#Queen Kristina of Sweden

[young-royals-confessions]

Fascinating to me that Bernadotte was a French Jacobin elected king of Sweden by the Riksdag, so (and I don't mean to be offensive in any way to real people) @ Kristina girl none of this is real, it's not that deep, pls chill 🥲🫠😭

[raincitygirl76]

You know how Newmarket is the centre of British horse racing, and Chantilly the Centre of French horse racing. Is there an equivalent town in Sweden?

Just curious. The British royal family is always being photographed at Ascot and other prestigious racecourses, and their Queen Elizabeth II used to own racehorses. If fictional Queen Kristina also owns racehorses, whereabouts in Sweden would her horse trainer be most likely to have their stable?

[justfriendsbestthings]

When Emma and I were walking around town earlier, a random persons phone rang and I said out loud ‘oh that’s the Queens ringtone’ send help

[royal-diaries-podcast]

Kristina: The Girl King, Sweden, 1638 by Carolyn Meyer (2003)

[raincitygirl76]

I’m not sure I necessarily agree with all of the above, but this is a really neat and thought-provoking take.

I’m neither on Team Abdication or Team Monarchy. I’m on Team whoever made the most compelling pitch most recently.

Young Royals Season 3 Endgame: Team Abdication or Monarchy?

Team Monarchy.

I know this might seem surprising given how often I show my contempt for the upper classes here on Tumblr, and how fucked up I think they are. I also fully understand and agree that having an inherited government office is fundamentally incompatible with a modern, liberal, progressive, democracy. I know all the arguments.

But...

Sweden has been a kingdom for over a thousand years. On June 6th this year, Sweden celebrates five hundred years of unbroken sovereignty when we finally left the Kalmar Union and elected Gustav Vasa as king in 1523. The current royal family, even though they're patrilinear descendants of an imported French rando, can trace back their heritage to Gustav Vasa, and all the way back to the first kings.

They are a piece of living history, connecting Sweden today to Sweden through the ages, and there's value in that. If you want the head of state of your country to have some kind of symbolic value, there's no better choice. If Sweden were to change to a republic, no-one would care about the office of the President, it would go to some boring politician who got the job as thanks for a long and faithful service. Or, worst case, it would go to some populist nutjob.

So since we have them, since they're already there, let's keep them. They're better than the alternatives, and they are a unique quirky thing that sets Sweden apart from most other nations. They're entertaining, and they can be a force for good, or at least some kind of national unity.

But if they want to stay being royals, they need to move with the times, and given the YR universe, an openly queer monarch would be an absolutely fantastic way of showing that even they are capable of change. The question of succession can be figured out, it's all make-believe blood magic anyway. Way crazier shit has happened throughout history.

So long live King Wilhelm, and his husband, Prince Simon.

[bluedalahorse]

sunday snippet #2: continuing the canon divergence experiment

You also want some first year August and third year Erik, don’t you? Obviously you do.

Not going to indent this one because it’s longer.

Content note for many ideas relevant to August and Erik at this age: toxic masculinity, misogyny, bullying, drug use, traumatic grief, and disordered eating and exercising.

—

August is working out when Erik finds him in the gym. The advantage of spending so much time at the rowing machine—beyond building up muscle mass, not that August has built up enough yet, he has to keep going—is that it provides an excuse for the pain and the exhaustion. It numbs out the numbness, at least for a time.

Erik is clapping and making celebratory flexing gestures at August as he crosses the room. He’s been doing that more often since their recent rowing victory against Sprucewood. August glances sideways at the mirror, and ends up pinching at the skin of his stomach.

“I’ve got updates,” interrupts Erik, when they are standing close enough together to converse in low voices. “Your brothers are getting together tonight.”

“Tonight?” says August, turning away from his reflection. “Really?” 

Tonight is cursed. Tonight has the warped gravity of a black hole. Maybe that makes it a good night to be out with the Society, where someone might take pity on him and slip him a halfway decent pill for later.

Workouts can only do so much, after all.

“It’s Friday.” Erik shrugs. “I don’t recall anything urgent on your schedule. Unless you’ve got a hot date? Maybe with your hand?”

The jerking off gesture is expected, but it still makes August’s face burn.

“Erik,” he splutters. “Fucking—”

The usual retorts get stuck in August’s throat. It’s easier to have a comeback, with other guys. You just say no, with your mom and the whole room dissolves into laughs and rowdy chanting. But Erik’s mother is Her Majesty Queen Kristina of Sweden, and August’s cousin once removed. She is the living symbol of the traditions August’s ancestors have defended and died for. The idea of invoking her name in a your mom comeback makes August’s stomach twist like he’s about to throw up. Pappa would be furious with him for something like that.

“Relax.” Erik reaches out and ruffles August’s hair. “You know I fuck around with Wille the same way. If you do have a date, you can say so.”

“It’s just…” August pulls his shirt back on, avoiding both Erik’s gaze and the mirror. “Tonight…”

“I know.” And then Erik steps around so his eyes meet August’s, and his expression softens into something more solemn, and it’s obvious that he does know what tonight is. What it’s the one-year anniversary of this weekend.

“Look, we don’t want you to be alone tonight, okay?” says Erik. He rests his hand on August’s shoulder. “We want you to be with us. You’re family.”

