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STATE ADMINISTRATION.
191
Before proceeding to describe briefly administrative government
as existing at present in Sweden, it may be well to give a short
sketch of its history.
Daring the Middle Äges, the King had the assistance in the administrative
government of three great officers of state: Lord High Steward (Drotsen),
Lord Marshal (Marsken), and Lord High Chancellor (Kanslern). The two
first-named originally belonged to the King’s household, the last being generally
a churchman. No definite limits were fixed as to the several domains af activity
of the Lord High Steward and Lord Marshal, but, before long, the former began
to be regarded as the chief authority in affairs of justice and the latter in those
of war, while the Lord High Chancellor acted as the King’s secretary and had
to draw up his mandates. These three offices were practically the only ones
then existing for the kingdom as a whole, and the first two of them, at any rate,
were often in abeyance. They never had anything in the nature of an organized
department of officials under them.
In the several districts into which the kingdom was divided, and which often
had a walled castle as its center, the King’s administrative functions, both civil and
military, were discharged by Stateholders and Bailiffs (Fogdar). Each of these
held his district as a fief from the King and was subject to different conditions.
Sometimes, he enjoyed the right to collect the revenues from the district on the
sole understanding that he and his dependents should serve the Crown when
need arose; sometimes, he had to render an account of his receipts, or again to
pay a certain sum for his fief, the soldiers under his command being at the
King’s service. Sometimes, fiefs were held as security for pecuniary advances
made to the Crown. These fiefs, for the possession of which there were
perpe-tnal struggles all through the Middle Äges, were not in fact hereditary, and,
although some feudal terms and usages were introduced into Sweden owing to
intercourse with Southern Europe, yet the feudal system itself never really
obtained a firm footing in the country, even though attempts to introduce it were
not wholly wanting.
Gustavus Vasa (1523/60) effected a thorough change in this system of
enfeoffment. The fiefs were reduced in area and entrusted to Bailiffs, often
commoners by birth and entirely dependent on the King. They had to hand
in accounts of their revenues and of their administration, which were subjected
to very close scrutiny. Between the King and his bailiffs were placed
intermediaries in the persons of Governors. To control and administer the national
finances, which were materially improved at this time by the confiscation of church
lands, an institution was founded, termed The Treasury (Kammaren), a government
office whose president became one of the chief officers of state. Another prominent
official instituted in the times of Gustavus and his sons, was the Lord High Admiral
(Riksamiral). Definite method and system had not yet, however, been introduced
into the administration; everything depended as beforo on the personal influence
and action of the King.
Well regulated administrative government was introduced into Sweden
during the days of Gustavus II Adolphus (1611/32) and Axel Oxenstierna
(1632/44), — being finally established by the Constitution Act of 1634,
which at once placed Sweden in the first rank among the nations in
administrative regard, rendering her, indeed, worthy to serve as a model for others. The
State administration was permanently centralized in Stockholm and was
entrusted to the following Five Departments of State: Svea Hofrätt (for the
administration of justice), Krigsrådet (military council), Amiralitetet (naval affairs),
Kansliet (foreign and some home affairs), Räknekammaren (finance etc.). Each
of these institutions was under the presidency of one of the five great state
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