Ebba Wilhelmina Modée (

October 4 Events Pre-1600 *AD 23 – Rebels sack the Chinese capital Chang'an during a peasant rebellion. * 1209 – Otto IV is crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire by Pope Innocent III. * 1302 – The Byzantine–Venetian War comes ...

1775 Events Summary The American Revolutionary War began this year, with the first military engagement on April 19 Battles of Lexington and Concord on the day after Paul Revere's ride. The Second Continental Congress took various steps tow ...

Karlskrona Karlskrona (, , ) is a locality and the seat of Karlskrona Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden with a population of 66,675 in 2018. It is also the capital of Blekinge County. Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to ...

Blekinge County Blekinge County () is a county or '' län'' in the south of Sweden. It borders the Counties of Skåne Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden ...

Kingdom of Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic country by both area ...

–

March 23 Events Pre-1600 * 1400 – The Trần dynasty of Vietnam is deposed, after one hundred and seventy-five years of rule, by Hồ Quý Ly, a court official. * 1540 – Waltham Abbey is surrendered to King Henry VIII of England; the las ...

1840 Events January–March * January 3 – One of the predecessor papers of the ''Herald Sun'' of Melbourne, Australia, ''The Port Phillip Herald'', is founded. * January 10 – Uniform Penny Post is introduced in the United Kingdom. * Janu ...

, Eksjö,

Jönköping County Jönköping County () is a county or '' län'' in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Halland, Västra Götaland, Östergötland, Kalmar and Kronoberg. The total county population was 356,291 inhabitants in September 2017. The capita ...

), was a Swedish noblewoman and courtier, a love interest and potential wife of King

Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden Gustav IV Adolf or Gustav IV Adolph (1 November 1778 – 7 February 1837) was List of Swedish monarchs, King of Sweden from 1792 until he Coup of 1809, was deposed in a coup in 1809. He was also the last Swedish monarch to be the ruler of Fin ...

. She was the daughter of

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Carl Wilhelm Modée (1735–1798), governor of

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

and Ebba Ulrika Sparre af Söfdeborg (1739–1815), who was the daughter of Admiral

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Erik Arvid Sparre af Söfdeborg (1707–1775). Modée was a

maid of honor Bridesmaids are members of the bride's party at some Western traditional wedding ceremonies. A bridesmaid is typically a young woman and often the bride's close friend or relative. She attends to the bride on the day of a wedding or marriage ce ...

to Duchess Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotte (born a princess of

Holstein-Gottorp Holstein-Gottorp () is the historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, also known as Ducal Holstein, that were ruled by the dukes of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp, a side ...

), wife of the future

Charles XIII Charles XIII or Carl XIII (; 7 October 1748 – 5 February 1818) was King of Sweden from 1809 and King of Norway from 1814 to his death. He was the second son (and younger brother to King Gustav III) of King Adolf Frederick of Sweden and Louisa ...

, between 1794 and 1801, and accompanied her on her trip to Germany and Austria in 1798–1799. In 1795, despite his recent engagement to Duchess Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Gustav IV Adolf fell in love with Modée. He promised her to call off his engagement,

abdicate Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other soci ...

, and elope with Modée to

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

. He already had a document of abdication written when he became attracted to another courtier, Countess Hedda Piper. Several courtly and political factions worked to prevent the King's marriage to a Swedish woman in favour of a marital alliance with a foreign power. Modée herself declined his proposal, and encouraged him to go to

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

in 1796 to be betrothed to Grand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna. Althouogh the Russian alliance failed, the following year, the King married

Frederica of Baden Frederica of Baden (Frederica Dorothea Wilhelmina; 12 March 1781 – 25 September 1826) was List of Swedish royal consorts, Queen of Sweden from 1797 to 1809 as the Queen consort, consort of King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden, Gustav IV Adolf. Life ...

. In 1801, Modée married a fellow courtier, General Lieutenant Count Axel Otto Mörner af Morlanda (1774–1852), with whom she had been in love for a long time. They had four children. As they were both poor, Duchess Hedwig Elizabeth Charlotte provided them with a place to live. She was also appointed a '' statsfru''.

References

* Hedvig Elisabet Charlotta; Klercker Cecilia af (1936). Hedvig Elisabeth Charlottas dagbok. 7, 1800-1806. Stockholm: Norstedt. Libris 469167 S. 138, 198, 613. * Hedvig Elisabet Charlotta; Klercker Cecilia af (1942). Hedvig Elisabeth Charlottas dagbok. 9, 1812-1817. Stockholm: Norstedt. Libris 8207718 S. 711-712 * Ebba Wilhelmina Modée i Wilhelmina Stålberg, Anteckningar om svenska qvinnor (1864) {{DEFAULTSORT:Modee, Ebba 1775 births 1840 deaths Swedish ladies-in-waiting Swedish nobility People from Karlskrona