King Carl XVI Gustaf makes history as he becomes Sweden’s longest-reigning monarch on Thursday, 26 April 2018.
The Swedish King, who turns 72 on Monday, 30 April, has reigned for 44 years and 223 days, overtaking Magnus IV Ericsson who reigned from 8 July 1319 to 15 February 1364.
Magnus Eriksson was also King of Norway from 1319 to 1343 and King of Skåne from 1332 to 1360.
He overtook his great-grandfather Gustaf V’s record of 43 years last year.
However, King Carl Gustaf won’t be the oldest-reigning monarch, as his great-grandfather died ten weeks before his 91st birthday.
King Carl Gustaf celebrated his Ruby Jubilee (40th Anniversary) in 2013 with major celebrations in Sweden.
He and Queen Silvia celebrated their 40th Wedding Anniversary on 19 June 2016.
King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia made a State Visit to Australia in 2005 where they were received with full military honours when they arrived at Canberra Airport.
Australian Prime Minister John Howard hosted a lunch in the Royal Couple’s honour, they visited the Australian War Memorial, including the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, met with Swedish expats and attended a gala dinner hosted by Governor-General Michael Jeffery and his wife Marlene.
King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia were at a Round Table discussion about climate change at Australian National University (ANU) the following day, a presentation of the World Scout Foundation and a reception at the Swedish Embassy.
They met local Swedish entrepreneurs in Sydney that afternoon and attended a dinner, hosted by Governor Marie Bashir, at Government House, Sydney.
King Carl Gustaf, as Honorary Chairman of the World Scout Foundation, attended the 69th Baden-Powell Fellowship in Melbourne from 17 to 20 March 2016 where he presented medals to 30 young scouts and celebrated the Centenary of Cub Scouts at Melbourne Zoo.
This year, the Bernadotte dynasty celebrates its bicentenary with a series of events including a symposium earlier this year on 5 February 2018.
Who Was Magnus IV?
Magnus was born in Norway in 1316, the only son of Eric, Duke of Södermanland and King Haakon V of Norway’s daughter Ingeborg, from the House of Bjelbo (or House of Folkung).
He was elected King of Sweden on 8 July 1319 and acclaimed as a hereditary king of Norway (including Iceland and Greenland) when he was only 3 years old.
Magnus Eriksson was crowned king of both Norway and Sweden in Stockholm. However, the Norwegians were not happy as the nobles wanted a separate coronation in Norway so they rebelled.
He married Blanche of Namur, a descendant of Louis VIII of France in 1335. They had two sons, Eric and Haakon and at least three daughters who died in infancy.
His eldest son became Eric XII of Sweden and the younger Haakon VI of Norway.
