Sweden: Princess Désirée's funeral service to take place on 19 February 2026

The Swedish Royal Court announced today that the funeral service for Princess Désirée, who died on 21 January 2026, will take place in the Royal Palace Church in Stockholm on Thursday 19 February 2026. After the funeral service the king will held a reception in Princess Sibylla's Apartment at the Royal Palace. The burial will take place at Koberg, but the time has not been disclosed. As mentioned earlier, Princess Désirée's husband Niclas Silfverschiold (1934-2017) is buried with other family members at Lagmansered Cemetery not far from Koberg Palace in Trollhättan municipality.

Sweden: Princess Sofia is pregnant

The Swedish Royal Court announced today that Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia are expecting their fourth child and that the due date is some time in February 2025.

Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia are expecting a child

Their Royal Highnesses Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia are delighted to announce that The Princess is expecting their fourth child.

Princess Sofia is feeling well, and the birth is expected to take place in February 2025. During the autumn, no changes in the public schedule of Princess Sofia are planned.

The princely couple has three boys – Prince Alexander, b. 2016, Prince Gabriel, b. 2017 and Prince Julian, b. 2021. The future prince or princess will become 8th in the line of succession to the Swedish throne, and will become the king and queen's 9th grandchild. He or she will become a member of the Swedish Royal Family only and not of the Royal House, following the changes made in October 2019.

Sweden: Christening of Prince Julian, Duke of Halland

The christening of Prince Julian of Sweden, Duke of Halland, who was born on 26 March 2021 as the third son of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia of Sweden, took place at Drottningholm Palace Church today, 14 August 2021.

Sponsors were Johan Andersson, Stina Andersson, Jacob Högfeldt, Patrick Sommerlath and Frida Vesterberg, who, with the exception of Patrick Sommerlath, who is a first cousin of Prince Carl Philip on his mother's side, all are friends of Prince Julian's parents.

The ceremony was officiated by Bishop and Chief Court Chaplain Johan Dalman and Court Chaplain and Rector of the Royal Court Parish Michael Bjerkhagen.

The Swedish Royal Court has released the guest list, which includes King Carl XVI Gustaf, Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Daniel, Princess Estelle, Prince Oscar, Prince Carl Philip, Princess Sofia, Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel, Princess Madeleine, Christopher O'Neill, Princess Leonore, Prince Nicolas, Princess Adrienne, Patrick Sommerlath, Anaïs Sommerlath and Chloë Sommerlath (children of Patrick Sommerlath), Erik Hellqvist and Marie Hellqvist (parents of Princess Sofia), Lina Hellqvist and Mattias Wikström (sister of Princess Sofia and her partner), Sara Hellqvist (sister of Princess Sofia), Britt Rotman (grandmother of Princess Sofia), speaker of Riksdagen (the Swedish Parliament) Dr. Andreas Norlén and his wife Helena Norlén, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Morgan Johansson, members of the court and many friends of the family.

After the ceremony the guests attended a lunch at Drottningholm Palace.

Prince Julian's christening was not televised, a first for the grandchildren of King Carl Gustaf, but a summary will be broadcast on SVT on Sunday 15 August.

Pregnancy news in Sweden and the United Kingdom

The Swedish Royal Court announced on Friday 11 December 2020 that Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia are expecting their third child in late March or early April 2021:

Their Royal Highnesses Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia are delighted to announce that The Princess is expecting their third child.

"We are happy and excited, and are looking forward to welcoming our third child – a sibling for Prince Alexander and Prince Gabriel, and a new addition to our family," say Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia.

Princess Sofia is feeling well, and the birth is expected to take place at the end of March or the beginning of April 2021.

The future royal baby will be the 8th grandchild of King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden. He or she will at birth become no. 7 in the line of succession to the Swedish throne. Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia already have two boys – Prince Alexander, born in 2016, and Prince Gabriel, born in 2017.

In the extended British Royal Family there will also be an addition next year. Mike Tindall, husband of Zara Tindall, née Phillips, the daughter of Princess Anne (The Princess Royal) and Mark Phillips, has recently told that they are expecting their third child. The couple has two daughters – Mia, born in 2014, and Lena, born in 2018. The baby will become Princesse Anne's fifth grandchild and Queen Elizabeth's 9th great-grandchild. The baby will enter the world as no. 21 in the line of succession to the British throne.

