A brief overview of Swedish

history

Introduction

The following historical section is by no means complete from a historical perspective. The purpose of this page is to provide a chronological historical overview of events in Sweden that may have had a connection with or impact on the lives and livelihoods of my and others’ Swedish ancestors.

Related Links

• Swedish history - 1500s - 1600s • The Reformation and King Gustav I • Swedish history - 1700s • Swedish history - 1800s • Swedish history - Part 1 • Swedish history - Part 1 • The New Sweden Colony in North America • Swedish Witch Trials • The Allotment System • Swedish School System • Swedish Banking • Swedish Monetary System • History of the Swedish Police System • Poor Relief in the past • Health Care and Diseases in the Past • The Many Swedish Wars • Swedish Inventions • Inns and Stage Services • History of Railways in Sweden • History of Church of Sweden • History of the Swedish Riksdag (Parliament)

Source References

• Wikipedia • Svenska krig 1521 – 1814. Ulf Sundberg, 1998 • Svenska freder och stillestånd 1249 - 1814, Ulf Sundberg, 1997 • Ånga och Dynamit, Historien om Sverige, Herman Lindqvist, 1999 • När Sverige blev stormakt, Historien om Sverige, Herman Lindqvist, 1994 • Ofredsår, Peter Englund, 1993 • Trolldomsprocesserna i Sverige av Bengt Ankarloo, 1996. Top of page

1900s - Part 2

The 20th century began somewhat dramatically for Sweden with the dissolution of the union with Norway in 1905. Furthermore, the military allotment system (with its standing army) was abolished in 1901 in favor of a conscript army, i.e., universal conscription. The 20th century also saw two major conflicts: World War I and World War II.

Swedish Vacation Entitlement

The first legislation in Sweden regarding vacation entitlement was enacted in 1938. Under this law, all employees were entitled to two weeks of vacation. Vacation duration was increased to three weeks in 1951 and four weeks in 1963. The current law dates from 1977 (1977:480) and took effect in 1978. At that time, vacation entitlement was extended to five weeks. The Vacation Act governs the annual leave, annual leave pay, and annual leave compensation. Any agreement that provides the employee with benefits less favorable than those stipulated by law is invalid. Employees who are entitled to more than 20 days of annual leave may carry over any unused days for up to five years and then take them as a single block of time off. If operational circumstances permit, the law allows them to accumulate ten weeks of leave once every six years. Saturdays and Sundays are not normally counted as vacation days. The length of the statutory vacation is a minimum requirement. Today, many people have vacations lasting six or seven weeks under their employment contracts. Similarly, people took vacations even before they became statutory in 1938, including those in lower- paying jobs. In Sweden today, the statutory vacation is 25 working days. However, the law is discretionary, and it is therefore permissible to agree on a longer vacation than the minimum requirement specified by law. For more information, visit the page: Swedish Vacation Entitlement

