1938 – 80th birthday of King Gustav V

After having celebrated his last anniversaries relatively modestly it was decided that the 80th birthday of King Gustav V of Sweden should be celebrated in grand style. There would be a three day celebration with a glittering Amaranther Ball ending the first day. Invitations had been sent out to all the neighbouring countries and many members of the Danish and Norwegian Royal Families would attend. The most senior guests were the Kings of both Denmark and Norway and also the President of Finland had accepted the invitation. They would only arrive on the second day of the celebrations though which ended with a magnificent banquet and a musical soirée at the Palace. But even at the Amaranther Ball many foreign Royals would be present as they began arriving on the first day. As mentioned above it was mainly members from the Scandinavian Royal Families who attended but due to the close family ties there were also representatives from the Grand Ducal Family of Baden and the Princely Family of Waldeck and Pyrmont. King Gustav’s wife had been born a Princess of Baden and the Waldeck and Pyrmont family were cousins on his mother’s side (his mother and the grandmother of the then head of the Waldeck and Pyrmont family had been sisters). The Grand Ducal Family of Baden was represented by the last Grand Duchess, Hilda (now widowed). Accompanying her to the festivities were the Margrave of Baden, Berthold, the then head of the Grand Ducal Family, and his wife the Margravine of Baden Theodora. The Hereditary Prince (and titular Prince) of Waldeck and Pyrmont was represented by his younger brother and sister-in-law Prince Maximilian and Princess Gustava.

Day 1 – 14.09.1938

Arrivals

The very first of the Scandinavian Royal guests to arrive on 14th June was Crown Princess Märtha of Norway. Being the daughter of Prince Carl and Princess Ingeborg the Norwegian Crown Princess had very close ties to the Swedish Royal Family. The late King of Sweden, Oscar II, was her grandfather and thus the King now celebrating his 80th birthday was her uncle. She had travelled on the night train from Oslo in the company of Mrs Ødegaard and arrived at the central railways station in Stockholm in the early morning hours. At the station to welcome her were the Crown Princely couple and other members of the Swedish Royal Family as well as members of the Royal Household.

Next to arrive at the railways station was the Crown Prince of Denmark. He was accompanied by several of his uncles and aunts; Princess Thyra, Prince Gustav, Prince Harald and the latter’s wife Princess Helena. His entourage included the Countess Reventlow and Captain Lieutenant Weilbach. The Crown Prince was met at the station by his wife Crown Princess Ingrid, who was already in Sweden, as well as by the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Sweden, the Crown Princess of Norway and other members of the Swedish Royal Family.

The 79 year old Prince Valdemar of Denmark had also accepted the invitation. He would himself celebrate his 80th birthday a few months later, albeit in a much more modest way. Unlike the Crown Prince he had chosen a more modern form of transport and thus arrived by air in the company of his son Prince Axel and his aide-de-camp Vice-Admiral Amdrup. They landed at the new Bromma Airport which had been inaugurated by King Gustav only two years earlier. They were met by Prince Carl and Princess Ingeborg, Princess Margaretha, Prince Wilhelm, Prince and Princess Carl Bernadotte, the Danish Minister to Sweden and the Danish Legation Counsellor.

Amaranther Ball

In the evening a great number of people had gathered outside the Grand Hotel Royal. Here they eagerly awaited the arrival of those attending the Amaranther Ball which promised to be especially glittering on this occasion due to the many Royal guests being present.

The guests began to arrive around eight o’clock and they all gathered in various reception rooms of the hotel. One room had been reserved for members of the diplomatic corps, many of which wore their splendid gold or silver embroidered diplomatic uniforms. The Egyptian emissary and his suite even donned their distinctive red fez. At another gathering point in the hotel the new members to be initiated into the Order assembled with their supporters. Amongst them was Prince Carl Johan, the youngest son of the Swedish Crown Prince. He was to be presented to the Order by his relative Mrs Dagmar von Arbin (a daughter of Count Carl Bernadotte). She was seen dressed in a lovely white evening gown with pale blue trimmings while the Prince looked very smart in his blue uniform of a Second Lieutenant in the Life Regiment of Horse.

