Oscar II (Oscar Fredrik; 21 January 1829 – 8 December 1907) was

King of Sweden The monarchy of Sweden is centred on the monarchical head of state of Sweden,See the #IOG, Instrument of Government, Chapter 1, Article 5. by law a constitutional monarchy, constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system.Parl ...

from 1872 until his death in 1907 and

King of Norway The Norwegian monarch is the head of state of Norway, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The Norwegian monarchy can trace its line back to the reign of Harald Fairhair and the previous petty king ...

from 1872 to 1905. Oscar was the son of

King Oscar I Oscar I (born Joseph François Oscar Bernadotte; 4 July 1799 – 8 July 1859) was King of Sweden and Norway from 8 March 1844 until his death. He was the second monarch of the House of Bernadotte. The only child of King Charles XIV John, Oscar ...

and Queen Josephine. He inherited the Swedish and Norwegian thrones when his brother died in 1872. Oscar II ruled during a time when both countries were undergoing a period of industrialization and rapid technological progress. His reign also saw the gradual decline of the

Union of Sweden and Norway Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway (; ), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate Monarchy, kingdoms of Sweden and Norway under a common monarch and common fo ...

, which culminated in its dissolution in 1905. In 1905, the throne of Norway was transferred to his grandnephew Prince Carl of Denmark under the

regnal name A regnal name, regnant name, or reign name is the name used by monarchs and popes during their reigns and subsequently, historically. Since ancient times, some monarchs have chosen to use a different name from their original name when they accede ...

Haakon VII. When Oscar died in 1907, he was succeeded in Sweden by his eldest son,

Gustaf V Gustaf V (Oscar Gustaf Adolf; 16 June 1858 – 29 October 1950) was King of Sweden from 8 December 1907 until his death in 1950. He was the eldest son of King Oscar II of Sweden and Sophia of Nassau, a half-sister of Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxe ...

Early life

Oscar Fredrik was born at the Royal Palace in

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 ...

on 21 January 1829, the third of four sons of Crown Prince Oscar and

Josephine of Leuchtenberg Josephine of Leuchtenberg (Joséphine Maximilienne Eugénie Napoléone de Beauharnais; 14 March 1807 – 7 June 1876), also Josefina, was Queen of Sweden and Norway from 8 March 1844 to 8 July 1859 as the wife of King Oscar I. She was also Pri ...

. Upon his birth, he was created

Duke of Östergötland Duchies in Sweden have been allotted since the 13th century to powerful Swedes, almost always to princes of Sweden (only in some of the dynasties) and wives of the latter. From the beginning these duchies were often centers of regional power, w ...

. At birth, he was fourth in the

succession to the Swedish throne The line of succession to the Swedish throne is determined by the Act of Succession (), originally approved jointly by the Riksdag of the Estates assembled in Örebro and King Charles XIII in 1810. In 1979, the Riksdag introduced absolute p ...

after his father and older brothers, but as a younger son had no immediate prospect of inheriting the throne. During his childhood, he was placed in the care of the royal governess, Countess Christina Ulrika Taube. Prince Oscar entered the

Royal Swedish Navy The Swedish Navy () is the maritime service branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet (), formally sometimes referred to as the Royal Navy () – as well as marine units, the Amph ...

as a midshipman at the age of 11, and was appointed junior lieutenant in July 1845. Later, he studied at

Uppsala University Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...

, where he distinguished himself in mathematics. On 13 December 1848, was made an honorary member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences () is one of the Swedish Royal Academies, royal academies of Sweden. Founded on 2 June 1739, it is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization that takes special responsibility for promoting nat ...

. On 6 June 1857, Prince Oscar married Princess Sophia of Nassau at the

Biebrich Palace Biebrich Palace () is a Baroque residence (''Schloss'') in the borough of Biebrich in the city of Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany. Built in 1702 by Prince Georg August Samuel of Nassau-Idstein, it served as the ducal residence for the independent Du ...

, the ducal residence of the

Duchy of Nassau The Duchy of Nassau (German language, German: ''Herzogtum Nassau'') was an independent state between 1806 and 1866, located in what became the Germany, German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse. It was a States of the Confederation of th ...

, with whom he had four sons. Princess Sophia was the youngest daughter of Wilhelm, Duke of Nassau and Princess Pauline Friederike Marie of Württemberg, and a half-sister of

Adolphe ''Adolphe'' is a classic French novel by Benjamin Constant, first published in 1816. It tells the story of an alienated young man, Adolphe, who falls in love with an older woman, Ellénore, the Polish mistress of the Comte de P***. Their illici ...

