Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

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Princess Sibylla of Sweden
Duchess of Västerbotten
Princess Sibylla in the 1930s
Princess Sibylla in the 1930s
Spouse Prince Gustav Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten
Issue
Princess Margaretha
Princess Birgitta
Princess Désirée
Princess Christina
Carl XVI Gustaf
Full name
Swedish: Sibylla
German: Sibylla Calma Maria Alice Bathildis Feodora
Titles and styles
HRH Princess Sibylla of Sweden, Duchess of Västerbotten
HH Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Royal house Saxe-Coburg-Gotha
Father Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Mother Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein
Born 18 January 1908(1908-01-18)
Gotha
Died 28 November 1972 (aged 64)
Flag of Sweden Stockholm

Princess Sibylla of Sweden, Duchess of Västerbotten (born Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; 18 January 1908 – 28 November 1972) was the wife of Prince Gustav Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, and the mother of the current king of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf.

Contents

[edit] Early life

Princess Sibylla Calma Maria Alice Bathildis Feodora was the daughter of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein, a daughter of Princess Caroline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Sønderburg-Augustenburg and Duke Frederick Ferdinand of Schleswig-Holstein-Sønderburg-Glücksburg, and from an ancient Scandinavian princely house. Through her father she was a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. Her grandfather was Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, the 4th son of Queen Victoria.

[edit] Marriage

On 19 October 1932, Sibylla married her second cousin Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, Duke of Västerbotten. Gustaf Adolf was the eldest son of Crown Prince Gustav Adolf of Sweden (later Gustav VI Adolf) and Princess Margaret of Connaught, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Both Sibylla and Gustaf Adolf were great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria. Sibylla never became crown princess herself since her husband died before his grandfather (King Gustav V).

At the time of Sibylla's marriage to the Swedish Prince, the Swedish press reported that Sibylla, like her father who became a known Nazi sympathizer, was once a member of the German Nazi Party.[1]

[edit] Later life

Sibylla was widowed, when, in 1947, Gustaf Adolf died in an aeroplane accident at Copenhagen Airport in Denmark. Their son, Carl Gustaf, became second-in-line to the throne at the age of one year, and later Crown Prince at the age of four. She had a difficult relationship with her children especially her son, Carl Gustaf, who resided in a different residence than her while growing up, being raised by nannies. Sibylla died of cancer before her son ascended the throne.

After her late husband's stepmother, Queen Louise of Sweden, died in 1965, Sibylla became the senior Royal Princess of Sweden, acting in a supporting role for her father-in-law, King Gustav VI Adolf.

[edit] Legacy

Sybilla always had a hard time in Sweden. She never learned the language or adjusted to the culture and had much stress placed on her for producing a male heir. Though, she was mostly disliked for her German relations and reported Nazi support. Today, little is known of Sybilla and she is very rarely mentioned by the Swedish Royal Family.

[edit] Titles, styles, honours and arms

[edit] Titles and styles

[edit] Issue

Sibylla and Gustaf Adolf had five children:

Name Birth Death Notes
Princess Margaretha 1934 married, 1964, John Kenneth Ambler; had issue
Princess Birgitta of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen 1937 married, 1961, Prince Johann Georg of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen; had issue
Princess Désirée, Baroness Silfverschiöld 1938 married, 1964, Baron Nils-August Otto Carl Niclas Silfverschiöld; had issue
Princess Christina 1943 married, 1974, Tord Gösta Magnuson; had issue
Carl XVI Gustaf 1946 married, 1976, Silvia Sommerlath; had issue

[edit] Ancestry in Sweden

Styles of
Princess Sibylla of Sweden
Reference style Her Royal Highness
Spoken style Your Royal Highness
Alternative style Ma'am

Through Sibylla, her son, Carl XVI Gustaf, is a direct descendant of medieval Swedish high nobility lords of Oxenstierna, av Agnetorp, Boberg, Sparre av Salsta, Tillbakaseende Ulv, Lejonbalk, av Frössvik, av Benhamra, av Aspenäs, av Viby, av Ymseborg, Vingad Pil, av Rickeby, Scherembeke på Öland, Likvidssönerna, Puke, Bielke, Gren, av Skylvalla, Trolle, Lejonansikte av Njudung, Bonde-Puke, Hama, Sandbro, Snakenborg, "Lejon" av Loholm (Ulvåsa), "Lejon" av Boberg, av Jorchastad, Finsta, Gädda, Hammersta, Barun, Balk av Strand, Örnfot, av Ervalla, "Lejon" Aranäs, Griphuvud, Gyllenstierna, Natt och Dag, Sture, royal Bonde, Sparre av Aspnäs, Lejonbjälke, Sparre of Tofta, Tre Klöverblad av Tofta, Tyrhoved (Tjurhuvud), Liljebalk, av Vinstorp, Grip av Vinäs, Stjärna, Litle-Galen, Sparre of Ellinge, Thott, Baner, av Årby, av Länna, av Aboö, Kasi, Röd, Ekeblad of Hedaker, av Forstena, Öra and Leijonhufvud as well as first counts of Count Sture, Tre Rosor Count of Bogesund and Enköping; and Oxenstierna Counts of Korsholma and Vaasa. Also from the sister of Saint Bridget of Sweden, whose name was given to Sibylla's second daughter, Princess Birgitta of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. Sibylla was descended from Countess Frederica of Dohna-Schlobitten, great-great-granddaughter of Count Gabriel Bengtsson Oxenstierna (1586-1656), kinsman of Queen Christina I of Sweden.

Being on the other hand also a direct descendant of Countess Louise Sofie Danneskiold-Samsoe (1796-1867), Duchess Consort of Slesvig-Holstein, means that Sibylla and Carl Gustaf descend from Louise Sofie's forefathers, particularly all sorts of medieval Scanian nobility; Families such as Bragde, Lange, Friis, Krag, Hoeg Banner, Billde, Podebusk, Sehested, Reedtz, Lunge, Basse, Krabbe, Kaas, Norby, Juel, Grubbe, Rud, Bjelke, Ulfeldt, Huitfeldt, Trolle af Lilloe, Thott af Härlöv, Ulfstand, Urup av Ugerup and Skovgaard are numbered among her Scandinavian ancestors.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Bildextra: Kungens nazist-pappa