Count Hans Henric von Essen (26 September 1755 – 28 June 1824) was a Swedish officer, courtier and statesman.

Biography

Hans Henric von Essen was born at Kavlås Castle in

Tidaholm Municipality Tidaholm Municipality () is a municipalities of Sweden, municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the stad (Sweden), city of Tidaholm. The municipality is located on the banks of the river Tidan (river), T ...

Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County () is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous of Sweden's counties and it comprises 49 municipalities (''kommuner''). Its population of 1,616,000 amounts to 17% of S ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, 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 count ...

. He was a member of the

Essen family The Essen family or von Essen is the name of a Baltic nobility, Baltic German noble family which later became part of the Swedish nobility, Swedish and Russian nobility. History The first known ancestor was Thomas von Essen (d. 1615–1627) who w ...

. He was educated at

Uppsala University Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...

. He entered the army, becoming a

cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. There is also a soprano cor ...

at age 18. He accompanied

Gustav III Gustav III (29 March 1792), also called ''Gustavus III'', was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of King Adolf Frederick and Queen Louisa Ulrika of Sweden. Gustav was a vocal opponent of what he saw ...

in his travels and campaigns. He accompanied Gustav III at the 1792 masquerade ball at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

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 ...

on 16 March 1792, where the king was shot and mortally injured. Hans Henrik von Essen was credited with immediately ordering the doors to the ballroom to be locked, in order not to let the assassin getaway. In 1788, Hans Henric von Essen was the center of a scandal at the royal court. He had for about ten years been involved in a relationship with the famous

lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...

Augusta von Fersen. In 1788, however, he proposed to Charlotta Eleonora De Geer (1771-1791) and was accepted. His proposal was met with great dislike within the royal court because of sympathy with the popular Augusta von Fersen, and he was challenged to a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

by captain count Adolph Ribbing. Ribbing had also proposed to De Geer but had been declined by her father, which he refused to accept as he believed he had reasons to think that De Geer preferred him and that Essen had proposed because of economic reasons, as De Geer was very wealthy, and as von Essen's proposal and marriage plans were commonly disliked within the court. The duel took place in the royal riding house in the presence of several officers and led to the defeat of von Essen, who was slightly injured. The duel was regarded as a scandal and a crime against the King. Hans Henrik von Essen was appointed Colonel in 1787, Major General in 1795, and

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

in 1811. He served as the

Governor of Stockholm The Governor of Stockholm () was the head of the Office of the Governor of Stockholm (, ÖÄ), and as such he was the highest Swedish State official overseeing the affairs in the Stad (Sweden), City of Stockholm between 1634 and 1967. The Govern ...

from 1795 to 1797 and as the

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...

from 1800 to 1809. Upon the revolution of 1809, he received the title of count and a place in the Council of State. In 1810 he was sent as Ambassador to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

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 ...

, and his negotiations with Napoleon's ministers restored Pomerania to Sweden. In 1814, Hans Henrik von Essen served as the commander of the Swedish military forces at the border with Norway. By the

Treaty of Kiel The Treaty of Kiel () or Peace of Kiel ( Swedish and or ') was concluded between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Kingdom of Sweden on one side and the Kingdoms of Denmark and Norway on the other side on 14 January 1814 ...

, the

King of Denmark The monarchy of Denmark is a constitutional political system, institution and a historic office of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Kingdom includes Denmark proper and the autonomous administrative division, autonomous territories of the Faroe Is ...

had to cede Norway to the

King of Sweden The monarchy of Sweden is centred on the monarchical head of state of Sweden,See the #IOG, Instrument of Government, Chapter 1, Article 5. by law a constitutional monarchy, constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system.Parl ...

, due to the alliance of Denmark-Norway with

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

during the later phases of the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

. This treaty was however not accepted by the

Norwegians Norwegians () are an ethnic group and nation native to Norway, where they form the vast majority of the population. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegians are descended from the Norsemen, Norse of the Early ...

. The Norwegian-Swedish War of 1814 was fought in the summer of 1814. Subsequently, the

Convention of Moss The Convention of Moss (''Mossekonvensjonen'') was a ceasefire agreement signed on 14 August 1814 between the King of Sweden and the Norwegian government. It followed the Swedish-Norwegian War due to Norway's claim to sovereignty. It also beca ...

was signed resulting in the

Union between Sweden and Norway Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway (; ), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate kingdoms of Sweden and Norway under a common monarch and common foreign pol ...

. Hans Henrik von Essen served as the Governor-general of Norway until he was succeeded by Count

Carl Carlsson Mörner Carl Carlsson Mörner (1 December 1755 in Jönköping – 24 June 1821 in Stockholm) was a Swedish nobleman, officer, and politician. After rising through the ranks after being accepted as a cadet in 1771, he was made field marshal in 181 ...

during 1816.

References

Essen, Hans Henrik von
in ''Nordisk familjebok'' .

in ''Personhistorisk tidskrift'' .

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Essen, Hans Henric Von 1755 births Swedish duellists 1824 deaths People from Tidaholm Municipality Field marshals of Sweden Governors-general of Sweden Governors-general of Norway Swedish Pomerania Swedish counts 19th-century Swedish politicians Swedish people of German descent Gotland Swedish military commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Marshals of the Realm 19th-century Swedish military personnel Swedish courtiers Essen family

Biography

See also

References

Notes