It had been announced that the Royal guests would not arrive until nine o’clock. As this moment then drew closer the excitement grew, both amongst the people in the crowd gathered outside and those now gathered inside the hotel. And they were not disappointed as the Royal cars began arriving as promised. The guest of honour himself arrived in the company of the Grand Duchess Dowager of Baden. He wore his dress uniform of a General in the Swedish Army. Across his chest the King was seen wearing a pale Sash which could resemble the pale blue Sash of the Order of the Seraphim. However, it is more likely that he wore a Sash connected to the Amaranther Order. On the other hand, pinned to his tunic he definitely wore the Breast Star of the Order of the Seraphim as well as the Breast Stars of the Danish Order of the Elephant and that of the Order of Fidelity of Baden. Around his neck he wore the badge of the Order of Charles XIII suspended in a red ribbon and pinned to the tunic the same Order’s red Breast Star / Cross.

Once all the Royal guests had arrived and taken their seats the ceremony began in earnest with the Grand Master of the Order Count Adam Lewenhaupt and the Order’s Prefect (“Ordningsman”) Baron (“Friherre”) Wilhelm von Essen ceremoniously reminding everybody of the noble purpose of the Order in the way of a dialogue between the two. Then suddenly two thumps of the Master of Ceremonies’ staff against the floor were heard followed by his announcement of the debutantes’ arrival. He himself led the procession escorting the Mistress of Ceremonies the Baroness (“Friherrina”) Ingeborg af Ugglas. They were followed by the Deputy Master of Ceremonies Captain Richard Montgomery who was escorting two of the young debutantes. The young Prince Carl Johan was next before the debutantes from the diplomatic corps and, making up the rear of the procession, the rest of the debutantes walked in. About 200 in total made up the procession. According to protocol, as they filed by the Royal seats, they should have made their bows or curtsies to His Majesty. However, in order to speed up the proceedings the King had let it been known that the bowing and curtsying was not necessary.

His Majesty was flanked on the first row by the Grand Duchess Dowager of Baden on his right hand side and the Crown Princess of Norway on his left. Sitting to the right of the Grand Duchess was first Crown Princess Louise then Crown Princess Ingrid followed by the Margravine of Baden, Princess Helena of Denmark, Princess Thyra of Denmark, Princess Gustava of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Princess Ingeborg and then Princess Margaretha of Denmark.

The other Royal gentlemen in their smart uniforms were seated on the 2nd row.

All the Royal ladies wore beautiful evening gowns and many of their glittering jewels:

Grand Duchess Hilda

Diamond Floral tiara

Crown Princess Märtha

Diamond Vasa tiara

Crown Princess Louise

Nine Prong Diamond tiara

Crown Princess Ingrid

Star and Pearl tiara

Princess Thyra

Her Sapphire tiara

Princess Helena

Ear of What Diamond tiara

Princess Ingeborg

Turquoiose Star tiara

Princess Margaretha

Princess Marie’s Diamond Swirl tiara

The Margravine of Baden

Diamond tiara

Princess Gustava

Diamond bandeau

When the procession ended the orchestra struck up a waltz and the dancing began. First out on the dance floor were the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Denmark. The dancing continued until half past eleven when a late supper was served. And it was not exactly a light night snack they were offered, but a full three course meal: lobster à la Parisienne for starters then roasted duck followed by ice cream for dessert. This was enjoyed with glasses of Lanson Pêre et Fils champagne and Sherry Palido Ligero. After this invigorating meal the dancing resumed and continued well into the night.

Day 2 – 15.06.1938

Arrival of the Kings of Norway and Denmark

The next morning there was again hectic activity at the central railways station in the Swedish capital. Arriving on the Swedish Royal train, which had been put to their disposal by King Gustav, were the King of Denmark Christian X and his brother the King of Norway Haakon VII. The Norwegian King was accompanied by his only son and heir Crown Prince Olav as well as their entourage which included the Head of the Royal Court Wedel Jarslberg and two of the Royal aides-de-camp; Major Østgaard and Captain Motzfeldt. First the Royal train had picked up the Danish King in Copenhagen who travelled with his aide-de-camp Colonel Dreyer and the Marshal of the Danish Royal Court Carl Julius Engelbrecht Juel. He had been scheduled to be accompanied by his wife Queen Alexandrine, but she had had the misfortune of being bitten by a dog a few days earlier and it was deemed serious enough for her to cancel the journey. On route to Stockholm the Royal train then met with the night train from Oslo carrying King Haakon and Crown Prince Olav. They transferred over to the Royal train and the three Royal gentlemen together with their suites continued onwards to Stockholm together.