“Okay,” says August. “Thank you.”

Erik’s hand remains on his shoulder. His palm is warm, and he gives August a squeeze. A question needles August in the chest: if he moved closer, would Erik hug him? He closes his eyes and pictures it, and realizes he wants Erik to. He hates that he wants Erik to hug him, but he’s never had a brother before and Erik can be an asshole to him but then Erik also says he’s the same way to Wilhelm and he calls August family and maybe August is too sensitive about stuff after all and it’s.. it’s confusing.

August says nothing. He does not move closer. Erik’s shoulder doesn’t feel warm anymore, but it doesn’t feel cold, either.

“Besides,” Erik adds to the silence. “No one else mixes the drinks as well as you do.”

Of course they don’t. August has been mixing drinks for people since his age was a single digit. If he closes his eyes he can still hear the ring of his pappa’s crystal when liquid hits the bottom of the glass.

“Vincent mixes them too fucking sweet,” August says, to shake the memory away. 

“So girly of him.” Erik laughs. 

After a moment, August laughs too. That’s hardly throwing Vincent under the bus, since Vincent was the one who recently blabbed to the third years about how August still hasn’t had sex with anyone. With all the crap August has been getting about that from Erik and the others, he’s within his rights to say a lot worse about Vincent.

Erik claps August on the back. “One more thing. We’re low on gin. I don’t care, but Rasmus will complain. Can you arrange for more before this evening?”

It’s a command more than it’s a question. August nods. He’ll text Nils, who has a guy he knows in town for whatever reason, and they’ll transfer money around until the gin arrives at Hillerska without incident.

As August gathers up his things and prepares to head back to his dorm, he notices that Erik is grinning at his phone with an unusual intensity. He’d wonder if Erik’s getting more texts from the girl who had to sign the NDA, except Erik announced at dinner last week that he wasn’t into her anymore. Too pick-me, Erik said. You need a girl to be the right amount of desperate for you. Otherwise she’s high maintenance.

“Excellent,” Erik is saying, not to August, as he types out a text. “Perfect.”

“What’s perfect?” August asks.

“Later,” Erik replies with a wink. “You’ll thank us.”

August would feel nervous, if he could feel anything other than grief and self-loathing right now.

[frogprinsen]

Jan Olof: We’ve made a map of all the possible hiding places the Crown Prince may be in.

Queen Kristina:

Queen Kristina: This is a map of Sweden.

Jan Olof: Yes, we have no idea where he is.

[enjoythesilentworld]

Wille's Month - Cooking/Baking

day 5! @youngroyals-events

Kristina finds Wille in the kitchens. rating: G

read below the cut or on ao3.

“Shoot,” Wille mumbled, sweeping together the big pile of flour he’d accidentally dumped on the counter. Who would’ve thought using a scale would’ve been so complicated. He figured he had seen enough Instagram reels of people baking to be able to figure it out. That was maybe not totally the case. Not to mention it was the ass-crack of dawn and he still felt the dregs of sleep in his brain. 

“Wilhelm?”

He jumped, spilling even more flour. Turning around, he found his mother standing in the kitchen doorway. She wore a robe wrapped around her, her hair tied up. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen her like this. To any outsider, it would’ve simply looked like a mother checking on her child, rather than the Queen of Sweden staring confusedly at the Crown Prince. 

“Mamma.”

“Why are you awake so early?” 

Thankfully, she sounded more puzzled than upset. He gestured awkwardly to the array of ingredients. “I wanted to– I’m trying to make pancakes.”

“Whatever for?” 

“Um,” Wille fumbled for the words. “I wanted to make breakfast for Simon. Usually when I stay at his, Linda will–” 

He cut himself off and looked down at the dusting of flour on his feet, across the light tile floor. How could he explain this to his mother without offending her? Wille knew, he knew that his family was different, that the Queen didn’t have time to make little breakfast spreads for her child and his boyfriend. (Although, in all fairness to Linda, she worked plenty and still made time, but that was besides the point.) He’d resented it when he was younger. It didn’t seem fair that everyone else seemed to have family dinners so often. The first few times he’d stayed for dinner at Simon’s, sitting around the table with everyone laughing and talking loudly, had nearly made Wille cry. The closest his family had ever come to that was when Erik was still alive and would occasionally come back from Hillerska to visit. As he got older, though, he grew used to it and tried to forgive his mother for all the missed bedtimes and sports games, the stinted dinners and tense breakfasts. Things had grown slightly warmer between them since they’d agreed he would officially step down on his 18th birthday. He didn’t want to do another thing to upset her, to make that rift grow even wider. 

“Would you like some help?” 

Wille’s head snapped back up. “What?” His mother had stepped further into the room and begun moving towards him. 

“Do you have a recipe, or have you just started mixing random ratios together?” 

He felt at a loss for words again, brain too busy trying to comprehend what was happening, so he simply shrugged.

“Let’s see, then.” She picked up his phone from the counter and dusted the coating of flour off the screen. 

For the next half-hour, Wille followed along as his mamma gave him gentle instructions and guided him through the recipe. He beat the eggs in a bowl while she measured and combined the dry ingredients. Later, she pulled blueberries from the fridge and arranged a handful into a smiley face on top of one of the cooking pancakes. Wille just watched on in a daze, feeling a laugh bubble up at the absurdity when he saw Kristina smile down at the silly little smiley-face pancake. He tried to flip one of the pancakes by tossing it in the air and she laughed – laughed – when he missed and it fell face down on the floor. She helped him arrange the food onto a platter and then waved him off. 

