Aristocratic republicanism and the hate of sovereignty in 18th-century Sweden

Abstract

This article is a conceptual analysis of perceptions of the Swedish regime during the Age of Liberty (1719-1772) in comparison with European 18th-century political thought, particularly with Montesquieu's views on monarchy and republics. It focuses particularly on the concepts of 'sovereignty', 'liberty' and 'fatherland' and their uses in Swedish reflections on the regime and its future. It shows the presence of classical republican conceptions of politics and state and demonstrates how aristocratic republicanism itself contributed to the questioning of a de facto aristocratic regime. © 2007 Taylor & Francis.