, the then reigning Duke of Nassau and future

Grand Duke of Luxembourg The Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has been a grand duchy since 15 March 1815, when it was created from territory of the former Duchy of Luxembourg. It was in personal union with the United Kingdom of ...

King Charles XV of Sweden and Prince Oscar with Adjutants

Upon the death of his father, King Oscar I, in 1859, Prince Oscar became

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir app ...

to the thrones of Sweden and Norway, as his eldest brother King Charles XV of Sweden/Charles IV of Norway was without a legitimate heir, having lost his only son, Prince Carl Oscar, Duke of Södermanland, to

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

in 1854. His second elder brother, Prince Gustaf, Duke of Uppland, had died of

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often th ...

already in 1852.

King of Sweden and Norway

Accession

Oscar II became King on 18 September 1872, upon the death of his brother,

Charles XV Charles XV or Carl (''Carl Ludvig Eugen''; Swedish language, Swedish and Norwegian language, Norwegian officially: ''Karl''; 3 May 1826 – 18 September 1872) was King of Sweden and List of Norwegian monarchs, Norway, there often referred to as C ...

who died without an heir. At his accession, he adopted as his motto ''Brödrafolkens väl'' / ''Broderfolkenes Vel'' ("The Welfare of the Brother Peoples"). His coronation as Swedish monarch was celebrated in

Storkyrkan Storkyrkan (, ), also called Stockholms domkyrka (Stockholm Cathedral) and Sankt Nikolai kyrka (Church of Saint Nicholas), is the oldest church in Stockholm. Storkyrkan lies in the centre of Stockholm in Gamla stan, between Stockholm Palace and ...

in Stockholm on 12 May 1873, and his coronation as Norwegian monarch two months later in the

Nidaros Cathedral Nidaros Cathedral () is a Church of Norway cathedral located in the city of Trondheim in Trøndelag county. It is built over the burial site of Olav II of Norway, King Olav II ( 995–1030, reigned 1015–1028), who became the patron saint of th ...

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

on 18 July 1873. While the King, his family and the

Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

resided mostly in Sweden, Oscar II made the effort of learning to be fluent in Norwegian and from the very beginning realized the essential difficulties in the maintenance of the union between the two countries.

Foreign and domestic statecraft

His acute intelligence and his aloofness from the dynastic considerations affecting most European sovereigns (both his paternal and maternal grandfathers were French military commanders who served under

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

) gave the king considerable weight as an arbitrator in international questions. At the request of the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States in 1889, he appointed the Chief Justice of Samoa under the Treaty of Berlin, and he was again called on to arbitrate in

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

n affairs in 1899. In 1897, he was empowered to appoint a fifth arbitrator if necessary in the Venezuelan dispute, and he was called on to act as umpire in the Anglo-American arbitration treaty that was quashed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

. He won many friends in the United Kingdom by his outspoken and generous support of Britain at the time of the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

(1899–1902), expressed in a declaration printed in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' of 2 May 1900, when continental opinion was almost universally hostile. He remained a strong supporter of the Navy throughout his life, and frequently visited ships of the fleet. When the

coastal defence ship Coastal defence ships (sometimes called coastal battleships or coast defence ships) were warships built for the purpose of coastal defence, mostly during the period from 1860 to 1920. They were small, often cruiser-sized warships that sacrifi ...

was launched, he even signed his name on the vessel's aft main gun tower. The office of

Prime Minister of Sweden The prime minister of Sweden (, "minister of state") is the head of government of the Sweden, Kingdom of Sweden. The prime minister and their cabinet (the government) exercise executive authority in the Kingdom of Sweden and are subject to th ...

was instituted in 1876. Louis De Geer became the first head of government in Sweden to use this title. The most known and powerful first minister of the Crown during the reign of Oscar was the conservative estate owner Erik Gustaf Boström. Boström served as Prime Minister in 1891–1900 and 1902–1905. He was trusted and respected by Oscar II, who had much difficulty approving someone else as prime minister. Over a period of time, the King gave Boström a free hand to select his own ministers without much royal involvement. It was an arrangement (unintentional by both the King and Boström) that furthered the road to parliamentarism.