Sweden: Changes to the Royal House

Court decision 7 October 2019. Photos of documents published at the Swedish Royal Court's Facebook page.

The Swedish Royal Court announced on Monday 7 October 2019 that the King had decided to «downsize» the Royal House, which meant that the children of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia and of Princess Madeleine and Christopher O'Neill had ceased to be members of the Royal House and now only were members of the Royal Family. They are also no longer styled Royal Highness. The press release in full said:

His Majesty The King has decided on changes to The Royal House. The purpose of these changes is to establish which members of The Royal Family may be expected to perform official duties incumbent on the Head of State or related to the function of the Head of State.

His Majesty The King has decided that the children of Their Royal Highnesses Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, and the children of Her Royal Highness Princess Madeleine and Mr Christopher O’Neill will no longer be members of The Royal House.

Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel, Princess Leonore, Prince Nicolas and Princess Adrienne will continue to be members of The Royal Family. However, they will no longer enjoy the style of Royal Highness and, in the future, will not be expected to perform duties incumbent on the Head of State.

Prince Alexander (Duke of Södermanland), Prince Gabriel (Duke of Dalarna), Princess Leonore (Duchess of Gotland), Prince Nicolas (Duke of Ångermanland) and Princess Adrienne (Duchess of Blekinge) will retain their titles of Duke and Duchess previously granted by His Majesty.

His Majesty The King and Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess are, together with Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness Prince Daniel, Sweden’s highest representatives within the Realm and vis-à-vis other States.

Their Royal Highnesses Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, and Her Royal Highness Princess Madeleine will continue their work in the non-profit foundations and organisations which they have founded or in which they are involved. In addition, they will perform official duties to the extent decided by His Majesty.

OFFICE OF THE MARSHAL OF THE REALM

7 October 2019

Fredrik Wersäll
Marshal of the Realm

I was not very surprised by the news – the downsizing was bound to happen some day – but the timing was odd. It had made more sense if the king had clarified the membership prior to the birth of Princess Leonore. As the royal children in question were never expected to take on official engagements, I have earlier on several occasions (see for instance my article of 14 September 2013) said that I would have preferred if they hadn't got any titles at all. Only royals expected to represent the royal house should have titles. The Swedish king has now made a system which somewhat resembles the Norwegian, where those who are styled Majesty or Royal Highness are members of the royal house, while the others are «only» members of the royal family. The only difference is that both children of Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel are styled Royal Highness, while among the Norwegian Crown Prince's children only Princess Ingrid Alexandra has that style. In addition, in the Norwegian Royal Family Prince Sverre Magnus, Princess Märtha Louise and Princess Astrid Mrs. Ferner are styled Highness while abroad (but not in Norway – although the Royal Court has never given a satisfactory explanation to this, I guess the decision was made because titles and styles means more abroad than at home).

In the press conference which followed the announcement, the Marshal of the Realm among others stressed that the prince(ss) and ducal titles for the royal children in question were personal and could
not be transferred to their spouses and children.

King Carl XVI Gustaf's decision does of course not affect the line of succession. However, the question of the upbringing of Princess Madeleine's children outside the realm, cf. the Act of Succession Article 4, remains unsolved. Another question is what would happen if Prince Carl Philip or Princess Madeleine had another child. I expect that the king would make no difference and would settle on the personal title of prince/princess (and ducal title), but of course not give the style Royal Highness.

Members of the Royal House

• HM King Carl XVI Gustaf (b. 1946)
• HM Queen Silvia (b. 1943)
• HRH Crown Princess Victoria (b. 1977)
• HRH Prince Daniel (b. 1973)
• HRH Princess Estelle (b. 2012)
• HRH Prince Oscar (b. 2016)
• HRH Prince Carl Philip (b. 1979)
• HRH Princess Sofia (b. 1984)
• HRH Princess Madeleine (b. 1982)
• HRH Princess Birgitta (b. 1937)

Members of the Royal Family

The Royal Family consists of the members of the Royal House as well as the King's other grandchildren and sisters as well as the widow of the King's Uncle Count Sigvard of Bernadotte.

