William Davidson The Benevolent Dictatorship of Gustav III Dec. 15, 2015 Gustav III was the king of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was what is commonly known as an enlightened despot. He took measures to reform the administration and judicial procedures of his government, giving more freedom to his people, as well as improving economic policies. Another of his great accomplishments was that he created the Swedish Academy in 1786. He was a true enlightened despot, embracing academia, introducing beneficial governmental reforms, as well as many religious and economic changes. Absolute rulers, for the most part, had full power over all, like Louis XIV of France, and the general populus was considered to be a single entity. When the ideas of individualism came around, the general populus truly became a group of different individuals, in other words meaning that rulers began to actively concern themselves with issues of their middle and lower classes. This was one of the issues that the enlightenment stemmed from. Other things came to fruition as well like absolute dictators embodying the values and reforms of the enlightenment, becoming known as enlightened despots. These rulers began to embrace an emphasis on rationality, as well as recognized and allowed religious toleration, freedom of speech and the …show more content…
The peasants were not even represented on the Secret Committee, which kept all matters relating to finance and foreign affairs from the ordinary members of the Riksdag. The Rad (Senate or Council), which acted as the executive arm of the Secret Committee, also consisted chiefly of men of noble