“I’ll clean this up,” she said. “You go on.” 

Wille looked at his mom, at the brush of flour on her cheek and the few strands of hair that had come loose from her bun. He rushed forward and pulled her into a hug, burying his face in her neck. 

“Oh, gubben,” she whispered, rubbing his back. 

He mumbled a watery, “Thank you,” and hugged her tighter. 

“You’re very welcome.” 

Stepping back, he wiped at his face and sniffled then nodded. She smiled up at him and Wille felt that rift grow a little smaller. 

Before he stepped out the door with his tray of breakfast, he turned back. “I love you, mamma.”

“I love you, too, älskling. Now, go before they get cold.”

[raincitygirl76]

This is a wonderful take on Kristina. Because she didn’t emerge from the womb fully-formed as the character we know now. She gradually BECAME this fiftysomething woman who is utterly consumed by her role as figurehead to a nation. I wonder how often she heard “being a princess is a privilege, not a punishment” from her parents when she was a girl. How did the king her father reply if she ever said she hadn’t asked for this? The barely suppressed rage in her voice when Wilhelm utters the same complaint to her and she says, “No one has ever, ever asked for this!” is suggestive, just to echo @amyriadfthings

Maybe Kristina too was a neurotic, unhappy, sensitive kid who wasn’t thrilled about her career choice being decided at birth by other people. And she too threw up and had panic attacks when she was nervous. Maybe she is so insistent on Wilhelm learning to control his emotions because she sees herself in her younger son, and she knows she got over this rebellious patch and moulded herself into the metaphorical Viking warrior we know.

And how much bullshit did Kristina have to endure because she was a future Queen rather than a future king? Fun fact, the real Sweden had agnatic primogeniture from 1809 (the Napoleonic era) until 1980. Meaning daughters and granddaughters of kings had zero succession rights, unlike countries which practiced male preference primogeniture (where a princess could inherit the throne if she had no surviving brothers).

Obviously Young Royals takes place in a make believe alternate Sweden with a made-up dynasty. But I wonder if Parliament in YR-Sweden switched to male preference primogeniture when Kristina was a child, when it became obvious she would not have any younger brothers. In which case she’d have no choice but to see being first in line as an honour, rather than a burden. If they changed the law just so she could inherit, perhaps on urging from her father, the king, who desperately wanted his only child to succeed him. And if she loved her dad, she wouldn’t want to disappoint him.

And I wonder if Kristina’s name became a burden to her as well. Being named after Sweden’s last Queen in her own right, the 17th century Christina. The real Christina became Queen in 1632 at the age of 5, and had a succession of regents until she was 18. She openly refused to marry, embraced androgyny in the way she dressed, and had many poorly-concealed romantic relationships with other women.

In the 17th century people struggled to define Queen Christina. In the 21st century she would probably be considered a lesbian. She finally caused the biggest scandal of her reign in 1654 when she converted to Catholicism, abdicated the throne in favour of a male cousin, and moved to Rome.

Obviously Young Royals Kristina has far less political power than her 17th century namesake. But I doubt it’s an accident Lisa Ambjorn named her after such a transgressive example of a female Swedish monarch. Our Kristina is bound up by convention and her sacred duty to the monarchy. The real Christina abandoned her duty, just as Kristina’s son threatens to abandon his duty.

So yes, our Kristina underestimates Wilhelm, underestimates his commitment to Simon, dismisses Simon as an “unfortunate romance” Wille will grow out of once he’s no longer 16 and prone to infatuation. She compares it to her own unfortunate romance around his age, a romance she doesn’t seem to recall with fondness.

She forgets that Wilhelm attached himself like a limpet to his desk when Jan-Olof ordered Malin to physically drag him out of Hillerska, and dared Kristina to survive a public scandal. Because there WOULD have been a public scandal if a classmate of Wilhelm’s had managed to get his taxpayer-funded bodyguards on video manhandling him out of Hillerska and into a waiting car on his mother’s orders.

THAT’s why Jan-Olof got Kristina on the phone. Not because he had an epiphany, but because his and Kristina’s Plan A had spectacularly failed thanks to a skinny but determined teen. Wilhelm and Simon were on the outs in 2.02, but for all their bickering, Wille refused to be parted from Simon. And thus Kristina blinked first in her stare down with her son.

You’d think 2.02 would have taught her not to underestimate her only surviving child, but it didn’t. She assumes the things she was indoctrinated in childhood to believe are things Wilhelm believes too. And he does believe them, at first, but his belief is wallpaper-thin. It doesn’t take Boris much time at all to scrape through that layer of indoctrination and ask Wille what HE wants out of life.

Kristina’s worst decision ever = assuming just because Boris is the Hillerska school psychologist, he’ll parrot the monarchical party line about the importance of secrecy and tradition. You can work for a reactionary institution and not be a reactionary yourself.

Kristina’s second worst decision = not giving August ANY punishment for posting revenge porn of her son, a minor. I think Wilhelm would have felt a little less betrayed by his mother if he’d seen August face consequences from her. Even if they were merely social consequences.