• Prince Alexander (b. 2016)
• Prince Gabriel (b. 2017)
• Princess Leonore (b. 2014)
• Prince Nicolas (b. 2015)
• Princess Adrienne (b. 2018)
• Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler (b. 1934)
• Princess Désirée, Baroness Silfverschiöld (b. 1938)
• Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson (b. 1943)
• Countess Marianne Bernadotte of Wisborg (b. 1924)

The Line of Succession to the Swedish Throne

As said, the line of succession remains unchanged:

1. HRH Crown Princess Victoria (b. 1977)
2. HRH Princess Estelle (b. 2012)
3. HRH Prince Oscar (b. 2016)
4. HRH Prince Carl Philip (b. 1979)
5. Prince Alexander (b. 2016) 
6. Prince Gabriel (b. 2017)
7. HRH Princess Madeleine (b. 1982)
8. Princess Leonore (b. 2014)
9. Prince Nicolas (b. 2015)
10. Princess Adrienne (b. 2018) 

Updated on Thursday 10 October 2019 at 21:05 (minor spelling mistake corrected, last time on Sunday 1 December 2019 at 13.30 (grammatical error corrected).

Royal birth in Sweden: Princess Madeleine's third child

Photo: © 2017 Christopher O'Neill.

The Swedish Royal Court (The Office of The Marshal of the Realm) announced yesterday morning 9 March 2018 that Princess Madeleine and her husband Chris O'Neill earlier that day had become parents for the third time.

Announcement from HE The Marshal of the Realm

The Office of The Marshal of the Realm is delighted to announce that HRH Princess Madeleine gave birth to a healthy child on Friday 9 March 2018 at 00:41 at Danderyd Hospital.

Both mother and child are in good health.

Svante Lindqvist
Marshal of the Realm

The announcement was later followed up by a press release in which the gender of the child was revealed:

HRH Princess Madeleine and Mr Christopher O’Neill have had a daughter

On Friday the 9th March at 00.41, Princess Madeleine gave birth to a daughter at Danderyd Hospital in Stockholm.

Weight: 3465 gram
Length: 50 cm

Mr O’Neill was present at Danderyd Hospital throughout the birth.

"We are thrilled about the new addition to our family. Leonore and Nicolas are looking very much forward to finally meeting their new little sister," says Mr O’Neill.

Salutes of 21 shots were fired at noon on the occasion of the birth . The parents returned home with their new daughter later the same day.

The newborn princess is the seventh grandchild of King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia. The baby has entered the line of succession to the Swedish throne as no. 10. The name and title will be announced in a Council of State to be held on Monday 12 March at 11:15. A Te Deum to mark the birth of the princess will take place the same day at 12:15.

It is more or less impossible to predict what name Princess Madeleine and her husband has decided on. Neither Leonore or Nicolas were traditional names in Swedish royal history. But maybe the couple will surprise us with Martha or Eugenie this time?

Sweden: Prince Gabriel's christening date set

The Swedish Royal Court announced today that the christening of Prince Gabriel, second son of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, will take place in the Royal Chapel at Drottningholm Palace on Friday 1 December 2017.

Prince Gabriel was born on 31 August 2017 at Danderyd Hospital. His name and title was announced on 4 September 2017. Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel's elder brother, b. 19 April 2016, was also christened in the Drottningholm Palace Chapel (9 September 2016).

Princess Madeleine and Chris O'Neills children, Princess Leonore, b. 20 February 2014, and Prince Nicolas, b. 15 June 2015, were christened at Drottningholm on 8 June 2014 and 11 October 2015 respectively.

Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel's children, Princess Estelle, b. 23 February 2012, and Prince Oscar, b. 2 March 2016, were on the other hand christened in the Royal Chapel at the Royal Palace in Stockholm. Princess Estelle's christening took place on 22 May 2012, while Prince Oscar's christening took place on 27 May 2016.

Sweden: HRH Prince Gabriel Carl Walther, Duke of Dalarna

In the Council of State held at Stockholm Palace today it was announced (*) that Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia's son, who was born on Thursday 31 July 2017, had received the name Gabriel Carl Walther. It was also announced his first given name Gabriel was to be his call name. He had also received the title Duke of Dalarna.

When I commented on the name possibilities on Thursday, I said that everything was possible. That was why I argued, with my tongue in cheek, that Alfred was a good alternative for the newborn prince. It would go well together with his brother Alexander's name  as well. I was certain, however, that Folke would be one of the names, as the three earlier princes of the present generation – Nicolas (Paul Gustaf), Oscar (Carl Olof) and Alexander (Erik Hubertus Bertil) – all had got one of their names from their grandfather King Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus. But I was wrong on that as well.

