Sweden Nobility

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Sweden

Nobility

Kings rewarded a person who performed a heroic deed, had a notable achievement, or held a prominent position in government by granting them a noble title. Because Sweden limited the growth of the noble class, only about two percent of Sweden's population were noblemen. There was not much division between upper and lower nobility.

Most noblemen did not emigrate, and few disowned family members for unacceptable behavior. Thus, most traditions of a noble ancestor being "erased" or "eliminated" from all records are unfounded.

If your research in the original records of Sweden indicates that your ancestor was a nobleman, there are additional records that will be helpful. Although some original records (such as the grant of nobility) still exist, you can adequately accomplish most nobility research in secondary sources. These include published or manuscript genealogies of noble families. Some important sources for Swedish nobility research are:

Sveriges ridderskap och adelskalender (Genealogy of the Swedish Nobility). Stockholm, Sweden: Bonniers, 1854. FS Library book 948.5 D55s See Sveriges Ridderskaps och Adels Kalender for more information.

Svenska Adelns Ättartaflor (Genealogy of the Nobility of Sweden), Johan Gabriel Anrep. Stockholm: Norstedt, 1858-1864. FS Library book 948.5 D5a, film 1124532, DGS 7960234.

Den introducerade Svenska adelns ättartavlor: med tillägg och rättelser (Genealogy of the Introduced Nobility of Sweden), Gustaf Elgenstierna. Stockholm, Sweden: P.A. Norstedt & Söners Förlag, 1925-1936. FS Library book 948.5 D5e, vol. 1-3, film 1440193 DGS 9157302, vol. 4-6, film 1440194, DGS 9157303, vol. 7-9, film 1440195, DGS 9157304; Project Runeberg

Svensk adelskalender (Genealogy of Swedish Nobility), Karl Karlsson Leijonhufvud. Stockholm, Sweden: P.A. Norstedt, 1899-1906. FS Library book 948.5 D22ak; v. 1-4 film 1440245, DGS 9149870, v. 5-8 film 1440246, DGS 9149871

The FamilySearch Library has many records of Swedish noble families. These records are listed in the catalog under:

SWEDEN - NOBILITY

SWEDEN, [COUNTY] - NOBILITY

SWEDEN, [COUNTY], [CITY] - NOBILITY

See also Sweden Heraldry and Sweden Genealogy.

Biographical Sources

• Register of Swedish nobility from 1755 to 1782, and 1755-1794 with genealogical notes

Websites

• Riddarhuset (The House of Nobility)

*Minerva Database (Public beta as of March 2025)

• Swedish Nobility (Wikipedia)
• The Swedish Aristocracy at oocities.org - archived page, 28 September 2023

Link to an archived website. Page load time may be slow.