Democracy, Neutrality, and Socialism
The nation gradually recovered its balance. During the “Era of Liberty,” which followed, royal absolutism was curtailed by a constitution that transferred power from the monarch to the Riksdag. Economic conditions improved with the introduction of new manufacturing enterprises and the refinement of agricultural and mining techniques. Literature and natural science flourished.
In an attempt to restore Sweden's power, Gustavus III, who ascended the throne in 1771, reasserted the authority of the king. He was assassinated by a group of disgruntled nobles. His son, Gustavus IV Adolphus, lost Finland to Russia in 1809 and was deposed. That year a new constitution was drawn up. In 1810 the Riksdag chose Jean Baptiste Bernadotte, a French marshal, to be heir to the childless Charles XIII (1809–18).
Charles John, as Bernadotte was renamed, soon became the real ruler of Sweden. After a policy dispute with Napoleon, the French emperor, Charles John enlisted Sweden in a coalition of European nations against him. After successful military campaigns against Denmark and Norway (1813–14), Charles John achieved the union of Norway and Sweden, which lasted until 1905. This was also the last time that Sweden's army was engaged in battle. In 1818 Charles John, as Charles XIV John, began a 26-year reign and established the Bernadotte dynasty.
The remainder of the 19th century was a time of social change, industrialization, and peace. The old Riksdag, made up of the old social classes—nobles, clergy, burghers, and peasants—was abolished in 1865 and replaced by a two-chamber elected legislature. All males who met certain qualifications were eligible to vote. Iron and steel industries were modernized, wood and pulp industries were developed. Construction of railroads throughout the country helped centralize industrial production in urban areas, which attracted more people to cities. The needs of the growing population outstripped the available resources, however, and some 1.2 million Swedes emigrated to the United States between 1850 and 1930.
Early in the 20th century, democracy made further strides in Sweden when the suffrage was expanded, 1907–09. (Universal suffrage was achieved in 1921.) In 1907 the democratic Gustaf V came to the throne, beginning the longest and one of the most popular reigns in Swedish history (1907–50).
With the growth of the working class following industrialization, a labor movement was established. Supported by the labor movement, the Social Democratic party, which had been founded in 1899, steadily increased in importance. In 1920 the Social Democrats came to power for the first time and began laying the foundation for Sweden's welfare state. Joint enterprises between the state and private industrialists were established in certain areas of the economy. Voluntary consumer and producer cooperatives were organized on a large scale. During the 1930's and 1940's, far-reaching pension, health insurance, and other social programs were enacted.
Sweden was neutral during both World Wars. After World War II, it joined the United Nations, but continued its policy of neutrality in the struggles between the Communist and anti-Communist blocs during the Cold War. Close cooperation between Scandinavian countries was promoted by formation of the Nordic Council in 1952.
By the last half of the 20th century, government programs providing cradle-to-grave security were well established. A new constitution, effective in 1975, was promulgated, reducing the monarchy to a symbolic role and extending the franchise to 18-year-olds. In elections held in 1976, the Social Democratic party was defeated and replaced by a non-Socialist coalition, ending more than four decades of Socialist rule. Economic decline and policy differences between coalition members led to the collapse of the coalition, and in 1982 the Socialists were returned to power. In 1986 the Socialist leader, Olof Palme, was assassinated. The Socialists were defeated in the elections of 1991 but returned to power in the elections of 1994. In 1995 Sweden became a member of the European Union.
Also in 1995, the Lutheran Church of Sweden agreed to a government move to separate church and state. The church agreed to phase out by 2000 from its position as Sweden's official church. Lutheranism had been the country's official religion since the 14th century. But the government recognized that the Swedish population had come to include many people from other countries who practiced other faiths. In 1998 elections, the Social Democratic Party won more seats in parliament than any other party. However, it did not win a majority and needed the support of other parties in order to govern. Elections in 2002 returned the Social Democrats and their political allies to power. In 2003, Sweden's voters rejected a proposal to replace their nation's currency, the krona, with the euro, a currency used by most of the other countries of the European Union. In 2006 elections, a center-right union of political parties led by the Moderate Party won control of parliament.