P.S. A shoutout to the casting director,for casting Pernilla August in a small but vital role. Ms August does SO much to convey Kristina’s complexity with limited screen time.

And great tags from @opheliascamander

Sometimes you´re out grocery shopping and idly browsing the frozen veg section when you suddenly remember that the queen threw up after Erik´s death when Wille said he´s always been compared to his brother and Wille threw up when he realized he´s going to have to keep being crown prince.

And you think about similar reactions to stress of parent and child and you remember the queen told Wille to take three deep breaths when he freaked out over Simon´s date and how she sends him to therapy to control his outbursts (ugh).

And you think where did it all go wrong that she can´t ever connect with her son when she´s obviously got some experience in that department. I think we meet her so far into her own history of controlling her emotions that she´s unable and mostly unwilling to connect even when Wille is outright asking her to be his mom (gah!), because oh hey, those would be more emotions she would need to allow to break through, and those walls are staying. Maybe in her mind even for Wille´s own good, to teach him how it´s done.

And there´s certainly reasons for those walls and it´s probably part self-protection and probably people telling her from a young age she needs to have them, and probably also because she´s a woman on the throne, so people would probably insist a little extra on them. .

The most honest and raw I´ve seen her in the show is the moment she throws up.

(I usually question what she´s saying to Wille or August, no matter what warm or soft tone she´s using about what the court allegedly wants her to do, how it´s not really her, and how she actually supports Wille etc, as she´s been proven to manipulate Wille (and August in S2) into doing what she thinks is best for the institution she´s the head of. The one whose survival is always the priority, as per her own words.)

She´s shown to do royal business in what looks like pyjamas after all, the most casual and private of clothes, telling us there´s no separation, ever, that she´s always the queen. She rolls her eyes at her son after ending a phone call in which a rattled Wille sits among shards of glass negotiating with her (!), after she wanted to forcibly remove him from school. She doesn´t ever truly seem torn or conflicted, except that one time she throws up.

When her emotional core literally breaks its way out of her against her will.

No wonder she completely underestimates Wille and the depth and power for change his emotions hold after he´s finally allowed some therapy (that he could have used long ago just for growing up in that institution) and experienced actual emotional growth and healing instead of using it for control like she probably has. No wonder she and the court collectively underestimate Simon and what his love, what their love and connection mean to Wille. (Looking at you, Jan-Olof, allowing Wille a moment with Simon, you fool!) It´s simply been too long behind those impenetrable walls that she can´t even see it anymore. Until her son shows her. And you wonder if he´s even breaking through to her, or if she´s just been confirmed in her fears about his emotional unruliness and will dig in deeper inside her fortress. (Another time if feels like we see some honest emotion from her is of course in S1 when she´s visibly angry as she says that nobody ever chooses the royal life, so maybe Wille can relay Boris´ message about choosing how to live your life to her? Maybe she´s not beyond Boris´ wisdom. Anyway.)

The show shines such an unforgiving light on that institution that chokes all feelings and individual freedom out of you, especially over such a long time as with the queen, but I love love love how hopeful and defiant Wille´s journey of deliberate progress is in the face of it.

And I do hope he´ll continue therapy and never allows his own walls back up once they´re down.

[kwonzoshi]

Here is my contribution for Day 4 of Wille’s month. The prompt is ‘Revolution.’

@youngroyals-events

definitely not my best but I promised myself I would post for every prompt

It had been weeks since Wilhelm made the Instagram post about his relationship with Simon and as expected, all hell broke loose. The Royal Court tried, and failed, to contain the situation. Releasing statements stating that Wilhelm was hacked, that none of it was true but it was too late, Wilhelm was done being controlled. Every time they released a statement, he went live on whatever platform he could to call out their lies. As much as all the publicity scared him, Simon loved this new side of Wilhelm. Watching the boy he fell head over heels for, the Crown Prince of fucking Sweden, defend their love was… incredible. While things had calmed down, their appearance together at a charity event caused more issues to arise. 

Wilhelm was on the phone for the dozenth time, speaking with Farima. “And I told you, I don’t care,” he said, pacing back and forth. “This isn’t me taking a political stance, this is me just… being in a relationship with Simon.” He rolled his eyes, “I don’t know how else to tell you that I really don’t care, Farima. They can think whatever they want, they’re going to anyway. The only thing I care about is making sure that Simon, Linda, and Sara are kept safe, and you’re all too worried about making statements to do that. Too worried about how things look.” He stopped pacing as he listened, “Are you kidding me?! They threw a fucking rock through their window! If that happened to me, you would see it as a threat to the fucking country.” Wilhelm pressed his fingers into his eyes, taking a breath. “This is the last thing I’m going to say about this, a threat against Simon and his family, is a threat against me. It is your job to handle that threat and if you can’t do that, then find someone who can. And tell mother we’ll both be there, Farima. Whatever they have to say they can say it to both of us.” He slammed the phone shut, inhaling sharply.

Simon sat there quietly, listening, and watching his boyfriend as he stressed over this situation. He was scared but having Wilhelm standing up for him and his family brought him comfort. He slowly stood and made his way to Wilhelm, wrapping his arms around him and resting his cheek on his back. “It’ll be okay...” Simon said softly.

