The Swedenborg Letter Patent and Grant of Arms

In 1719 the Queen of Sweden Ulrika Eleonora ennobled the wife and children of bishop Jesper Svedberg. As a bishop and therefore a member of the clergy, one of the four estates in the Swedish parliament, Svedberg himself could not be ennobled. In the letter patent and grant of arms the family was named Swedenborg.

Swedenborg did not, therefore, acquire his peerage on his own merits, in recognition, for example, of his work as an inventive constructor in the service of Carl XII or assessor in the Kongl. Bergskollegium (the Royal Board of Mines). This is made clear in the letter patent and grant of arms, transcribed here for the first time. An explanation of the symbols on the family coat of arms is also provided.

The initiative for the transcription was taken by Erik Swedenborg, a descendant of the family, and the work was undertaken by Björn Sahlin during a number of visits to Riddarhuset (the Swedish College of Arms). An English translation by Toby Ibbotson has been published elsewhere on the website. The pictures were taken by Göran Mörner, genealogist at Riddarhuset.

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