Editing Victoria of Baden

{{Short description|Queen of Sweden from 1907 to 1930}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox royalty
| consort = yes
| full name = Sophie Marie Viktoria
| succession = [[Queen consort of Sweden]]
| image = Queenvictorias.jpg
| caption = Queen Victoria in 1910
| reign = 8 December 1907 – 4 April 1930
| spouse = {{marriage|[[Gustaf V of Sweden]]|1881}}
| issue = {{plainlist|
*[[Gustaf VI Adolf]]
*[[Prince Wilhelm, Duke of Södermanland]]
*[[Prince Erik, Duke of Västmanland]]}}
| house = [[House of Zähringen|Zähringen]]
| father = [[Frederick I, Grand Duke of Baden]]
| mother = [[Princess Louise of Prussia]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1862|08|07|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Karlsruhe]], [[Grand Duchy of Baden|Baden]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1930|04|04|1862|08|07|df=y}}
| death_place = Rome, [[Kingdom of Italy|Italy]]
| burial_date = 12 April 1930
| burial_place = [[Riddarholmen Church]]
| signature = Victoria of Baden's signature.svg
}}
[[File:Minnesmedalj Gustav V och Victoria, 25567.jpg|thumb|150px|Wedding medal for Victoria and Gustaf in 1881]]
'''Victoria of Baden''' ({{langx|de|Sophie Marie Viktoria}}; 7 August 1862 – 4 April 1930) was [[List of Swedish royal consorts|Queen of Sweden]] from 8 December 1907 until her death in 1930 as the wife of [[King Gustaf V]]. She was politically active in a conservative fashion during the development of democracy and known to be pro-German during the [[First World War]].

==Early life==
Princess Victoria was born on 7 August 1862 at [[Karlsruhe Palace]], [[Grand Duchy of Baden|Baden]]. Her parents were [[Grand Duke Frederick I of Baden]], and [[Princess Louise of Prussia]]. Victoria was named after her aunt by marriage, [[Victoria, Princess Royal|Crown Princess Victoria of Prussia]], daughter of [[Queen Victoria]] of the United Kingdom.

Victoria was tutored privately in the Karlsruhe Palace, by governesses and private teachers, in an informal "Palace School" with carefully selected girls from the aristocracy. She was given a conventional education for her gender and class with focus on art, music and languages, and could play the piano, paint and speak French and English. Victoria was given a strict and Spartan upbringing with a focus on duty. Among other things, her mother ordered her to sleep on hard mattresses by an open window. Such spartan methods was recommended at the time as beneficial and something that would harden the child's future health, but it is believed that this in fact had negative consequences for Victoria's health later in life.<ref name="Heribert Jansson 1963">Heribert Jansson (1963). Drottning Victoria. Stockholm: Hökerbergs bokförlag</ref>

Victoria was confirmed in 1878. After this, she made her debut in adult social life and marriage prospects were discussed.<ref name="Heribert Jansson 1963"/>

==Crown Princess==
[[File:Victoria & Gustaf of Sweden.jpg|thumb|left|Victoria and Gustaf of Sweden]]
[[File:Crown princess Victoria and crown prince Gustav in the 1880s.jpg|thumb|left|Crown Princess Victoria and Crown Prince Gustaf of Sweden, 1880s]]
On 20 September 1881 in [[Karlsruhe]] Princess Victoria married [[Gustaf V of Sweden|Crown Prince Gustaf of Sweden and Norway]], the son of King [[Oscar II of Sweden]] and Norway and [[Sofia of Nassau]]. The German emperor and empress were present at the wedding, and marriage was arranged as a sign that Sweden belonged to the German sphere of influence in Europe.<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=128
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}
</ref> The marriage was popular in Sweden, where she was called "The [[House of Vasa|Vasa]] Princess"<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=129
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> because of her descent from the old [[Vasa dynasty]], and she received a very elaborate welcome on the official [[cortege]] into [[Stockholm]] 1 October 1881. On 1 February 1882, Victoria and Gustaf visited [[Oslo]], where they were welcomed with a procession of 3,000 torch bearers.