Great effort had been made to decorate the central railway station with flags and flowers everywhere. In fact, such was the excitement of the people of Stockholm that the whole capital was decorated with flags and the Swedish colours of blue and yellow were to be seen everywhere. So it was not just the public buildings that had been prepared for the celebrations but shops and private offices too. Photographs of the beloved old King were seen in many shop windows.

Back at the station a guard of honour, complete with a band and all, had been lined up and the red carpet had been laid down. An official welcoming party had gathered which included the Swedish Prime Minister Per Albin Hansson, the Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs Richard Sandler, the Marshal of the Realm Axel Vennersten, the Governor of Stockholm Torsten Nothin, the Danish Minister to Sweden Egnell accompanied by his wife, Danish Legation Counsellor Schröder, the Norwegian Minister to Sweden Wollebæk and Norwegian Legation Counsellor Bull, both accompanied by their wives. Also present were Consul General Söderberg, the Chairman of the Norwegian Society Director Tönseth, the Head of His Majesty’s Military Staff Admiral Count Carl August Ehrensvärd and Marshal of the Royal Court Rudebeck to name a few. King Gustav arrived just before nine o’clock and he was accompanied by a large number of family members and Royal guests.

On the stroke of nine the Royal train arrived at the station and came to a halt at the assigned platform. The Danish King was the first one to alight immediately followed by King Haakon and Crown Prince Olav. They were warmly welcomed by King Gustav and after a short exchange of pleasantries and greetings from the Royal party the two visiting Majesties were presented to the welcoming committee. They then walked through the Royal lounge before boarding the awaiting cars which would take them to the Royal Palace.

The welcoming party had however not completed their task and they now headed straight towards the Skeppsholmen Island where they would receive another of the illustrious guests attending the King’s birthday celebrations. 

Arrival of the President of Finland

Even though he was not a Royal Head of State the President of Finland had still been invited to the Royal celebrations as the highest possible representative from Sweden’s good neighbour to the east. President Kyösti Kallio arrived in the Swedish capital by sea, travelling onboard the flagship of the Finnish Navy; the “Ilmarinen “. The ship and its illustrious passenger had been received with military honours, a 21 gun salute having been fired as it approached the anchoring point.

Sailing out to the ship to welcome the President onboard the ship were Finland’s Minister to Sweden, the Finnish Military Attaché, the Swedish Military Attaché in Finland, the Harbour Master and Major General af Klercker, who had been attached to the Finnish President during his short visit to Sweden. As the President stepped ashore he was met by King Gustav and other members of the Swedish Royal Family who had rushed through the capital to greet him as befitting a foreign Head of State. In addition to most of the welcoming committee who had been present at the central railways station President Kallio was greeted by the Finnish Legation Counsellor Tarjanne, Captain Åkerblom, the Commander of Stockholms’ naval base at Skeppsholmen Captain Halvar Söderbaum.

Luncheon at the Royal Palace

Once the welcoming formalities were over the Royal and Presidential parties proceeded to the Royal Palace where the President – as well as the Kings of Denmark and Norway – would take up residence during the short stay in the Swedish capital. At eleven o’clock King Gustav hosted an early lunch for his esteemed guests. Also at the Palace President Kallio was awarded Sweden’s highest decoration; the Order of the Seraphim while members of his entourage received other Swedish decorations. Thus the Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star was awarded to the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs Holsti and Finland’s Minister to Sweden Paasikivi. The Finnish President reciprocated the King’s generosity by awarding Swedish officials different grades of the Order of the White Rose. The Grand Cross was for instance awarded to Major General af Klercker and also to the King’s Private Secretary Boheman, the First Crown Equerry the Duke d’Otrante and the Cabinet Chamberlains Boström and von Stedingk to name a few.

A visit to the exhibition at Liljevalch’s Art Gallery had been organized where the Royal party was shown historic pieces and a selection of King Gustav’s silver. The Finnish President also managed to attend a reception held for the Finnish community in Sweden at Hasselbacken before tea was served “en familie” at Prince Eugene’s beautiful home Valdemarsudde.  

Gala Dinner, Musical Soirée and Supper

In the evening Crown Prince Gustav Adolph and Crown Princess Louise hosted a dinner, also “en familie”, in their apartments in the Royal Palace. The Royal and Presidential suites were served dinner in adjacent rooms.  

