Elsa Beata Bunge
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Elsa Beata Bunge, née Wrede (1734–1819) was a Swedish botanist and writer.
She was the daughter of statesman and nobleman, Fabian Wrede. In 1761, she married the statesman Count Sven Bunge. She was an enthusiastic amateur botanist and had large greenhouses set up at her manor Beateberga; the name of the estate means "The Mountain of Beata". She became well known as a botanist and wrote the botanical work Om vinrankors beskaffenhet efter sjelfva naturens anvisningar ("About the nature of vine grapes by direction from nature itself") with tables (1806), the work for which she was recognised as a botanist.
As a person, Countess Bunge aroused attention because of her way of dressing as a man, with the exception of a skirt. During the reign of Gustav III of Sweden, the monarch noticed a peculiarly dressed woman in the Royal Swedish Opera and enquired who she was. Bunge replied, "Tell His Majesty that I am the daughter of statesman Fabian Wrede and married to statesman Sven Bunge."