She and Gustaf were brought together by their families and their marriage was reported not to have been a happy one. Their marriage produced three children. In 1890–1891, Victoria and Gustaf travelled to [[Egypt]] in an attempt to repair their relationship, but it did not succeed, allegedly due to Victoria's interest in one of the courtiers,<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=133
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> and she repeated the trip to Egypt in 1891–1892. After 1889, the personal relationship between Victoria and Gustaf is considered to have been finished, in part, as estimated by Lars Elgklou, due to Gustaf's bisexuality.<ref name="autogenerated161">
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=161
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> She suffered from postnatal depression after the birth of her first child in 1882, and after this, she often spent the winters at spas abroad. She would continue to spend the winters outside Sweden from that year until her death. By 1888, her winter trips had made her unpopular, and she was described as very haughty.<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=131
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> In 1889, she had pneumonia, and was formally ordered by her doctors to spend the cold Swedish winters in a southern climate. She had conflicts with her parents-in-law about her expensive stays abroad.

She greatly disapproved of the marriage between her brother-in-law [[Oscar Bernadotte|Prince Oscar]] and her lady-in-waiting [[Ebba Munck af Fulkila]] in 1888.<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=140
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> 
She is described as strong-willed and artistically talented. She was an accomplished amateur photographer and painter, and she also sculpted. On her travels in [[Egypt]] and Italy she both photographed and painted extensively, and experimented with various photo-developing techniques, producing high-quality photographic work. She was also an excellent pianist and, for example, could play through the complete ''[[Ring of the Nibelung]]'' by [[Wagner]] without notes. She had had a good music education, and in her youth she had turned the notes at court concerts for [[Franz Liszt]]. Her favourite composers were [[Schubert]] and [[Beethoven]]. She was also described as a skillful rider.

==Queen==
[[File:Crown Princess of Sweden with her mother and eldest son.jpg|left|thumb|Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden with her mother, [[Princess Louise of Prussia|Grand Duchess Louise of Baden]] (only daughter of [[Wilhelm I]], German Emperor) and her eldest son, baby [[Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden|Gustaf Adolf]], 1883.
]]
[[File:Victoria of Sweden (1881) 1928 by Victor Roikjer (png).png|thumb|Queen Viktoria of Sweden.]]
Victoria became Queen-consort of Sweden with her father-in-law's death on 8 December 1907. As queen, she was present in Sweden only during the summers, but she still dominated the court.<ref name="autogenerated162">
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=162
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> She arranged the marriage between her son Wilhelm and [[Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (1890–1958)|Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia]] in 1908.<ref name="autogenerated162"/> She was also devoted to various kinds of charity, in Sweden, Germany and Italy.

[[File:Queen Victoria of Baden (Sweden) in German Uniform.jpg|thumb|left|Queen Victoria in her uniform as Colonel-in-Chief of the [[34th (Pomeranian) Fusiliers "Queen Victoria of Sweden"|34th (Pomeranian) Fusiliers]] renamed in her honour.]]

Queen Victoria had substantial political influence over her husband, who was often considered pro-German. In 1908, Victoria made an official visit to Berlin with Gustaf, where she was made an honorary Prussian Colonel of the [[34th (Pomeranian) Fusiliers "Queen Victoria of Sweden"|34th (Pomeranian) Fusiliers]] by her cousin [[Wilhelm II]]. She was described as strict and militant, and it was said that she had the heart of a Prussian soldier.<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=160
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> She was very strict with discipline, and if any member of the palace guard forgot to salute her, he was generally put under arrest.<ref name="autogenerated161"/> Swedish court life was also dominated by a certain stiffness, upheld by her favoured lady in waiting, [[Helene Taube]].<ref name="Heribert Jansson 1963"/> Victoria was deeply conservative in her views and resented the [[Dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden|dissolution of the Swedish-Norwegian union in 1905]], the [[Swedish general strike|Great Strike of 1909]], and the [[1911 Swedish general election|1911 election victory of the radicals]] and the Socialists as well as the liberals, and when her son was temporary regent in 1912, she warned him in letters from Italy that he should not be too "intimate" with the elected government.<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=163
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref>

