GUSTAVUS IV., the son and successor of Gustavus III., was h. Nov. 1, 1778, pro claimed king Mar. 29, 179•, and died in 1837. His uncle, duke of Sudermania, acted as regent during his minority. The young king, on his accession to power. at once gave evidence of the high estimate at which lie held the kingly power, and his first act was to join the third .coalition against France. contrary to the wishes of his people. Hatred of Napoleon soon, however, became the guiding influence of his life. The result of his decided line of policy led to the occupation of Swedish Pomerania by French troops under marshal Brune, who took Stralsund and Riga from the Swedes in 1807, and thus deprived them of the last of their German possessions. The king opened all his ports to English vessels, and thereby involved himself in a war with Russia. The scene of these hostilities was Finland, which the Swedes were obliged to give up to Russia at the close of 1308. Norway became next the scene of war, the Swedes being assisted by an English subsidy of 10,000 men, who, however, speedily returned to England when they found that Gustavus intended to send them to Finland. The unfortunate war with Russia, which had been excited entirely through the folly of the king, gave rise to so much discontent in Sweden, that a conspiracy was set on foot by several oflicers and nobles, the object of which was to dethrone the unpopular monarch. The conspirators
took forcible possession of the palace at Stockholm, and placed him under arrest; and after an ineffectual attempt at escape, he consented to abdicate the throne, Mar. 29, 1809. After wandering for a time from place to place, he finally settled at St. Gall, where he died, forgotten and in poverty, in 1837. His uncle, the duke of Sudermania. after acting as regent of the kingdom, was finally proclaimed king, under the title of Charles XIII., at the diet which met in May, 1809. By the consent of the diet, Charles XIV. (Bernadotte). paid over the value of the private estates of the family of Vasa for the benefit of Gustavus and his children ; but as the dethroned king refused to receive ally of this money directly, or to accept the pension which the Swedish government had settled upon him, he was often in pecuniary difficulties, from which he was clandes tinely relieved by his divorced queen and children, who contrived, without his knowl edge, to supply his wants.