King Oscar II of Sweden and his connections with the Romanian freemasonry

Authors

  • Attila Carol Varga The Romanian Academy, "George Barițiu" Institute of History

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35824/sjrs.v7i2.25931

Keywords:

King Oscar II of Sweden, Freemasonry , elites, National Grand Lodge of Romania (M.L.N.R) , Swedish Grand Lodge

Abstract

The present analysis represents a novel approach to the issue of Romanian-Swedish bilateral relations in the second half of the 19th century. This time, the focus is on the dimension of contacts between Romanian and Swedish Freemasonry. This was conducted in the second half of the 19th century by King Oscar II himself. In 1885 he made an official visit to Bucharest with Queen Sofia. On this occasion, he was made an honorary member of the Grand National Lodge of Romania (M.L.N.R.). Far from being merely a protocol award, it held a special significance. This visit underlined the desire of Constantin Moroiu, Grand Master of the Grand National Lodge of Romania, to gain international recognition for this Romanian Masonic powerIt was a very turbulent period in the history of Romanian Freemasonry, marked by a series of interventions by the Grand Orient of Italy in its internal affairs. With the award of this distinction, Romanian Freemasons sought to strengthen their internal unity through external recognition from all Masonic powers. To this end, the help of the Grand Lodge of Sweden was essential. The desire to consolidate the unity of Romanian Freemasonry was a natural reality, given the fact that Romania was proclaimed a Kingdom in 1881 and became a base of stability in this part of the continent.

 

Author Biography

Attila Carol Varga, The Romanian Academy, "George Barițiu" Institute of History

Varga Attila Carol holds a PhD in History. He is a researcher at George Bariţiu History Institute of the Romanian Academy and an Associate Researcher at Oxford Brookes University (UK). His doctoral thesis focused on the relationship between the Roman Catholic Church, the state and Freemasonry in Banat and Hungary in the second half of the 19th century. He has written a number of books and studies on the history of elites in Banat, Transylvania and Central and Eastern Europe. Subsequently, his scientific activity focused on interdisciplinary research on topics of great interest, such as the history of Freemasonry and secret societies in Romania, Hungary and Sweden, Eugenics in Central and Northern Europe, film history, the history of computer science and nuclear energy, the transfer of computer and nuclear technology in communist Romania.

References

I. Archives

Archive of the Grand Lodge of Sweden. External documents: Romanian Freemasonry and the Grand Lodge of Sweden. Unnumbered.

Central National Historical Archives Service - Bucharest. Royal Household fonds: Officials, file 18/1881.

II. Books

Bălcești, H. N. (1993). Ordinul masonic român [Romanian freemasonry order]. București: Casa de Editură și Presă Șansa SRL.

Cristea, G. (2007). Regi și diplomați suedezi în spațiul românesc (secolele XVII-XX) [Swedish kings and diplomats in Romania (17th-20th centuries)]. Cluj-Napoca: Centrul de Studii Transilvane.

Ștefănescu, P. (2009). Istoria francmasoneriei române [History of Romanian freemasonry]. București: Edit. Vestala.

Vele Ana-Maria & Varga Attila (2012). Diplomația franceză și primii ani de domnie ai lui Carol de Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1866-1875) [French diplomacy and the early years of the reign of Charles of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1866-1875)]. Cluj-Napoca: Edit. Argonaut.

Marton, Silvia. (2016). “Republica de la Ploiești” și începuturile parlamentarismului în România [The "Republic of Ploiesti" and the beginnings of parliamentarianism in Romania]. București: Edit. Humanitas.

III. Studies

Crețu, D. (n.d.) Proclamarea Regatului României și atitudinea Marilor Puteri [The proclamation of the Kingdom of Romania and the attitude of the great powers]. Transilvania, 10.

Florian, N. & Nicolae, E. (n.d.) Constantin Moroiu. In Constantin Moroiu | PDF (scribd.com).

The Field of Liberty, Blaj, Alba County, Romania

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Published

2024-05-15

How to Cite

Varga, A. C. (2024). King Oscar II of Sweden and his connections with the Romanian freemasonry. Swedish Journal of Romanian Studies, 7(2), 156–163. https://doi.org/10.35824/sjrs.v7i2.25931

Issue

Vol. 7 No. 2 (2024): Swedish Journal of Romanian Studies

Section

History

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Copyright (c) 2024 Attila Carol Varga

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