Queen Victoria lost much popularity among Swedes for her often noted pro-German attitude, particularly politically during [[World War I]] when she is said to have influenced her husband to a large extent. During World War I, she gave a personal gift to every Swedish volunteer to the German forces.<ref name="autogenerated161"/> She kept up a close contact with her first cousin, German Emperor [[Wilhelm II]], whom she often visited during the war<ref>
{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=164
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> She founded "Drottningens centralkomittée" ("The Queen's Central Committee") for defence equipment. She deeply resented the [[1917 Swedish general election|social democratic election victories in 1917]] and worked to prevent them from taking part in the government.<ref name="Lars Elgklou 1978 165">{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=165
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> Victoria's political influence was founded upon the power position of her first cousin, the [[German Emperor]] and [[King of Prussia]], and in [[German Revolution of 1918–1919|1918–19, after he was deposed]], she lost all political influence in Sweden.<ref name="Lars Elgklou 1978 165"/>
[[File:Victoria of Sweden (1881) medal 1930.jpg|thumb|Medal for Queen Victoria in 1930]]
Queen Victoria suffered from very poor health (much of it due to poor treatment by several doctors in her youth), and often went on trips to try to improve it (she suffered from [[bronchitis]] and possibly [[tuberculosis]]). She was treated with [[mercury (element)|mercury]] and unduly heavy medications during her difficult pregnancies, possibly the cause of her chronic conditions. From 1892 to her death, [[Axel Munthe]] was her personal physician, and recommended for health reasons that she spend winters on the Italian island of [[Capri]]. While initially hesitant, in the autumn of 1901 she travelled to Capri, arriving to an official welcome and a crowd that escorted her from the Marina Grand to the Hotel Paradise. From then on, except during [[World War I]] and for the last two years of her life, she spent several months a year on Capri. After some time, she decided to purchase her own residence on Capri, an intimate rustic two-storey farmhouse she named [[Casa Caprile]], which she had extensively landscaped, surrounding it with a dense park. In the 1950s, twenty years after her death, the property became a hotel.

The Queen went to Munthe's residence, the [[Villa San Michele]], most mornings to join Munthe for walks around the island. Munthe and the Queen also arranged evening concerts at San Michele, at which the Queen played the piano. They also shared a love of animals, with the Queen frequently being seen with a leashed dog, and she was known to support Munthe's (eventually successful) efforts to purchase [[Mount Barbarossa]] for use as a bird sanctuary. It was rumoured that Munthe and the Queen were lovers, but this has never been confirmed.

Queen Victoria spent a lot of her time abroad for health reasons, as the Swedish climate was not considered good for her, and during her last years as queen, she was seldom present in Sweden: she participated in an official visit to [[Norrland]] in 1921, a visit to [[Dalarna]] in 1924, and to Finland in 1925. The visit to Finland was her last official appearance as queen; although she did visit Sweden at her husband's birthday 1928, she did not show herself to the public. During those celebrations, however, someone noticed the figure of a woman behind a curtain in the Royal Palace of Stockholm: he waved to her, and she waved back with her handkerchief.<ref>{{cite book
| author =Lars Elgklou
| title = Bernadotte. Historien – eller historier – om en familj.
|trans-title=Bernadotte. The history – or stories – of a family.
| publisher = Askild & Kärnekull Förlag AB
| year = 1978
| page=166
| language = Swedish
| isbn=91-7008-882-9
}}</ref> After this, she left Sweden for Italy for good: she died two years afterwards.

She was the 855th [[knight|Dame]] of the [[Order of Queen Maria Luisa|Royal Order of Queen Maria Luisa]].
[[File:Gustaf V of Sweden & Victoria of Sweden graves 2013.jpg|thumb|The sarcophagi of King Gustaf V and Queen Viktoria inside [[Riddarholmen Church]].]]

==Death==
Toward the end of her life, with her health declining, Munthe recommended she no longer spend time in [[Capri]], and she returned to Sweden for some time, building a [[Solliden Palace|Capri-styled villa]] there. She then moved to Rome.

Her final visit to Sweden was on her husband's 70th birthday in June 1928, and Queen Victoria died on 4 April 1930 in her home ''Villa Svezia'' in Rome aged 67.

