Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

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Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Princess Sibylla Calma Maria Alice Bathildis Feodora of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (born January 18, 1908 at Friedenstein Castle in Gotha , † November 28, 1972 in Stockholm ) came from the German noble house of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and was hereditary princess of Sweden by marriage . She is the mother of the reigning Swedish King Carl XVI. Gustaf .

Life

Origin, youth and marriage

Princess Sibylla at the age of six (1914)

Princess Sibylla was the eldest daughter of the last reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , Carl Eduard and his wife Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg . She grew up with her siblings Johann Leopold , Hubertus , Caroline-Mathilde and Friedrich Josias in Coburg and received, as was common in aristocratic circles at that time, an education by private tutors and governesses . She later attended the Alexandrinum grammar school in Coburg and then the arts and crafts school in Weimar.

The newlyweds on their wedding day, October 19, 1932

In 1931, she served as one of the bridesmaids at the wedding of Lady May Abel Smith and Henry Abel Smith . Princess Ingrid of Sweden , the sister of her future husband, was also a bridesmaid and on this occasion introduced Sibylla to her brother Gustav Adolf , who had accompanied his sister.

On June 15, 1932, she became engaged to the Swedish Hereditary Prince Gustav Adolf von Bernadotte , the eldest son of the then Crown Prince Gustav (VI.) Adolf , at Callenberg Castle , in the Red Salon . The wedding in Coburg followed in October of the same year - known as the "Year of Sweden", which became a Swedish double event with the 300th anniversary of the death of the great Swedish king Gustav II Adolf . The civil marriage took place on October 19 in the Hornzimmer of the Veste Coburg , the registrar was the First Mayor and National Socialist politician Franz Schwede . In the presence of over sixty guests of honor from the European aristocracy, the church wedding followed the next day in St. Moriz . The groom's grandfather, King Gustav V , was not present to protest against the proximity of the ducal house to the NSDAP ruling in Coburg .

Sibylla's father and Gustav Adolf's mother were both grandsons of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert . At the wedding, Sibylla became Duchess of Västerbotten, Princess of Sweden. However, since her husband died before his father and grandfather, she became neither queen nor crown princess.

Life in Sweden

Princess Sibylla with her newborn daughter Margaretha, 1934

The couple spent their honeymoon in Italy and returned to Stockholm on November 25, 1932. Immediately after her arrival, the princess performed her first royal duties when she and her sister-in-law Ingrid presented the prize to the winner of a fencing tournament. Sibylla and Gustav Adolf moved into Haga Castle in the municipality of Solna . They also owned two houses in Ingarö and Storlien . Sibylla had a great love for sport, which she shared with her husband. She enjoyed doing outdoor activities and was also a supporter of the Swedish Girl Guides movement.

The royal family in the 1930s. From left to right: Hereditary Prince Gustav Adolf, Crown Princess Louise, King Gustav V, Princess Sibylla and Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf

Two years after the wedding, the first daughter Margaretha was born, named after Gustav Adolf's mother Margaret of Connaught , who died in 1920 . After her the daughters Birgitta , Désirée , Christina and finally in 1946 the only son Carl Gustaf followed . The children grew up at Haga Castle. They were known as the Haga Princesses and received a lot of media attention at the time. But neither she nor her husband Prince Gustav Adolf got on good terms with the press and the public.

Princess Sibylla never felt at home in Sweden. Despite all the prompts, she did not learn to speak fluent Swedish and spoke to her children in German. She suffered from the distrust that was placed in her new home Sweden. Due to the crimes committed by the Germans in World War II and the functions that her father Carl Eduard had exercised in the NSDAP and SA , she was also a target of German hatred.

Widowhood

Prince Gustav Adolf was killed in a plane crash in Denmark in 1947 . On his death she became a widow with five children, aged nine months to twelve years. If she was open-hearted and lively before, she became more and more reserved and reserved after this event. Sibylla's son Carl Gustav moved up to second place in the line of succession after his grandfather when he was not yet a year old and became crown prince at the age of four after the death of his great-grandfather.

Sibylla and Gustav Adolf's grave in Hagapark

In 1950 she moved from Haga to Stockholm Castle . She spent the summer months at Solliden Castle . During this time the nature-loving Sibylla discovered her interest in environmental issues. The princess was a strong support to the king and tried to bridge discrepancies. After Queen Louise's death in 1965, Princess Sibylla managed to achieve a certain popularity among the population as the new Swedish First Lady . She continued some of the tasks that had been started, such as the "ladies democratic lunches" for career women, which Queen Louise had launched in 1962 to replace the court image.

Sibylla did not live to see her son ascend the throne. Her last public appearance was on the 90th birthday of her father-in-law Gustav VI. Adolf. Sibylla died of colon cancer on November 28, 1972 at the age of 64. As requested, her remains were cremated and buried next to her husband in the royal cemetery in Hagapark .

progeny

Gustav Adolf and Sibylla had five children:

Sibylla and Gustav Adolf with their five children (1946)

Others

She is the namesake of the Swedish company Sibylla .

Web links

Commons : Sibylla von Sachsen-Coburg and Gotha  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Who was Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha? - History of Royal Women . In: History of Royal Women . October 13, 2016 ( historyofroyalwomen.com [accessed August 30, 2018]).
  2. ↑ Harald Sandner: Hitler's Duke. Carl Eduard of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The biography . Shaker Media, Aachen 2011, ISBN 978-3-86858-598-8 , p. 239.
  3. ↑ a b c d Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha . In: Unofficial Royalty . January 23, 2015 ( unofficialroyalty.com [accessed August 30, 2018]).
  4. ↑ Harald Sandner: Das Haus Sachsen-Coburg and Gotha 1826 to 2001. A documentation for the 175th anniversary of the parent company in words and pictures . Druck- und Verlagsanstalt Neue Presse, Coburg 2001, ISBN 3-00-008525-4 , p. 228.
personal data
SURNAME Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Sibylla von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Sibylla Calma Maria Alice Bathildis Feodora
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swedish nobles, daughter of the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, mother of the Swedish King Carl XVI. Gustaf
DATE OF BIRTH January 18, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Gotha
DATE OF DEATH November 28, 1972
Place of death Stockholm