Science and the arts

A distinguished writer and musical amateur himself, King Oscar did much to encourage the development of education throughout his dominions. In 1858, a collection of his lyrical and narrative poems, ''Memorials of the Swedish Fleet'', published anonymously, obtained the second prize of the

Swedish Academy The Swedish Academy (), founded in 1786 by King Gustav III, is one of the Royal Academies of Sweden. Its 18 members, who are elected for life, comprise the highest Swedish language authority. Outside Scandinavia, it is best known as the body t ...

. His "Contributions to the Military History of Sweden in the Years 1711, 1712, 1713", originally appeared in the Annals of the academy, and were printed separately in 1865. His works, which included his speeches, translations of

Herder A herder is a pastoralism, pastoral worker responsible for the care and management of a herd or flock of domestic animals, usually on extensive management, open pasture. It is particularly associated with nomadic pastoralism, nomadic or transhuma ...

's ''Cid'' and

Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

's ''

Torquato Tasso Torquato Tasso ( , also , ; 11 March 154425 April 1595) was an Italian poet of the 16th century, known for his 1591 poem ''Gerusalemme liberata'' (Jerusalem Delivered), in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between ...

'', and a play, ''Castle Cronberg'', were collected in two volumes in 1875–76, and a larger edition, in three volumes, appeared in 1885–88. His Easter hymn and some other of his poems are familiar throughout the Scandinavian countries. His work on

Charles XII of Sweden Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII () or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.), was King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of the House of ...

were translated into English in 1879. In 1881, he founded the world's first

open-air museum An open-air museum is a museum that exhibits collections of buildings and artifacts outdoors. It is also frequently known as a museum of buildings or a folk museum. Definition Open air is "the unconfined atmosphere ... outside buildings" ...

, at

Bygdøy Bygdøy or Bygdø is a peninsula situated on the western side of Oslo, Norway. Administratively, Bygdøy is part of the borough of Frogner. It historically was part of Aker Municipality and became part of Oslo in 1948. Bygdøy is a popular recr ...

, located next to his summer residence near

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

(then known as Christiania). In 1885, he published his ''Address to the Academy of Music'', and a translation of one of his essays on music appeared in ''Literature'' in May 1900. He had a valuable collection of printed and manuscript music, which was readily accessible to the historical student of music. Being a theater lover, he commissioned a new opera house to be built by Axel Anderberg for the

Royal Swedish Opera Royal Swedish Opera () is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the centre of Sweden's capital, Stockholm, in the borough of Norrmalm (borough), Norrmalm, on the eastern si ...

which was inaugurated on 19 September 1898. It remains as the home of that institution. Oscar II once told playwright

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...

that his ''Ghosts'' was "not a good play". As he was dying, he requested that the theatres not be closed on account of his death. His wishes were respected. Oscar was also particularly interested in mathematics. In 1887, he set up a contest, to be awarded on the occasion of his 60th birthday in 1889, for "an important discovery in the realm of higher mathematical analysis". The contest listed four potential areas of research, one of which was the

n-body problem In physics, the -body problem is the problem of predicting the individual motions of a group of astronomical object, celestial objects interacting with each other gravitationally.Leimanis and Minorsky: Our interest is with Leimanis, who first d ...

celestial mechanics Celestial mechanics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the motions of objects in outer space. Historically, celestial mechanics applies principles of physics (classical mechanics) to astronomical objects, such as stars and planets, to ...

, relevant to the stability of the

Solar System The Solar SystemCapitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Sola ...

Henri Poincare Henri is the French form of the masculine given name Henry (given name), Henry, also in Estonian, Finnish, German and Luxembourgish. Bearers of the given name include: People French nobles * Henri I de Montmorency (1534–1614), Marshal and Cons ...

, a professor at the

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

, won by submitting an entry showing that even the 3-body problem was unstable, the seminal result in what is now called

chaos theory Chaos theory is an interdisciplinary area of Scientific method, scientific study and branch of mathematics. It focuses on underlying patterns and Deterministic system, deterministic Scientific law, laws of dynamical systems that are highly sens ...

. King Oscar II was an enthusiast of Arctic exploration. Along with Swedish millionaire Oscar Dickson and Russian magnate Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Sibiryakov, he was the patron of a number of pioneering Arctic expeditions in the 1800s. Among the ventures the king sponsored, the most important are

Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld Nils Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld (; 18 November 183212 August 1901) was a Finland-Swedish aristocrat, geologist, mineralogist and Arctic explorer. He was a member of the noble Nordenskiöld family of scientists and held the title of a friherre (ba ...