==Issue==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|- "
! style="width:16%;"|Name!! style="width:14%;"|Birth!! style="width:14%;"|Death!! style="width:64%;"|Notes
|-
| King [[Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden]] || 11 November 1882 || {{death date and age|1973|9|15|1882|11|11|df=y}} || married 1) [[Princess Margaret of Connaught]] (1882–1920), had issue (including [[Ingrid of Sweden|Ingrid, Queen of Denmark]]);
married 2) [[Louise Mountbatten]] (1889–1965), a stillborn daughter
|-
| [[Prince Wilhelm, Duke of Södermanland]] || 17 June 1884 || {{death date and age|1965|6|5|1884|6|17|df=y}} || married [[Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (1890-1958)|Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia]] (1890–1958), had issue
|-
| [[Prince Erik, Duke of Västmanland]]|| 20 April 1889 || {{death date and age|1918|9|20|1889|4|20|df=y}} || died unmarried of the [[Spanish flu]], no issue
|}

==Arms==
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:0.5em auto"
|align="center"| [[File:Coat of arms of Princesse Victoria1.svg|190px|center]]Marital arms of Crown Prince Gustaf <br>and Crown Princess Victoria
|align="center"| [[File:Greater coat of arms of Queen Victoria (Sweden).svg|115px|center]]Victoria's coat of arms as queen <br>of Sweden
|align="center"| [[File:Royal Monogram of Queen Victoria (of Baden) of Sweden.svg|113px|center]]Royal Monogram of Queen Victoria <br>of Sweden
|}

==Ancestry==
{{ahnentafel
|collapsed=yes |align=center
| boxstyle_1 = background-color: #fcc;
| boxstyle_2 = background-color: #fb9;
| boxstyle_3 = background-color: #ffc;
| boxstyle_4 = background-color: #bfc;
| 1 = 1. '''Princess Victoria of Baden'''
| 2 = 2. [[Frederick I, Grand Duke of Baden]]
| 3 = 3. [[Princess Louise of Prussia]]
| 4 = 4. [[Leopold, Grand Duke of Baden]]
| 5 = 5. [[Princess Sophie of Sweden]]
| 6 = 6. [[Wilhelm I, German Emperor]]
| 7 = 7. [[Princess Augusta of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach]]
| 8 = 8. [[Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Baden]]
| 9 = 9. [[Louise Caroline of Hochberg|Baroness Louise Caroline Geyer of Geyersberg]] 
| 10 = 10. [[Gustav IV Adolf, King of Sweden]]
| 11 = 11. [[Princess Frederica of Baden]]
| 12 = 12. [[Frederick William III, King of Prussia]]
| 13 = 13. [[Duchess Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz]]
| 14 = 14. [[Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach]]
| 15 = 15. [[Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (1786–1859)|Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia]]
}}

==Photographic work==
<gallery class="center">
File:Queenvphoto1.jpg|''"Before we reached the camp we came across a long string of beduin women in their long blue dresses."'' Photo: Queen Victoria of Sweden. Egypt, 1890.
File:Queenvpfoto2.jpg|''"The river Nile at Shellal, photograph taken in the late afternoon on the 15th of February 1891."'' Photo: Queen Victoria of Sweden. Egypt, 1891
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{SKBL}}

== External links==
*{{Commons category-inline}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060510085334/http://www.capritourism.com/en/Monum/smichele.htm Villa San Michele at CapriTourism.com]
*[http://www.capri.net/caprireview/article.php?cod=50&lang=en&tr=1 Capri Review article on Munthe and Queen Victoria] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205234521/http://www.capri.net/caprireview/article.php?cod=50&lang=en&tr=1 |date=5 February 2012 }}
* Minnesalbum. Drottning Victoria 1862–1930, Världslitteraturens förlag, Malmö, 1930 (in Swedish)
{{S-start}}
{{S-hou|[[House of Zähringen]]|7 August|1862|4 April|1930||}}
{{S-roy|se}}
{{S-bef|before=[[Sophia of Nassau]]}}
{{S-ttl|title=[[Queen consort of Sweden]]|years=1907–1930}}
{{S-vac|next=[[Louise Mountbatten]]}}
{{S-end}}

{{House of Bernadotte}}
{{Princesses of Baden by birth}}
{{Swedish princesses by marriage}}
{{Swedish consorts}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Victoria of Baden}}
[[Category:1862 births]]
[[Category:1930 deaths]]
[[Category:Nobility from Karlsruhe]]
[[Category:Swedish queens|Victoria 1907]]
[[Category:House of Zähringen]]
[[Category:Burials at Riddarholmen Church]]
[[Category:Princesses of Baden]]
[[Category:Norwegian princesses]]
[[Category:Crown princesses of Sweden]]
[[Category:Crown princesses of Norway]]
[[Category:Daughters of dukes]]
[[Category:People from the Grand Duchy of Baden]]
[[Category:Mothers of Swedish monarchs]]