharina De la Gardie Hedvig Catharina von Fersen, née De la Gardie (Stockholm, 20 May 1732–Stockholm, 24 April 1800) was a Swedish noble. She was the daughter of the General and ''riksråd'' count Magnus Julius De la Gardie and the political salonist Hedvig Catha ...

and the brother of

Count Axel von Fersen the Younger Hans Axel von Fersen (; 4 September 175520 June 1810), known as Axel de Fersen in France, was a Swedish count, Marshal of the Realm of Sweden, a General of Horse in the Royal Swedish Army, one of the Lords of the Realm, aide-de-camp to Rochamb ...

Hedvig Eleonora von Fersen Hedvig "Hedda" Eleonora von Fersen (2 July 1753 – 8 November 1792, in Pisa) was a Swedish noble, lady in waiting to the Swedish queen, Sophia Magdalena of Denmark. She was the daughter of Axel von Fersen the Elder and Hedvig Catharina De la Gard ...

and

Sophie Piper Countess Eva Sophie Piper, née Eva Sophie von Fersen (30 March 1757 – 2 February 1816, Löfstad Slott), was a Swedish countess and lady in waiting. She was the daughter of count Axel von Fersen the Elder and Hedvig Catharina von Fersen and t ...

Life

Fabian von Fersen served in the Royal Life Guards from 1771 and 1796 and climbed through the ranks from an ensign to a colonel lieutenant. In 1793–1802, he was a ''

Valet de chambre ''Valet de chambre'' (), or ''varlet de chambre'', was a court appointment introduced in the late Middle Ages, common from the 14th century onwards. Royal households had many persons appointed at any time. While some valets simply waited on t ...

'' and in 1802–10 a

Chamberlain (office) A chamberlain (Medieval Latin: ''cambellanus'' or ''cambrerius'', with charge of treasury ''camerarius'') is a senior royal official in charge of managing a royal household. Historically, the chamberlain superintends the arrangement of domestic ...

at the royal court. He served as a member of the nobility in the ''

riksdag The Riksdag (, ; also sv, riksdagen or ''Sveriges riksdag'' ) is the legislature and the supreme decision-making body of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral legislature with 349 members (), elected proportionally and se ...

'' several times between 1789 and 1818. In 1796, he belonged to the entourage accompanying

Gustav IV Adolf Gustav IV Adolf or Gustav IV Adolph (1 November 1778 – 7 February 1837) was King of Sweden from 1792 until he was deposed in a coup in 1809. He was also the last Swedish monarch to be the ruler of Finland. The occupation of Finland in 1808–09 ...

on the king's marriage trip to Russia. Before the deposition of Gustav IV Adolf during the

Coup of 1809 The Coup of 1809 ( sv, Statskuppen 1809) also referred to as the Revolution of 1809 (Swedish: ''Revolutionen 1809'') was a Swedish coup d'état by a group of noblemen led by Georg Adlersparre. The coup resulted in the deposition of King Gustav IV ...

, he prevented the monarch from the withdrawal of funds from the national bank. He participated in the funeral procession of Charles August later that same year. At that occasion, his brother

was murdered in a riot suspected of having poisoned Carl August, and Fabian and his sister Sophie were also targeted by the mob as known followers of the

Gustavian Party The Gustavians ( sv, Gustavianerna) were a political faction in the Kingdom of Sweden who supported the absolutist regime of King Gustav III of Sweden, and sought after his assassination in 1792 to uphold his legacy and protect the interests of ...

. In 1810, he belonged to the entourage welcoming the elected heir to the throne,

Charles August, Crown Prince of Sweden Charles August or Carl August (9 July 1768 – 28 May 1810) was a Danish prince. He is best known for serving as Crown Prince of Sweden briefly in 1810, adopted by Charles XIII, before his sudden death from a stroke. Earlier, he had been a genera ...

, upon his arrival to Sweden. Fabian von Fersen demanded that the paper of his murdered brother be sealed, and him and his wife (at that point mistress of the Robes of the queen), both left court. Fabian von Fersen has been given various descriptions in contemporary diaries and memoirs.

Hedvig Ulrika De la Gardie Hedvig Ulrika De la Gardie (29 November 1761 in Stockholm, Sweden – 7 February 1832 in Stockholm), was a Swedish lady-in-waiting. She was married to Gustaf Mauritz Armfelt. She was the head governess of the Swedish royal children in 1799–18 ...

, whose interests in Sweden he protected when her spouse was exiled for treason, describes him as ''noble et généreux'', and

Anders Fredrik Skjöldebrand Anders Fredrik Skjöldebrand (14 July 1757 in Algiers – 23 August 1834 in Stockholm) was a Swedish count, lord of the realm, general, statesman and minister from the Skjöldebrand dynasty. He was also a knight of the Royal Order of the Se ...

said of him that he had: "many good qualities, such as a pure and open personality, honesty and reliability, but also the haughty bearing of his family in his way of interaction".

Private life

Fabian von Fersen is known to have been the long-term lover of the royal Duchess Charlotte. The affair is assumed to have started in the late 1780s. It was rumored at the time that the pregnancy which ended in a miscarriage of the Duchess in 1792 was caused by Fabian von Fersen. The affair was discontinued with the marriage of von Fersen in 1797. He married countess Louise Piper (1777–1849), maid of honor to

Princess Sophia Albertine of Sweden Princess Sophia Albertina of Sweden (''Sophia Maria Lovisa Fredrika Albertina''; 8 October 1753 – 17 March 1829) was the last Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg Abbey, and as such reigned as vassal monarch of the Holy Roman Empire. Sophia Alberti ...

, in 1797. Their children: Axel von Fersen (1798–1839), Fabian von Fersen (1800-1800), Gustaf Hans von Fersen (1802-1839) and the great heiress Louise von Fersen (1816–1879), of whom all sons died officially childless (although Gustaf Hans had in fact several children with Carolina Brunström), were the last of the von Fersen family.Gustaf Elgenstierna, Den introducerade svenska adelns ättartavlor. 1925-36. Tillägg och rättelser ur supplementband 1 - 2 / Carl Szabad.

References

* Fabian Reinhold Fersen, von, urn:sbl:15290, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (art av Bengt Hildebrand.), hämtad 2015-02-17. * Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon {{DEFAULTSORT:Fersen 1762 births 1818 deaths Swedish counts Swedish people of German descent 18th-century Swedish nobility Politicians from Stockholm Swedish courtiers Gustavian era people Male lovers of royalty De la Gardie family Court of Gustav III Fabian