's explorations to the Russian Arctic and

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

, and

Fridtjof Nansen Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 1861 – 13 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and co-founded the ...

's Polar journey on the '' Fram''. Oscar was also a generous sponsor of the sciences and personally funded the Vega Expedition, which was the first Arctic expedition to navigate through the

Northeast Passage The Northeast Passage (abbreviated as NEP; , ) is the Arctic shipping routes, shipping route between the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, Pacific Oceans, along the Arctic coasts of Norway and Russia. The western route through the islan ...

, the sea route between Europe and Asia through the

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five oceanic divisions. It spans an area of approximately and is the coldest of the world's oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, ...

, and the first voyage to circumnavigate Eurasia.

Death

The political events which led up to the peaceful

dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden The dissolution of the union (; ; Høgnorsk, Landsmål: ''unionsuppløysingi''; ) between the kingdoms of Norway and Sweden under the House of Bernadotte, was set in motion by a resolution of the Storting on 7 June 1905. Following some months of ...

in 1905 could hardly have been attained but for the tact and patience of the king himself. He was dethroned on 7 June 1905 by the

Storting The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The Unicameralism, unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list propo ...

and renounced the Norwegian throne on 26 October. He declined, indeed, to permit any prince of his house to become king of Norway, but better relations between the two countries were restored before his death. Oscar II died in

on 8 December 1907 at 9:10 am.

Marriage and children

On 6 June 1857, he married in

Wiesbaden-Biebrich Biebrich is a borough of the city of Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany. With over 38,000 inhabitants, it is the most-populated of Wiesbaden's boroughs. It is located south of the city center on the Rhine River, opposite the Mainz borough of Mombach. Biebr ...

(located in present-day

Hessen Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major historic cities are Da ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

) Princess Sophia Wilhelmina, the youngest daughter of Duke William of Nassau and

Princess Pauline of Württemberg 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 ...

. They had four sons: # King Gustaf V (16 June 1858 – 29 October 1950) # Prince Oscar, Duke of Gotland, later known as Prince Oscar Bernadotte,

Count of Wisborg The Count of Wisborg (, , ) is a title of nobility granted by the list of monarchs of Luxembourg, Monarch of Luxembourg to some male-members of the Swedish royal family, including their spouses and descendants. Since 1892, the title has been born ...

(15 November 1859 – 4 October 1953) # Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland (27 February 1861 – 24 October 1951) #

Prince Eugen, Duke of Närke Prince Eugen of Sweden and Norway, Duke of Närke (Eugen Napoleon Nicolaus; 1 August 1865 – 17 August 1947) was a Swedish painter, art collector, and patron of artists. Background Prince Eugen was born at Drottningholm Palace as the fourt ...

(1 August 1865 – 17 August 1947) His eldest son Gustaf was Duke of

Värmland Värmland () is a ''Provinces of Sweden, landskap'' (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west. Name Several Latinized version ...

and succeeded him as King Gustaf V of Sweden from 1907 until 1950, married

Princess Victoria of Baden Victoria of Baden (; 7 August 1862 – 4 April 1930) was List of Swedish royal consorts, Queen of Sweden from 8 December 1907 until her death in 1930 as the wife of King Gustaf V. She was politically active in a conservative fashion during the d ...

and they had three sons. His second son, Prince Oscar, lost his rights of succession to the throne upon his unequal marriage in 1888 to a former

lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...

Ebba Munck af Fulkila Princess Ebba Bernadotte (''Maiden and married names, née'' Ebba Henrietta Munck af Fulkila; Jönköping, 24 October 1858 – Malmsjö Gård, Grödinge, 16 October 1946), was a Swedish noble, lady-in-waiting and a titular princess, the spouse of ...

, and was granted the title of

Prince Bernadotte Prince Bernadotte is a title that has been used by several members of the House of Bernadotte. It is most commonly known as a title granted to men who were formerly titled as princes of Sweden before losing their royal titles when they married unequ ...

first in Sweden, and from 1892 in

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

, where he also was created

as an hereditary title for his marital progeny (

Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg Adolphe (Adolf Wilhelm August Karl Friedrich; 24 July 1817 – 17 November 1905) was Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 23 November 1890 to his death on 17 November 1905. The first grand duke from the House of Nassau-Weilburg, he succeeded King Willia ...