In the end no-one had guessed Gabriel for the baby prince's call name. No members of the Bernadotte family have the name Gabriel. But in the European Royal Family we have Prince Gabriel of Belgium – second child of King Philippe – and Prince Gabriel of Nassau, eldest son of Prince Louis. So in other words not a tradtional Swedish royal name, but something the parents opted out of personal preference. They might have felt that as Prince Gabriel was far down in the line of succession, they were less bound by tradition. Then again, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel were not so committed to royal traditions when they named their first child Estelle... Prime minister Stefan Löfven said that the prince «without any doubt was a little Gabriel», whatever he meant by that.

Gabriel is a common name in Sweden, but not among the most popular names. According to Statistiscs Sweden, 341 boys received the name Gabriel last year, which resulted in a 42nd place. All in all 17 709 men in Sweden have the name Gabriel, while 10 297 men has Gabriel as their call name.

It should be added that there have been a few surprises earlier as well. Just think about Prince Sigvard and Prince Lennart. The name Gabriel, even though it is not a traditional Swedish royal name, will work well, and it goes well together with Alexander too, I think.

The second name Carl is of course a very popular royal name in Swedish history. It is part of the current king's name, and is also the second name of Prince Gabriel's first cousin Prince Oscar. The third name Walther obviously comes from Queen Silvia's father Walther Sommerlath (1901–1990). One of her brothers also has the name Walther.

Many had guessed that Prince Gabriel would receive the ducal title of Dalarna, because his mother Princess Sofia grew up there. Then again, so did many before Prince Alexander's title was announced. As Trond Norén Isaksen pointed out in his blog article today, it was actually «the first time that such personal connections are taken into consideration for the choice of dukedom». Isaksen wrote, by the way, an excellent article on Swedish Royal Dukedoms in Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 2, 2016.

Prince Gabriel is the third member of the Bernadotte dynasty to receive the title Duke of Dalarna. Previous dukes of Dalarna were Prince August (1831–1873) and Prince Carl Johan (1916–2012) until he lost his titles in 1946.

Following the birth of Prince Gabriel, the line of succession to the Swedish throne is as follows:

1. Crown Princess Victoria (1977)
2. Princess Estelle (2012)
3. Prince Oscar (2016)
4. Prince Carl Philip (1979)
5. Prince Alexander (2016) 
6. Prince Gabriel (2017)
7. Princess Madeleine (1982)
8. Princess Leonore (2014)
9. Prince Nicolas (2015)

(*) English version of the announcement.

Updated on Tuesday 5 September 2017 at 09.30 (subject title standardization).

Sweden: Princess Madeleine and Christopher O'Neill to become parents for the third time

The Swedish Royal Court announced today that Princess Madeleine and her husband Christopher O'Neill are expecting their third child in March 2018:

HRH Princess Madeleine and Mr Christopher O'Neill are expecting a child

HRH Princess Madeleine and Mr. Christopher O'Neill are delighted to announce that The Princess is expecting their third child.

The Princess is feeling well and the birth is expected to take place in March 2018.

The couple's first child, Princess Leonore, was born in New York City on 20 February 2014. The second child, Prince Nicolas, was born on 15 June 2015.

Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia are expected to become parents again for the second time in September, which means that the March child will become King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia's seventh grandchild.

In other words, the Swedish royal house is blessed with many princes and princesses. The king has decided that all his grandchildren will receive the title of Prince or Princess as well as a ducal title. In the next generation I expect that the royal titles will be reserved for the grandchildren of Crown Princess Victoria.

Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld (1934–2017)

Baron (Friherre) Niclas Silfverschiöld, husband of the Swedish Princess Désirée, died today, 82 years old, the Swedish Royal Court has announced.

Friherre Niclas Silfverschiöld har avlidit

Tisdagen den 11 april 2017 avled friherre Niclas Silfverschiöld, make till H.M. Konungens syster Prinsessan Désirée, friherrinna Silfverschiöld.

Med anledning av friherre Niclas Silfverschiölds bortgång gör Kungen följande uttalande:

– Jag och min familj har med stor sorg tagit emot beskedet att friherre Niclas Silfverschiöld, Prinsessan Désirées make, har gått ur tiden. Våra tankar går till Prinsessan Désirée med familj.