As Simon’s arms wrapped around him, Wilhelm felt his frustration begin to drop. This, he thought to himself, as he turned to wrap Simon in his arms, is what they were fighting for. “I’m sorry you have to deal with all this bullshit.” He said into Simon’s curls, inhaling his familiar scent. 

Simon shook his head, pulling back slightly to look up and into Wilhelm’s eyes, “This is not your fault,” he said. “Those homophobes are the ones who did this, not you.”

Wilhelm placed a soft kiss on Simon’s forehead, “I’m being summoned to the palace…” he said softly, pulling back and looking into Simon’s eyes. “I told Farima you’d be coming with me, but you don’t have to. I just want to show them that we’re a united front, you know?” he saw Simon’s expression become worried, “No worries,” he said softly, “I’ll make sure George stays here with your mom but if we’re going then we need to go like, now.”

Simon sighed and nodded, linking their fingers, and allowing Wilhelm to guide him outside and into the car. The drive was quiet, a little too quiet but their hands remained clasped together, a united front. They arrived at the place and were guided to the sitting room to await the queen and her consort. Simon quietly watched Wilhelm as he nervously bit the inside of his cheeks. 

Wilhelm sat anxiously in the room, impatiently waiting for his parents. After what felt like years, the large oak doors opened and Kristina strode in, staring coldly at her son. Ludvig followed behind, his face unreadable.

"We have asked you here today to discuss this...relationship of yours," Kristina began, not sparing Simon a glance. "It is unacceptable for a member of the royal family, especially the crown prince, to be seen entertaining some commoner. You are damaging the reputation of the monarchy with your constant bad choices, Wilhelm."

Wilhelm took several deep breaths to ease his nerves. “First, do not refer to Simon that way.” He said, forcing his anger back, and keeping his voice level. “Secondly, I’m not entertaining Simon, mother. I'm in love with him and I want to spend the rest of my life with him. Do you really think I’d be fighting this hard for a meaningless fling? Lastly, how exactly does love damage the monarchy?” He stood now, taking a few steps towards his mother. “If Erik’s drunk driving didn’t damage the monarchy, I doubt my love for Simon will.”

"Enough of this nonsense," Kristina snapped. "You will end things with this...boy at once. You know it isn’t right and I am sick of indulging your little whims. And bringing up Erik was low, even for you Wilhelm. It is time you took your responsibilities seriously and stopped being selfish."

“I will not.” Wilhelm simply stated, jutting his chin forward. “I will not hide or be ashamed of who I am any longer," he took another step forward, “I am the future king, right? So, it is my duty to lead with integrity and honesty. What I feel for Simon isn’t wrong, Mother, and I will not sacrifice my happiness for the sake of appearances."

Ludvig, who had been silent throughout the exchange, finally spoke up. His voice was calm but firm. "Kristina,” he began, looking at his wife, “Wilhelm is right. Love should not be suppressed; it should be encouraged. Our son deserves to find happiness and build a life with someone he truly loves. It seems he’s found that person. We should be happy for him, shouldn’t we?"

Kristina's eyes narrowed as she turned to Ludvig. "Oh, so you’re siding with him, Ludvig? Are you willing to let our family be disgraced?"

“Disgraced?!” Wilhelm echoed, “What exactly have we done that is disgraceful? Love each other? Stand up for one another?”

Ludvig took a step forward and placed his hand on his wife’s shoulder, "The world is changing, and so must our attitudes, Kristina. We cannot continue to hold onto outdated traditions that deny people the chance to love freely. This isn’t the way and insulting Simon is also not the way to approach this. Maybe this could be seen as an opportunity to modernize what we stand for. Turn it into a good thing.” 

Wilhelm smiled softly at this father as he stood up for him and Simon. The room fell into silence, tension as thick as smog hung in the air. Wilhelm and Simon locked eyes as they waited for Queen Kristina to say something, anything. 

“I may not agree with your choice, Wilhelm," she said, forcing her voice to be softer now. "But…” she inhaled, “you are my son, and I do love you.” She sighed, stepping forward and taking his hands in hers. She was outnumbered here, and she knew how to be diplomatic when it was needed. “I cannot deny you the chance to be happy, even if it means challenging traditions. Just promise me that you will consider the consequences of your actions and be prepared to face them. Both of you.” she briefly glanced at the young curly haired boy his son fell in love with. 

Wilhelm's eyes remained hard, he knew the game she was playing, but he nodded softly. "Thank you, Mother. I promise you, I, we, will handle this with care and responsibility.” He squeezed her hands, to emphasize his next words, “Simon means everything to me, and I will do whatever it takes to protect him and our love. Trust me on that." It couldn’t be considered much of a threat, but he saw in her eyes that she understood exactly what he meant. 

Kristina's expression remained neutral, but a hint of understanding flickered in her eyes. She reached up and placed a hand on Wilhelm's cheek. "You have always been headstrong, my son. Let’s hope that it isn’t your downfall.” She dropped her hands and turned to step towards her husband, “We will need to release a statement about your relationship, making it official. This should, hopefully, calm things now, at least on the media front. There’s been too much speculation about the seriousness of your partnership, and we should lay those questions to rest once and for all since you’re serious about this.” 

Wilhelm nodded, reaching out for Simon’s hand as the queen retreated back to her office. Once they were alone, they both released twin breaths of relief.