While the Swedish Royal Family in the company of their illustrious guests enjoyed the meal the rest of the about 1.500 attendees who had received an invitation to His Majesty’s musical soirée which would end the second day began to arrive at the Palace. They gathered in the adjoining rooms to the State Room where the concert would take place. There were representatives from the diplomatic corps, from the armed forces, from State offices, Knights if the Order of the Seraphim etc. Many of them were accompanied by their respective spouse, all of them dressed in their best fineries.

When the Crown Prince Couple’s dinner was over the King moved into the Victoria Salon where he greeted the Government and the Seraphim knights and then proceeded to hold a court for the Diplomatic Corps in the Pelar Room. The concert should have started at nine, but due to the time it took for the King to greet all his guests it did not start until ten minutes to ten. The programme was composed of Nordic music entirely; there were pieces by Hugo Alfvén, Edvard Grieg (Norwegian), Fini Henriques (Danish) and Jean Sibelius (Finnish).

At around eleven thirty the concert was over and it was followed by a splendid late supper in the “Vita Havet” Hall. The main table was magnificently decorated with the very best service and silver and beautiful scented cut flowers and lush foliage had been placed in the large silver jardinières distributed in the middle of it. Again, like at the Amaranther Ball, the King was placed between the Grand Duchess Dowager of Baden and the Crown Princess of Norway. Opposite King Gustav sat his son the Crown Prince who had his own daughter the Crown Princess of Denmark sitting to his right.

Smaller tables had also been set around in the spacious room for the Royal and Presidential suites and other high ranking guests while others were served in the Grand Dining Room and King Oscar II’s apartments. And what they were offered was a impressive menu with no less than six desserts:

Menu:

Consommé en gelée Niçoise

Sandwiches

Cotelettes de saumon en Belle-vue 1858

Galantine de volaille aux pistaches

Contrefilet froid Tyrolienne

Mousse de gibier, Roi des chasseurs

Le Parfat glacé Souverain

Mousse glacée Anniversaire

Gateau Kings Cup

Gateau Marquise

Fruits de Saison

Mignardises

As this was a grand gala event the King was wearing his dress uniform of an Admiral in the Swedish Royal Navy. As was still the splendid tradition at the Swedish Royal Court in those days the collars of the most important Orders were worn. So the King wore not just one collar, but the collar of all the Swedish Orders; the Seraphim, the Polar Star, the Vasa and that of the Sword. He also wore the badge of the Order of Charles XIII in a red ribbon around his neck. Pinned to his tunic he wore the Breast Stars of the Order of the Seraphim, the Danish Order of the Elephant, the Baden Order of Fidelity and the Finnish Order of the White Rose. It doesn’t look like he is wearing any of the Norwegian Orders he had.

To see more details on all the different Orders worn by the other guests click here.

The Royal ladies were again wearing rich evening gowns with magnificent jewels:

Grand Duchess Hilda

Grand Duchess Hilda’s Diamond Garland tiara

Pearl choker

Diamond rivière

No earrings

Crown Princess Louise

Tiara from the Leuchtenberg Sapphire parure

Necklace from the Leuchtenberg Sapphire parure

Earrings from the Leuchtenberg Sapphire parure

Sapphire Spray brooch

Portrait of King Gustav V in Diamonds

Crown Princess Märtha

Turquoise Star tiara

Turquoise necklace

Turquoise pending earrings

Portrait of King Haakon VII in Diamonds

Crown Princess Ingrid

Tiara from the Ruby parure

Necklace from the Ruby parure

Chandelier earrings from the Ruby parure

Ruby brooch

Portrait of King Christian X in Diamonds

Princess Ingeborg

Tiara from the Emerald parure

Necklace (without pendant(s)) from the Emerald parure

Earrings from the Emerald parure

Portrait of King Gustav V in Diamonds

Princess Helena

Ear of Wheat tiara

Sautoir (probably of Pearls)

Queen Louise’s Large Diamond corsage as brooch

Margravine Theodora

Diamond Sunbursts tiara

Sapphire necklace with Cross pendant

Sapphire earrings

Princess Thyra

Queen Josephine’s Diamond tiara

Sautoir (probably of Diamonds)

Princess Bernadotte (Ebba)

Pink Topaz tiara

Pink Topaz necklace

No earrings

Pink Topaz brooch (?)

