Royal mottos of Swedish monarchs
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The Royal mottos or Valspråk of the Swedish monarchs has been a tradition since first used by Gustav I of Sweden, in the early 16th century. Every regent of Sweden since has had used their own motto during their periods of reign. The tradition of using a royal motto in other monarchies is that it most often stays the same within one dynasty, and here the Swedish tradition is different. In this respect they do however serve all the traditional purposes of a national or royal motto. One example is the imprint on all one Krona coins, the currency of Sweden.
Gustav III was the first king to have his motto only in Swedish. Up until Adolf Frederick, they had all been in Latin and Swedish (or, as in the case of Gustav II Adolf, in German). Due to the dissolution of the Sweden-Norway Union in 1905, Oscar II had to change his motto.
| Regent | Reign | Royal motto (in Swedish) | English translation |
|---|---|---|---|
|
The House of Vasa |
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| Gustav Vasa | 1521-1560 | All makt är av Gud | All power is of God |
| Erik XIV | 1560-1568 | Gud giver åt vem Han vill | God gives to whom He wishes |
| Johan III | 1568-1592 | Gud vår beskyddare | God our protector |
| Sigismund | 1592-1599 | För rätten och folket | For the justice and the people |
| Karl IX | 1599-1611 | Gud min tröst | God my comfort |
| Gustav II Adolf | 1611-1632 | Med Gud och segrande vapen | With God and victorious arms |
| Kristina | 1632-1654 | Visheten är rikets stöd | Wisdom is the realm's support |
|
The House of Pfalz - cadet branch to the House of Wittelsbach |
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| Karl X Gustav | 1654-1660 | I Gud mitt öde - Han skall göra det | In God my destiny - He will do it |
| Karl XI | 1660-1697 | Herren är vorden min beskyddare | The Lord is become [sic] my protector |
| Karl XII | 1697-1718 | Med Guds hjälp | With the help of God |
| Ulrika Eleonora | 1719-1720 | I Gud mitt hopp | In God my hope |
|
The House of Hesse |
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| Fredrik I | 1720-1751 | I Gud mitt hopp | In God my hope |
|
The House of Holstein-Gottorp |
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| Adolf Fredrik | 1751-1771 | Statens välfärd, min välfärd | The welfare of the state, my welfare |
| Gustav III | 1771-1792 | Fäderneslandet | The fatherland |
| Gustav IV Adolf | 1792-1809 | Gud och folket | God and the people |
| Karl XIII | 1809-1818 | Folkets väl min högsta lag | The welfare of the people my highest law 1 |
|
The House of Bernadotte |
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| Karl XIV Johan | 1818-1844 | Folkets kärlek min belöning | The love of the people my reward |
| Oskar I | 1844-1859 | Rätt och sanning | Right and truth |
| Karl XV | 1859-1872 | Land skall med lag byggas | By law the land shall be built |
| Oskar II | 1872-1905 | Brödrafolkens väl | The welfare of the brother peoples |
| 1905-1907 | Sveriges väl | The welfare of the Swedish people | |
| Gustaf V | 1907-1950 | Med folket för fosterlandet | With the people for the Fatherland |
| Gustaf VI Adolf | 1950-1973 | Plikten framför allt | Duty above all |
| Carl XVI Gustaf | 1973-present | För Sverige - I tiden | For Sweden - With the Times |
See also: List of Swedish monarchs
Note: (1) Compare with the motto of the U.S. state of Missouri (1821): "Let the welfare of the people be the supreme law". Originally from Cicero's De Legibus, Book III, Part III, Sub. VIII.