“Holy… shit,” Simon whispered, looking up at Wilhelm’s face. “That was intense.” Wilhelm smiled, pulling Simon to his feet and into his arms, “It always is but, I think it went well.” He pulled back and locked eyes with Simon, searching his face, “What do you think about the statement? You okay with officially dating the Crown Prince?”

Simon laughed, “What have we been doing this whole time?” he asked sarcastically as he wrapped his arms around Wilhelm’s neck, “I think it’s a great idea. Shows that the Royal Court is on our side, and it also means people will stop thinking this is some momentary lapse of judgment on your part. What about you? You okay officially dating a commoner?”

“Oh, darling, you’ve never been that. Not to me.” Wilhelm said softly, “From the moment you walked into that chapel, you became everything to me.” He embraced Simon tightly, nuzzling into his neck. 

And so, the statement was released, with a few carefully selected photos of the pair. In the weeks that followed, Wilhelm and Simon's relationship faced intense scrutiny from both the public and the media. Their every move was dissected and analyzed, with opinions on their love affair ranging from support to condemnation. The conservatives clung to their traditional values, criticizing Wilhelm for disregarding his duty and tarnishing the reputation of the monarchy. On the other hand, there were those who hailed Wilhelm as a symbol of progress and applauded his courage to love openly. 

To everyone’s surprise, Wilhelm and Simon remained committed to each other, finding comfort in their love during the storms that surrounded them. The royal family found themselves at the center of a delicate balancing act. While Kristina and Ludvig privately wrestled with their own reservations and concerns, they recognized the importance of preserving family unity and projecting a unified front to the public. They stood by Wilhelm's side during public appearances, attending events and engagements where Wilhelm and Simon were present, but with some initial discomfort. 

The tipping point came during a family dinner, when Wilhelm, Simon, Kristina, and Ludvig had the opportunity to have a heartfelt conversation. Tears were shed, emotions were exposed, and deeply held fears and concerns were openly expressed for the first time. It was a liberating moment in which each family member could understand and empathize with each other's points of view. Wilhelm's parents chose to accept Simon as their son's partner from that day forward, recognizing the true nature of their love. They publicly expressed their support by issuing a joint statement emphasizing the value of love, understanding, and unity within the monarchy. It was a significant step forward for both Wilhelm and Simon, as well as the country they represented. 

Unknown to him, or to anyone, Wilhelm's decision to follow his heart and fight for his love had a lasting impact for both the monarchy and the rest of Sweden. It marked a crucial moment in the royal family's history, as they evolved from a symbol of tradition to a force for change.

[youngroyalsforever]

Wilhelm’s struggle with his sexuality doesn’t fit either into Queer Awakening, or Unabashedly Queer Wille narrative. His path to fully accepting his own queerness is very different from everything I have seen in the media. The inner fight Wilhelm is having throughout S1 and S2 is shown in a very subtle way. Maybe that is why we, viewers accustomed to straightforward, in-your-face and often offensively stupid queer stories, can’t see this struggle for what it is.

Every clue we were given in S1 leads us to one conclusion: up until the video Wille wasn’t out to anyone.

Let’s recap:

1. Felice is excited about Wille going to Hillerska because it means she has a shot with him. No one tells her to cool down because no one has a reason to suspect the prince to be anything but straight. We are talking about people who know each other pretty well: nobles and riches have been going to the same schools, same clubs, same resorts for generations. As F. Scott Fitzgerald (or Zelda Fitzgerald, who knows) put it: ‘…then drifted here and there unrestfully wherever people played polo and were rich together.’ And yet, there isn’t even a whisper about Wille maybe, possibly being interested in boys.

2. Wille wasn’t out to the closest person in his family – Erik. The conversation they had on parents’ day hints that. @mirabel-on-a-bicycle explained it perfectly: ‘Even during that phone call, he was sitting in a pretty relaxed position, up until he said that he wanted to stay at school. And when he did admit to liking someone, the camera made the extra effort of floating down from his face to show his hand clutching at his knees. Like yea, it was adorable, the way he got so puffy and defensive about having a crush, but under all this, they were nervous mannerisms as well!’

A long time ago I saw a post about Erik using genderless words in the conversation about Wille’s ‘crush’ and it is the only detail that allows speculations about Erik suspecting.

3. Wille wasn’t out to his parents. For Kristina to say ‘Now it’s you and your future children who will succeed me’ after Erik’s funeral, she must have been pretty sure that her younger son was straight. Otherwise, it would be inconsiderate if not cruel of her, especially at that moment. The fact that she and Wille don’t discuss his sexuality after the video is completely understandable: the queen has a crisis on her hands and it needs to be dealt with. Priorities.

Besides, there is nothing to discuss. It’s Sweden-2021: equal rights for LGBTIQA+ people are supported by 98% of citizens, Church of Sweden gives matrimony to same-sex couples since 2009. In S2 when Kristina says ‘Oh, please. Your father and I love you just the way you are, Wilhelm’, and she is slightly annoyed because of the fact she even has to say such an obvious thing out loud.

Ludvig is basically a piece of furniture, I have no idea what he is doing in the show. He and Wille barely talk so it’s safe to assume he was the last one to learn about his younger son’s sexuality.