Princess Margaretha

Princess Marie’s Diamond Swirl tiara

Shortly before midnight light columns originating from the navy vessels in the Stockholm harbour could be seen reaching for the sky. And a few seconds later the façade of the Royal Palace was lit up by the television crew’s strong lights as they prepared, hopefully, for an appearance of the King on the balcony. On the stroke of twelve, as the actual birthday of the King began, inside in the “Vita Havet” Hall the Crown Prince rose and gave a lovely speech to his father while outside the changing of the guard took place. Some few minutes later cries of four ecstatic “hurrahs” could be heard from inside the Palace as the Crown Prince finished his speech. Then the Royal Anthem sounded and immediately afterwards the huge crowd outside the Palace made their presence known to those still sitting at the tables inside. It started a bit timidly at first with a few claps, but it soon increased to cries of “The King!” “The King!” and loud cheers. They wanted to see their beloved monarch. A spontaneous rendition of the Swedish National Anthem followed. It was now thirty minutes past midnight and the lights which had been flooding the façade was switched off. The night turned dark again and heavy raindrops fell from the sky. Then, ten minutes later the crowd regained their hopes of a sighting of the King as the lights suddenly came back on again. But the King played shy and still did not appear on the balcony. However, a few minutes before one o’clock the crowd finally got what they had come for; His Majesty stepped out on the balcony and waved gratefully to his beloved subjects below.

Day 3 – 16.06.1938

Te Deum

Even after two exhausting days for the King the third day was just as busy as, if not even busier than, the previous days. At half past nine in the morning the first big event of the day took place. A Te Deum service was held at Stockholm Cathedral the “Storkyrkan” officiated by the Archbishop of Uppsala and attended by representatives from public life and most members of the Royal Family with guests. The church was beautifully decorated with plants and fresh flowers. White birches had been placed at the entrance while the flowers were kept in the colours blue and yellow; blue irises, lupines and violets stood on the altar and the crucifix above it was decorated with yellow cowslip primroses.

National Gift

Another special event took place at the Royal Palace, in the Hall of State (Rikssalen), a bit later in the morning. Here the Prime Minister presented the King with a check for more than 4 million Swedish Kroner, this being the successful result of a national gift collection. All this money was to go to a fund. The check was presented in an intricate cylinder resembling the “bid stick” used in the olden days to convey certain important messages throughout the kingdom. This cylinder had on its surface the representation of the coat of arms of every county in the land created in enamel work. It rested inside a casket made by gold and silver mined in Sweden with some ivory and set with 250 sapphires. 

Luncheon at City Hall

At noon there was a Royal 21-gun salute. Half an hour later the King left the Royal Palace in a horse drawn carriage. He was enthusiastically greeted by a large crowd lining the route to the pier at Riddarholmen. Here the King boarded the gilded Royal barge “Vasaorden” and he was joined by the Crown Prince, Prince Gustav Adolph and Prince William. Sailors then began to row the Royal party over to the City Hall where guests had already gathered, including the members of the Royal Families who were not arriving onboard the barge. As the barge glided over the water gun salutes were fired from the military vessels present in the harbour. The tall figure of the King was seen saluting the vessels once passing them ignoring the showers of rain.

One Royal lady who had been absent so far due to her having given birth to her third daughter quite recently was Princess Sibylla. And even though she would not partake in the City Hall luncheon she did travel out to the City Hall in the company of her two elder daughters the Princesses Margareta and Birgitta.

When the Royal barge reached the pier at City Hall the King was welcomed by the City Council Presidency and by the Governor of Stockholm City Torsten Karl Viktor Nothin. They then entered the City Hall where they joined the rest of the Royal party. On the stroke of one the doors into the Golden Hall opened up and the Royal procession entered accompanied by a majestic trumpet fanfare. The King escorted the Grand Duchess Dowager of Baden once more. Next in the Royal Procession came the King of Norway who escorted Princess Helena of Denmark. Third couple was the King of Denmark with the Crown Princess of Norway by his side. President Kallio, who came next, escorted Princess Margaretha of Denmark while the Crown Princess of Sweden walked next to the Crown Prince of Denmark. Crown Prince Gustav Adolph led Princess Thyra of Denmark while the Crown Princess of Denmark was escorted by the President of the City Council of Stockholm Mr Johan-Olov Johansson. The Norwegian Crown Prince had been coupled with his mother-in-law Princess Ingeborg while the Margravine was escorted by Prince Gustav Adolph. All the other guests had already found their seats but remained standing as they waited for the Royal guests to find theirs.

