Founder
by wjw on August 7, 2017
Walking around Stockholm, I saw this statue, which I believe is that of Jean-Charles Bernadotte, the Gascon sergeant who rose to the rank of general during the French Revolution, and who then married Napoleon’s old girlfriend Desiree and went on to become King Karl XIV Johan of Sweden, founder of the present line of Swedish kings.
He is the only monarch known to have borne a “Death to Kings” tattoo.
I also noticed the statue is being crated up, as if it’s being shuttled out of sight somewhere.
If the Swedes have grown tired of the Bernadottes, want to shift them offstage, and need a new head of state, I am pleased to offer myself. I have no embarrassing tattoos, though I will adopt a slightly older style.
It’s been crated up because this is a temporary place while the area around the lock at the south end of this island (“Slussen”) is completely re-done. And probably it’ll be cleaned before it gets a new permanent place.
Urban, do you live in Stockholm? We should have got together!
Too late now, unfortunately, as I’m already in Helsinki.
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