Friherre Niclas Silfverschiöld blev 82 år.

In translation:

Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld has died

Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld, husband of HM The King's sister Princess Désirée, Baroness Silfverschiöld, has died.

In connection with the death of Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld's death the King has made the following statement:

– My family and I have with great sorrow received the news that Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld, Princess Désirée's husband, has passed away. Our thoughts are with Princess Désirée and her family.

Baron Niclas Silfverschiöld was 82 years old.

Baron Niclas Silfverschïold, whose full name was Nils August Otto Carl Niklas* Silfverschïold, was born at Gåsevadholm on 31 May 1934 as the son of Baron Carl-Otto Silfverschiöld (1899–1955) and Baroness Madelaine Silfverschiöld, née Bennich (1906–1995). He married Princess Désiree, third daughter of Prince Gustaf Adolf  of Sweden (1906–1947) and Princess Sibylla of Sweden, née Princess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1908–1972), in Storkyrkan (The Great Church/Church of St. Nicholas) in Stockholm on 5 June 1964. The couple had 3 children (Carl, Christina and Hélène) and four grandchildren.

Niclas and Désirée lived at Koberg Castle at Sollebrunn in the municipality of Trollhättan. Both Koberg Castle and the other Silfverschiöld family-owned castle, Gåsevadholm, are entailed property (fideikommis), the latter have been in the family since 1818.

At the time of death, Baron Niclas was listed as either chairman or member of the board of three limited companies – Koberg Förvaltning AB, Gåsevadholms Fideikommiss AB and Borgudden Vind AB.

According to Ratsit.se, both Koberg Förvaltning AB («Koberg Management Ltd.») and Gåsevadholms Fideikommiss AB are registered as businesses in agriculture and forest management as well as capital and property management. Borgudden Vind AB, which is a daughter company of Gåsevadholms Fideikommis AB, is an energy production company (wind turbine company).

*While the Swedish Royal Court and most genealogies spell his name Niclas with a c, he is in the Public Register listed with the spelling Niklas with a k, cf. Ratsit.se.

Updated on Wednesday 12 April 2017 at 00.05 (link added, ownership to Gåsevadholm amplified).

Funeral service for Gunnila Bernadotte, Countess of Wisborg

The funeral service for Gunnila Bernadotte, Countess of Wisborg, who died on 12 September 2016, 93 years old, took place at the Palace Church in Stockholm today. As previously told it was a private ceremony for the closest family members and friends and thus with no media coverage inside the church.

Gunnila Bernadotte was the second wife of Carl Johan, Count of Wisborg, an uncle of King Carl Gustaf.

The king, Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Daniel, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia represented the royal house. According to Expressen, also the King's sister, Princess Christina Mrs. Magnuson, and her husband Tord Magnuson, were present, in addition to among others Princess Benedikte of Denmark.

The service was officiated by Lars-Göran Lönnermark, Bishop Emeritus and head predicate and Michael Bjerkhagen, pastor of the Royal Court Parish.

After the service the coffin was taken to the Royal Burial Ground at Haga outside Stockholm, where Count Carl Johan is also buried. For a couple of photos from the church service, go here.

According to the death announcement, which was published in among others Svenska Dagbladet and Helsingborgs Dagblad on 22 September, there will be a memorial gathering at Norrvikens Trädgård in Båstad on 6 October 2016.

Both the death announcement as well as Expressen earlier today listed Bärbo (i.e. Tistad Castle) as Countess Gunnila's place of birth. This contradicts the information from the church books of both Bärbo and Engelbrekt, which said she was born in Stockholm, something I discussed earlier this month. The churchbooks are much closer to the event, so for the time being I think Stockholm is the most likely place of birth, but I would still like to find an independent source, like for instance a midwife report, to get the question settled once and for all.

Expressen also repeats the claim that Gunnila Bernadotte in her first marriage with Carl-Herman Bussler had 3 children, while they in fact had four. Their second daughter Catharina was born on 21 July 1946 and died shortly after on 8 August.

The last interview the weekly magazine Svensk Damtidning made with Gunnila Bernadotte took place in 2014. The interview was republished at its website today. In the interview she told among others about her life after the death of her husband, her new apartment in Båstad and her five grandchildren.

Updated on Thursday 29 September 2016 at 9.55 p.m. (photo link added), last time on Sunday 23 April 2017 at 14.15 (minor typo corrected).