On the menu were:

Beurre, pain

Oeufs brouillés aux tryffes

Noisettes de Veau a la Princesse

Fraises et creme frappé

Café

To this most people were having champagne, though the King himself seemed to prefer the red wine.

Crown Princess Louise looked elegant in her tea rose yellow outfit topped with a brown hat while Princess Ingeborg had chosen a cyclamen coloured ensemble. The Danish Crown Princess was dressed in blue from top to toe accessorised with mink fur while Crown Princess Märtha wore a turquoise blue outfit with a hat in the same colour and brown fur. All senior male members wore uniform with Orders.

Both the President of the City Council and King Gustav gave a short speech while outside in the City Hall courtyard people had begun to gather. Some of them were members of a large choir and also a group of residents of elderly people’s homes in Stockholm who had reached the exact same age as His Majesty was there. When the lunch had finished the King made an appearance at one of the large windows overlooking the courtyard. The rain had now stopped. Crown Prince Gustav Adolph appeared next to his father and the choir began to sing. After the first song the Crown Prince disappeared for a moment and when he came back he had the little Princess Margareta in his arms. The choir then continued their programme and it was an emotional homage to the King. Once the choir had finished the King was presented to the group of 80 years olds who had received a special invitation to meet with the King.

It was then time for departure as the King was now expected at the Stadium. The King took his farewells with his hosts and got into the horse drawn carriage waiting for him. In the King’s carriage were also his sons the Crown Prince and Prince Wilhelm as well as Prince Gustav Adolph and the little Princess Margareta. Escorting the King’s carriage were a detachment from the Life Regiment on Horse in front and another detachment at the rear. The Kings of Denmark and Norway as well as the President of Finland drove in the second carriage followed by another carriage with the Grand Duchess Dowager of Baden, Crown Princess Louise, Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Valdemar. Then followed five landaus. The first one was being used by Crown Princess Märtha and Crown Princess Ingrid, Prince Harald and Prince Carl. In the second of the five came Princess Ingeborg, Princess Helena, Prince Eugene and Prince Gustav. Princess Thyra, Princess Margaretha and the Margrave of Baden drove in the third one while the Margravine of Baden, Princess Gustava and Prince Axel drove in the fourth one. The last carriage was used by Prince Maximilian, Prince Bertil and Prince Carl Johan.

As the cortege made its way by the established route receiving the acclamations of the enthusiastic crowds who had met up to witness the Royal progress the arrangement committee at the Stadium made the very final preparations for the Royal arrival. About 70 groups from a great variety of associations and organisations in the Kingdom had arrived bearing their standards and flags.

In great pomp and circumstance the Royal cortege entered the Stadium accompanied by fanfare and music from the bands just as the clock stroke three. The Royal party entered the Royal Box with the three Kings in the very middle of the front row. Professor Gösta Forssell had been selected to give the speech of welcome which he now did. Then King Gustav, bareheaded, gave an emotional speech in return, which he ended with the words “Gud bevare fosterlandet!” (God Save the Fatherland). It was now time for the associations and organisations to parade past the Royal box with the King saluting.

Military Review

Having received the acclamation of the people the day was still not over for the King and his guests. They did now, however, manage to take a break as they travelled to the Royal Palace in cars. Here they were served tea and some also had a change of clothes. The King had changed out of his uniform of an Admiral and was now wearing the uniform of a General in the Swedish Army which was very fitting as the next post of the programme was the military review. This took place at Gärdet, a large open space in one of the newer residential districts in Stockholm at that time. Here the King would take the salute of his troops and distribute new regimental standards. Part of the inspection was performed on horseback and the tall and slim elderly King looked very majestic on his horse wearing his splendid uniform with blazing Orders and yellow plumes waving in his hat.

Finale

The day ended with the King hosting a dinner “en familie” back at the Royal Palace. The dress code for the ladies was long evening wear and for the gentlemen white tie with Orders. Sadly no photographs have been found so far from this event, so it is not known whether it was also a tiara event, or whether it was just an elegant informal gathering of his closest family and Royal guests. An impressive firework display took place at eleven o’clock, being the grand finale of the three day celebration of King Gustav V of Sweden.

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