4. August’s reaction when he is shooting the video says it all: in the beginning, he is smiling because he thinks it will be a fun prank. But the moment he realizes it is not a girl in Wille’s bed, we see August being genuinely shocked. Despite being close to the royal family and being friends with Erik, he had no idea about Wille’s queerness.

5. Finally, Hillerska students are surprised to find out about the nature of Wille and Simon’s relationship. Stella and Fredrika bring up the topic of surrogacy and we see them being scandalized/entertained by the prospect. The thought about the next heir to the throne born in a same-sex marriage had never crossed their minds because there was no reason for that.

So we can be sure that no one knew Wille was queer.

Why wasn’t he out?

He is only sixteen; it wouldn’t be unusual to figure out his sexuality at this age. Considering that no one knew Wille was queer, it is safe to assume Simon was the first boy Wille ever pursued. Otherwise, rumours would have gotten out.

Wille consistently freaks out about being with Simon. We see him struggling with crossing certain lines: at the end of E1S1 he is scared when he realizes he is attracted to Simon, in E2S1 he can’t immediately kiss Simon back, then he regrets doing it and tries to convince Simon it was a mistake.

It is really difficult to tell what exactly is the reason for Wille being so reluctant at different points. But as Edvin put it: ‘His problem is not being in love with a boy, his problem is being a prince.’

If we follow this logic, we will understand that Wille is scared of being out publicly. He is in a very unique position. To him, coming out doesn’t just mean a conversation with parents and another – with friends. He is a crown prince, and he is expected to produce an heir. He doesn’t want to discuss his sexuality with the whole world though at some level he understands it is inevitable. He acts consistently as if coming out is the last thing he wants to do. When Kristina suggests he lie about the video, Wille reluctantly agrees. Reluctantly, because he knows lying will mean leaving Simon alone to deal with the consequences. But the alternative – confessing that it was him and that he is, in fact, queer – is unbearable to him at that moment. Wille says it himself when he attempts to apologize to Simon: ‘If I came out, all hell would break loose! How can you even ask me to do that?’

He needs time to accept the idea of coming out to the whole world. We can’t really blame a sixteen-year-old for not wanting to go through this process. Queer people know that opening up can be painful. Not every person in your life will be kind and understanding. Coming out to billions of people is really, really scary. So even when Wilhelm makes his peace with the idea itself, he still struggles with the perspective of actually doing it. He accepts Kristina’s suggestion to come out in two years not because he is afraid of his mother. We have seen Wille being extremely difficult when his demands aren’t met. He accepts her suggestion because it feels right – ‘I will come out, but later.’ Even when he realizes that ‘later’ won’t get him Simon back, he doesn’t go Instagram Live to say: ‘Hi, Sweden, it’s your crown prince. It was me in the video. I am into boys. Have a nice day.’ It takes him more time than that to gather his courage.

Fully accepting one’s own sexuality can be a long process. A person can skip the whole panic stage, but still struggle with the idea of being open to family, friends, colleagues. YR does a superb job of showing this process and it is another thing for which I adore the show.

[malenkaya-glosoli]

Posted this to my blog about King Kristina of Sweden early this morning. I have thought about this theory for years and it was one of the driving forces behind my fascination with this unusual royal. I hope it is interesting to anyone who reads!

[young-royals-confessions]

just responding to something I saw in the comments "If he renounces (or stripped of) HRH status, he won't have a security. " He would still receive security because he is the son of a monarch and this is considered high risk, imagine that some group terrorist decides to kidnap the son of the Queen of Sweden who stopped receiving security because he renounced his HRH status, it is because of scenarios like this that he would still receive security, of course after Kristina's death or abdication this would change. Of course, the level of security would not be anywhere near what he receives as crown prince, and this would be considered an extension of Kristina's security.

.

[groenendaelfic]

While planning ALaWHEO I spent a lot of time thinking about how the Swedish royal family is celebrated and what that meant for Wilhelm growing up. Now with Erik Day I was reminded of this once again and thought to share some of my as always very lengthy and convoluted thoughts.

Irl Sweden celebrates the king's, the queen's and the crown princess' birthdays and name days as official flag flying days along with a number of events of varying magnitude. Military parades, awards, concerts, golf tournaments and the like. For special anniversaries those are even bigger and can span multiple days.

Irl the Swedish royal family is quite large. Growing up, the cp's younger siblings had both each other, as well as a slew of first cousins, most but not all of them quite a bit older, but still. There were always a lot of royals around. The current royal house has nine members, with only three being celebrated that way and the rest of the royal family being much larger.

I have little good to say about the monarchy as an institution and nothing which couldn't be just as well if not better done without it, but I am quite sure that the irl cp's second child is well loved and not made to feel like a spare, but being raised in the fold of the royal family in the knowledge that he is a member of the royal house just like his uncle and aunt, and not worth less than his older sister.

Young Royals' royal house is quite different. We don't know much about Wilhelm's grandfather and grandmother, but from what we see Kristina is well established in her role as queen so I dare guess that Wilhelm's grandfather died when Wilhelm was quite young and his grandmother probably as well if not sooner.

So at best the royal house had six members when Wilhelm was young, with no immediate other family members, but for the vast majority of his life, if not all of it, it was only four. The queen, her consort, the crown prince and Wilhelm.

So three people to be celebrated and a spare.

