Henning Hamilton

Count Henning Ludvig Hugo Hamilton (16 January 1814 – 15 January 1886) was a Swedish statesman, diplomat, and writer. Hamilton initially represented Swedish nobility in the Riksdag of the Estates from 1840 to 1866, and later Södermanland County from 1867 to 1881. His father was Gustaf Wathier Hamilton.

Career Born in Stockholm, Hamilton received his education at Uppsala University and became second lieutenant of the Svea Artillery Regiment in 1829.

Hamilton was active in the temperance movement, and was a member of Svenska nykterhetssällskapet (the Swedish Temperance Society), serving as its chairman. During his term as minister of education, he also supported the organization politically.

His parliamentary eloquence was considerable. His political character was aristocratic, conservative and strongly pro-royal. In the 1865 Riksdag, he was a leading opponent of the reform to a parliamentary system of government.

Hamilton scandal In 1881 Hamilton was caught embezzling very large sums of money – at the time 800,000 Swedish kronor (estimated at 80 million SEK in 2000 value), including around 285,000 SEK by forging a nephew's name on commitments and by embezzling funds entrusted by Uppsala University, close acquaintances, and others. Hamilton was a gambler (particularly roulette and the card game Trente et Quarante) and addicted to morphine, and his gambling habits abroad, in particular in Germany, had resulted in a desperate need for money. Given the potential impact of this large scandal, particularly because high-profile socialites and King Oscar II had close friendships with Hamilton, he was spared prosecution but forced to resign from all his positions and memberships in all learned societies. He was also forced into exile, and moved to southern France. He still drew a pension from the Swedish government and he also received a pension from the Royal Order of the Seraphim. There were also rumors of King Oscar II helping him financially. He died five years later in Amélie-les-Bains, France.

Writings Hamilton was a prolific author and wrote many books, such as (1837–1839), (1846; awarded with a gold medal in 1839), (1869), (1871) and (1877). A large number of academic memorials were also written by Hamilton, for example, on (1869), (1870), Carl Gustav Rehnsköld (1878), (1878), (1879) and (1880), and he was also frequently active in newspapers and journals with (at times anonymous) contributions on the political issues of the day.

Family In 1837, he married Maria Catharina von Rosén (1817–1902), daughter of President Baron and Catharina Charlotta Rydberg.

Biography