Sweden during the late 19th century
History of Sweden |
---|
![]() |
Timeline |
![]() |
The period following the accession of
In trade policy, advocates of Protectionism gained the upper hand in 1888, and import duties were imposed on barley and other commodities. Pressure grew for extension of the franchise, leading up to the introduction in 1907 of universal manhood suffrage for elections to the Lower House, and a proportional representation system for both Houses.
During King Oscar's reign many important social reforms were implemented. In a spirit of patriotism, physical activity was promoted: compulsory gymnastics was introduced in schools in 1880, and the Swedish Ski Association was formed in 1892.
Politics in the New Riksdag
At the accession of
Politically, however, the situation was tense as the reforms inaugurated during the preceding reign did not answer expectations. Within three years of the introduction of the new electoral laws, the
Lantmanna Party
The Swedish "Lantmanna" party was formed in 1867. It consisted mostly of the larger and smaller peasant proprietors, who at the time of the old Riksdag of the Estates were always opposed to the nobility and the clergy. The object of the party was to bring about a fusion between the representatives of the large landed proprietors and the regular peasant proprietors, to support the interests of landed proprietors in general against those of the town representatives, and to resist Crown interference in the administration of local affairs.[1]
Such was the state of affairs when
Free trade vs. protectionism
Influenced by the economic reaction which took place in 1879 in consequence of the state of affairs in
The new Riksdag assembled in May with a free trade majority in the Second Chamber, but nothing in connection with the great question of customs was settled. In the meantime, the powerful majority in the Second Chamber split into two groups the new "Lantmanna" party, which approved protection in the interests of agricultural classes; and a somewhat smaller group, the old "Lantmanna" party, which favored free trade.[1]
The victory of the free traders was not to be of long duration. The protectionists obtained a majority in both chambers in the next Riksdag in 1888. To the First Chamber protectionists were almost exclusively elected, and in the Second all the twenty-two members for
The Barley Question
Baron Bildt resigned as soon as the new system seemed settled, making room for Baron Gustaf Åkerhielm. The latter, however, also soon resigned, and was succeeded on 10 July 1891 by Erik Gustaf Boström, a landed proprietor. The protectionist system gained in favour on the expiry of the commercial treaty with France in 1892, as it could now be extended to articles of industry. The elections of 1890, when the metropolis returned free traders and Liberals to the Second Chamber, certainly effected a change in the latter, as the representatives of the towns and the old "Lantmanna" party joined issue and established a free-trade majority in the chamber, but in the combined meetings of the two chambers the compact protectionist majority in the First Chamber turned the scale. The customs duties were, however, altered several times in accordance with market prices and ruling circumstances. When the import duty on ungrounded barley was reduced in 1892, the same duties were also retained for the following year. They were also retained for 1894 at the request of the government, which desired to keep faith with their promise that while the new organization of the army was going on no increase of duties on the necessaries of life should take place. This measure caused much dissatisfaction, and gave rise to a strong agrarian movement in consequence of which the government, in the beginning of 1895, before the assembling of the Riksdag, made use of its right of raising the two duties on barley just referred to, which were afterwards somewhat reduced as far as seed barley for sowing purposes was concerned.[1]
Reorganization of the army
The tariff issue now settled, that of national defence was taken up afresh, and in the following year the government produced a complete scheme for the abolition of the land tax in the course of ten years, in exchange for a compensation of ninety days' drill for those liable to military service, proposed to retain the old military system of the country and to strengthen the defences of

Health
The steady decline of death rates in Sweden began about 1820. For men and women of working age the death rate trend diverged, however, leading to increased excess male mortality during the first half of the century. There were very high rates of infant and child mortality before 1800, Among infants and children between the ages of one and four smallpox peaked as a cause of death in the 1770s–1780s and declined afterward. Mortality also peaked during this period due to other air-, food-, and waterborne diseases, but these declined as well during the early 19th century. The decline of several diseases during this time created a more favorable environment that increased children's resistance to disease and dramatically lowered child mortality.[3]
