Count Fabian Reinhold von Fersen (7 October 1762,

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

– 10 March 1818, Stockholm) was a Swedish count, politician, officer and courtier. He was the son of Axel von Fersen the Elder and Hedvig Catharina De la Gardie and the brother of Count Axel von Fersen the Younger, Hedvig Eleonora von Fersen and Sophie Piper.

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 ...

'' 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 or , ) is the parliament and the parliamentary sovereignty, supreme decision-making body of the Kingdom of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral parliament with 349 members (), elected proportional rep ...

'' 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 180 ...

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

Coup of 1809 The Coup of 1809 () also referred to as the Revolution of 1809 (Swedish: ''Revolutionen 1809'') was a Swedish coup d'état on 13 March of that year by a group of noblemen led by Georg Adlersparre, with support from the Western Army. The coup res ...

, 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 Count Axel von Fersen the Younger 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. In 1810, he belonged to the entourage welcoming the elected heir to the throne, Charles August, Crown Prince of Sweden, 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, whose interests in Sweden he protected when her spouse was exiled for treason, describes him as ''noble et généreux'', and Anders Fredrik Skjöldebrand 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 is a title used by a female member of a regnant monarch's family or by a female ruler of a principality. The male equivalent is a prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for t ...

, in 1797. Their children: Axel von Fersen (1798–1838), 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