Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden

Who was Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden?

Gustaf VI Adolf was King of Sweden from 29 October 1950 until his death. He was the eldest son of Gustaf V and his wife, Victoria of Baden, and had been Crown Prince of Sweden for the preceding 43 years in the reign of his father. He was the last king to reign under the Instrument of Government of 1809, which formally acknowledged a potentially powerful role for the monarch. However, at the time of his accession the parliamentary system in Sweden had been firmly established for more than three decades, and thus the role of the monarch as head of state was in practice reduced to a figurehead role.

He was also the last Swedish king to date to choose a spouse of royal birth.

Gustaf VI Adolf was a lifelong amateur archeologist particularly interested in Ancient Italian cultures. Later in his life he was a keen supporter of civil rights, meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr. in Stockholm. His death came only days before the election of 1973, which is suggested to have swayed it in support of the incumbent Social Democratic government.