, was the half-brother of his mother, Queen Sophia). The other sons of Oscar II were Prince Carl, Duke of

Västergötland Västergötland (), also known as West Gothland or the Latinized version Westrogothia in older literature, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish), situated in the southwest of Sweden. Vä ...

who married

Princess Ingeborg of Denmark Princess Ingeborg of Denmark (Ingeborg Charlotte Caroline Frederikke Louise; 2 August 1878 – 12 March 1958), was a Princess of Sweden by marriage to Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland. Princess Ingeborg was a daughter of Frederick VIII of ...

; and Prince Eugén, Duke of

Närke Närke () is a Swedish traditional province, or ''landskap'', situated in Svealand in south central Sweden. It is bordered by Västmanland to the north, Södermanland to the east, Östergötland to the southeast, Västergötland to the sou ...

, who was well known as an artist and remained a bachelor all his life.

Alleged extramarital children

Oscar II is also suspected to have had several extramarital children, of which at least five are named: * Anna Hofman-Uddgren (1868–1947) by Emma Hammarström (1849–1910) * Elin Esping Smitz (1878–1960) by Paulina Mathilda Esping (1858–1878) * Knut August Ekstam (born 1878, in U.S.A. 1903, death unknown) by

Marie Friberg Marie (Maria) Friberg (5 January 1852 - 16 September 1934) was a Sweden, Swedish opera singer (alto) of the Royal Swedish Opera. She is known for her relationship to King Oscar II of Sweden, with whom she allegedly had two sons. Biography Mari ...

(1852–1934) * Florence Stephens (1881–1979) by Elisabeth Kreüger Stephens (1858–1911) * Nils Teodor Ekstam (1889–1954) also by Friberg above However, unlike his father, Oscar II never officially recognized any illegitimate children of his.

Honours

;National * Knight and Commander of the Seraphim, ''21 January 1829'' * Knight of the

Order of Charles XIII The Royal Order of Charles XIII () is a Swedish order (honour), order of merit, founded by King Charles XIII of Sweden, Charles XIII in 1811. Membership The Lord and Master of the Order is the Monarch, King of Sweden, currently King Carl XVI Gust ...

, ''21 January 1829'' * Commander Grand Cross of the Sword, ''21 January 1829'' * Commander Grand Cross of the Polar Star, ''21 January 1829'' * Commander Grand Cross of the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry founded on 29 May 1772 by Gustav III, King Gustav III. It is awarded to Swedish citizens for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. His ...

, ''15 June 1866'' * Grand Cross of St. Olav, with Collar, ''21 August 1847'' * Founder and Master of the Order of the Norwegian Lion, ''21 January 1904 – 26 October 1905'' ;Foreign

Legacy

The name and portrait of Oscar II have been used as a trademark for

King Oscar sardines King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by fi ...

in Norway since 1902 (which remains the only brand to have once obtained his "royal permission" ) as well as

gingerbread Gingerbread refers to a broad category of baked goods, typically flavored with ginger root, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon and sweetened with honey, sugar, or molasses. Gingerbread foods vary, ranging from a moist loaf cake to forms nearly ...

cookies (''pepparkakor'') and other bakery products made by Göteborgs Kex in Sweden. The culinary creation

Veal Oscar Veal Oscar is a culinary creation served for the first time on September 18, 1897, and said to have been named in honor of Sweden's King Oscar II, who was especially partial to its ingredients. The dish consists of sauteed veal cutlets topped ...

was named in his honor supposedly for his fondness for its ingredients: veal cutlet, crab meat, Béarnaise sauce, and asparagus.

Ancestry

Heraldry

References

External links

*
The Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav – H.M. King Oscar II the former Grand Master of the Order
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Oscar 02 1829 births 1907 deaths 19th-century Swedish monarchs 20th-century Swedish monarchs 19th-century Norwegian monarchs 20th-century Norwegian monarchs Royalty from Stockholm House of Bernadotte Swedish Lutherans Swedish people of French descent Uppsala University alumni Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences Swedish monarchs of German descent Burials at Riddarholmen Church Swedish Freemasons Dethroned monarchs Dukes of Östergötland Grand masters of the Order of Charles XIII Knights of the Order of Charles XIII Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of the Sword Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of Vasa Knights of the Order of the Norwegian Lion Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Recipients of the Cross of Honour of the Order of the Dannebrog Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour Recipients of the Order of the Netherlands Lion 3 3 3 Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Russia) Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Extra Knights Companion of the Garter Sons of kings Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint-Charles