Maybe sometimes young Wilhelm was glad he didn't have to spend part of his birthday or name day watching military parades and doing walkabouts, and maybe he didn't want events and awards and places named after him, but Erik got all of that. And not just twice a year.

He also got all the attention (unless Wilhelm caused trouble), both the good and the bad kind, from the public and their parents, and the expectations of Erik were higher, but Wilhelm was always and forever reminded that he is less, that everyone in the family/house matters more than him, and it was only him, no other siblings or cousins or aunts and uncles. I'm honestly amazed Wilhelm didn't cause a lot more (and worse!) trouble than he did before he was sent to Hillerska.

August is a second cousin, he doesn't count in any of that. He knew it, too, hence his surprise when the royal court tells him he could be (trained as) a (potential) successor.

Kristina and Ludvig aren't the most warmhearted of parents. They probably neither explained or prepared Wilhelm for any of this properly, nor do I see them throwing Wilhelm a heartfelt private birthday party fit for a child or making sure to show him that he is just as loved and cherished as Erik is.

So Wilhelm spent most of his life watching his parents and brother be celebrated by (as far as he could tell) all of Sweden, while he was the spare who was an afterthought at best, only noticed when he broke the rules, with no one else sharing his position on the sidelines.

That would fuck anyone up, no matter how they might otherwise feel about the constant public attention, but especially a child.

Then Erik dies. We don't know when anyone's birthday is, but we do know their name days thanks to the official list from the Swedish Academy. (Kristina July 24, Ludvig Oct 2, Erik May 18) None of them fall in the s1 and 2 timeline (maaaaybe Ludvig at the very beginning?).

Wilhelm's is on April 6, I'm sure we would have heard had Wilhelm (or Simon!) had a birthday, so that will be the first time in Wilhelm's life when there will be official public celebrations of this kind for him. Or rather The Crown Prince who now happens to be Wilhelm. And it will be The Crown Prince and not Crown Prince Wilhelm more often than not. The Crown Prince who used to be Erik, because Erik had to die for Wilhelm to be of any use or worth officially celebrating.

Throughout YR Wilhelm has started coming into his own, but I doubt he doesn't still first think of Erik whenever he hears the words The Crown Prince, especially when he's not directly being addressed.

I'd guess (although that's all it is, a guess) that at least the Erik Award for Sportsperson of the Year will not be renamed. It probably would have been had Erik not died so young and tragically, but I'd like to think they'd keep the name in his honor and create a new one in Wilhelm's name.

Everything else though? Concert, tournaments, races, random smaller events all over the country? Name and date change. There might be memorial concerts etc for Erik, but those will be something different entirely, something new. Wilhelm is replacing Erik, in everything, and Kristina and the royal court are pragmatic if anything.

In Erik Day I made the specific choice for everyone to move on, almost immediately, at least outwardly so. I'm sure Kristina and Ludvig still grieve, but they do so in private. I might be wrong, but I don't see them making grand gestures or having many memorial events.

I'm sure people are sad Erik died and think it's tragic, sympathy for the royal family will have risen in the aftermath of his death, but Erik was no Diana, and I'm quite sure most people spared his death little thought post funeral. So there's a new cp, so what? It changes little for the average Swede, and certainly not years later. They will have forgotten the date of Erik's birthday or name day, and only remember if reminded. (especially in an AU where Wilmon only meet years later)

[grapehyasynth]

young royals fic rec, 26/?

i’m (slowly) working my way through the wilmon tag on ao3 and thought that as i go i might shout out some fics i enjoy along the way! i've tagged authors where i knew their tumblr url, but please feel free to tag folks or dm me if you know ones i've missed!

see all my rec lists here

1. i'm not a mountain, i will crumble when you go by @echo-and-dust - When Queen Kristina falls ill, Wilhelm is pulled into a month-long trip away from Sweden to take her place. Left at home, Simon navigates dealing with the first Christmas season spent without Wilhelm by his side since they had gotten together, and he realizes that there are some feelings he can’t avoid forever.

2. shiniest wheels by cieriiol -

“and you?” felice asked, the heaviness in her voice a sign that she was getting upset, although whether it was at him or for him he didn't know. “what about me?” wille wasn’t sure where felice was going with this and even moreso wasn’t sure if he wanted to know. “who’s going to protect you, wille?”

3. here’s to opening and upward by wefoundanotherone - The first spring day after Wille abdicates, Simon reflects on their life together.

4. It’s astronomy (we’re two worlds apart) by wilmoncult - There has always been a level of separation between them, Simon supposes, but he had overlooked it as a young boy. He’d known that Wilhelm was special. Erik, too. But nonetheless, they’d always been Simon and Wilhelm; the Prince and his young knight; the childhood friends of the palace.

5. You're Still the One by @thewaterloovases - Simon and Wille meet on tumblr as teenagers, but when they lose contact, Simon doesn't think he'll ever hear from Wille again, much less bump into him in a supermarket in Stockholm one random afternoon. It's been five years, after all.

6. The Season of Rebirth by @notalotgoingonatthisinstant - Easter is the season of rebirth, and maybe there is something poetic to be said about it triggering the death of Simon's civilian identity and the birth of Prince Simon.

7. say a prayer for me in the dark by @pleuvian - the stoner, neighbours, music major! simon and poetry major! wilhelm college au