The introduction of compulsory gymnastics in Swedish schools in 1880 rested partly on a long tradition, from Renaissance humanism to the Enlightenment, of the importance of physical as well as intellectual training. More immediately, the promotion of gymnastics as a scientifically sound form of physical discipline coincided with the introduction of conscription, which gave the state a strong interest in educating children physically as well as mentally for the role of citizen soldiers.[4] Skiing is a major recreation in Sweden and its ideological, functional, ecological, and social impact has been great on Swedish nationalism and consciousness. Swedes perceived skiing as virtuous, masculine, heroic, in harmony with nature, and part of the country's culture. A growing awareness of strong national sentiments and an appreciation of natural resources led to the creation of the Swedish Ski Association in 1892 in order to combine nature, leisure, and nationalism. The organization focused its efforts on patriotic, militaristic, heroic, and environmental Swedish traditions as they relate to ski sports and outdoor life.[5]
Extending the voting franchise
After the elections in 1890, the alliance already mentioned between the old "Lantmanna" party and the representatives of the towns had the result that the Liberals in the Second Chamber, to whom the representatives of the towns mostly belonged, were now in a position to decide the policy which the two united parties should follow. In order to prevent this, it was proposed to readjust the number of the members of the
In 1897 the
The question of the extension of the franchise, which was a burning one, was to be the principal measure of the
A Conservative government was then formed on 29 May by Admiral Arvid Lindman, whose principal task was to find a solution of the suffrage question which both chambers could accept. A government bill was introduced, proposing the settlement of the question on the basis of the bill carried by the First Chamber in the Riksdag of the preceding year. A compromise, approved of by the government, was adopted by the First Chamber on 14 May 1907 by 110 votes against 29 and in the Second Chamber by 128 against 98. By this act proportional representation was established for both chambers, together with universal manhood suffrage at elections for the Second Chamber, a reduction of the qualifications for eligibility for the First Chamber and a reduction of the electoral term of this chamber from nine to six years, and finally payment of members of the First Chamber, who hitherto had not received any such emolument.[1]
Social reforms
King
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n public domain: Dumrath, Oskar Henrik (1911). "Sweden". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 211–214. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ^ Ole Elgström and Magnus Jerneck. "Activism and adaptation: Swedish security strategies, 1814–85." Diplomacy and Statecraft (1997) 8#3 pp: 210—36.
- ^ Jan Sundin, "Child Mortality and Causes of Death in a Swedish City, 1750–1860." Historical Methods 1996 29(3): 93–106.
- ^ Jens Ljunggren, "Nation-Building, Primitivism and Manliness: The Issue of Gymnastics in Sweden around 1880". Scandinavian Journal of History 1996 21(2): 101–20.
- ^ Sverker Sörlin, "Nature, Skiing and Swedish Nationalism." International Journal of the History of Sport 1995 12(2): 147–63.
Further reading
- Andersson, Ingvar. A History of Sweden (1956) online edition
- Frängsmyr, Tore, ed. Science in Sweden: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, 1739–1989. (1989). 291 pp.
- Gustavson, Carl G. The Small Giant: Sweden Enters the Industrial Era. (1986). 364 pp.
- Hoppe, Göran and Langton, John. Peasantry to Capitalism: Western Östergötland in the Nineteenth Century. (1995). 457 pp.
- Kent, Neil. A Concise History of Sweden (2008), 314 pp. excerpt and text search
- Magnusson, Lars. An Economic History of Sweden (2000) online edition
- Moberg, Vilhelm, and Paul Britten Austin. A History of the Swedish People: Volume II: From Renaissance to Revolution (2005)
- Norberg, Johan (October 23, 2013). How Laissez-Faire Made Sweden Rich. Cato Institute. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- Nordstrom, Byron J. The History of Sweden (2002) excerpt and text search
- Scott, Franklin D. Sweden: The Nation's History (1988), survey by leading scholar; excerpt and text search
- Sprague, Martina. Sweden: An Illustrated History (2005) excerpt and text search
- Warme, Lars G., ed. A History of Swedish Literature. (1996). 585 pp.