The History of Pensions in Sweden

It was only a little over 100 years ago—in 1913, to be precise—that we established a pension system covering all citizens: the universal pension insurance. Various pension systems existed even before 1913, but they operated differently for different groups. For the vast majority of people in the past, poor relief was the norm once they were no longer able to work. On May 21, 1913, the Swedish Parliament passed a resolution to introduce a universal pension insurance system that covered virtually the entire population. Sweden thus became the first country in the world to introduce a universal pension insurance system. As early as 1884, the Riksdag appointed a “Workers’ Insurance Committee.” The proposals put forward by this committee set in motion a process of social policy legislation that led, among other things, to the Occupational Safety Act of 1889, support for health insurance funds in 1891, accident insurance in 1901/1916, and finally the Pension Insurance Act of 1913. Under the decision, the pension would cover the entire population and would be paid to anyone who was unable to work or had reached the age of 67. The pension system consisted of two components: a contribution-based insurance component and a grant component. The immediate outcome of the pension reform was the transfer of the elderly poor and disabled individuals from the poor relief system to the pension system. The pension amount under the universal pension insurance scheme was low, making it challenging for many individuals to sustain themselves on their pension. In 1914, the Pension Board was established as a new national agency to manage and record contributions to the pension insurance system. The 1936 pension legislation amended the 1913 Act, but the basic structure remained unchanged. It continued to be a two-part system, consisting of a basic pension based on contributions paid and an income-dependent pension supplement. The national basic pension (Swedish: Folkpension) was no longer based on a defined-contribution system. Everyone was required to pay a contribution to the national treasury. The supplements were altered so that anyone earning a modest income and over the age of 67 might get a pension supplement. Under the 1936 pension reform, the pension thus consisted of a basic pension (Swedish grundpension), which was paid as a fixed amount that was the same for everyone, and a supplementary pension (Swedish: tilläggpension), which depended on the contributions paid. The reform took effect in 1937. Various objections were raised against the universal pension insurance system, including the claim that it discriminated against women. The Riksdag passed a resolution on a national basic pension in 1946, and it was introduced in 1948. It consisted of a basic amount (Swedish: grundbelopp) and a means-tested housing supplement. With the national basic pension reform, the practice of differentiating pensions based on gender was abandoned. As a result of the 1946 national pension reform and several supplementary decisions in the early 1950s, the national basic pension was structured in such a way that old age was no longer a cause of poverty. The indexation of pensions in 1950 and the introduction of municipal housing supplements in the mid-1950s brought pensioners’ basic financial security up to a reasonable level. A third pension committee was appointed in 1956. To move the issue forward, the government decided to hold an indicative referendum on October 13, 1957. Three proposals were put to a vote in the referendum, and Option 1 received the most votes. Proposal 1: A universal and mandatory occupational pension (Swedish: tjänstepension) funded by employer contributions (Swedish: arbetsgivaravgifter). The pension should be proportional to income earned during one’s working life, and the fund assets should be managed by a board appointed by the government and representatives of employers and employees. The Social Democratic Party did, however, propose a proposal (Proposal 1) in Parliament, which was defeated in the Second Chamber. In the final vote in the Parliament on May 14, 1959, the Act on the Universal Supplementary Pension (Swedish: Allmän Tillägspension—ATP) passed by a single vote. The system consisted of a basic pension—the national basic pension (folkpension), which was the same for everyone—and an income-based supplementary pension, the ATP. The ATP system went into effect on January 1, 1960. On July 1, 1976, the retirement age was lowered to 65. The Swedish Parliament decided in 1994 and 1998 on a major pension reform that came into effect in 1999. The reason was that a completely benefits- based pension system was too costly. Instead, a contribution-based system was chosen. In the new system, the pension is based partly on lifetime income and partly on paid premiums. The new pension system, the universal pension (Swedish: allmänna pensionen), consists of the income-based pension, the premium pension, and the guaranteed pension. For more information, visit the page: The History of Pensions in Sweden

Personal Identity Numbers Introduced in

1947

Every Swedish citizen has a unique personal identity number (PIN). It is also known as “Citizen's Codes.” In Sweden, the term is “personnummer.” A personal identification number is a unique identifier for individuals. The personal identification number system was introduced in Sweden in 1947. Individuals born before 1947 were assigned a personal identification number in the county where they were living at the time. Everyone listed in the Swedish Population Register (Swedish: folkbokföringen) has a personal identification number. The personal identification number is unique to each individual and remains with them throughout their life. The Swedish Tax Agency assigns personal identification numbers upon registration in the Population Register. This also applies to people who were not born in Sweden. The personal identification number initially consisted of 9 digits, with the first six based on the individual’s date of birth (YYMMDD), followed by a hyphen and then 3 more digits. The first two of these digits indicated the county of birth, and the last digit was an odd number for men and an even number for women. For example: 001219-342. The format was set to the birth date (without the century) followed by a separator and the three digits. For people born in the 1800s, the separator was a plus sign, and for those born in the 1900s, a hyphen. In 1967, a check digit was added to the personal identification number. The check digit is calculated based on the date and time of birth and the birth number and is added to the birth number as a fourth digit. The check digit is calculated using a method known as the modulus-10 method (the Luhn algorithm). For example: 001219-3421. Before 1990, a specific number series was used for each county. At that time, a person’s birthplace could be determined from their birth number. For example, Stockholm County had the number series 00–13. Västernorrland, for example, had a series starting with 78. Immigrants were assigned a birth number from the series 93–99. However, starting in 1990, a single series has been used for all of Sweden. When storing data on computers, the Swedish Tax Agency includes the year in the personal identification number as a four-digit code, resulting in a total of twelve digits, often without hyphens, for example, 198112189876. This applies only to data stored in the registry and therefore does not need to be visible outside the registry. In the USA the Social Security Number (SSN) is a personal identity number comparable to the Swedish one. For more information, see the page: Personal Identity Numbers

The Municipal Consolidations of 1952

Until 1862, local administration (governance) of the parish (Swedish: socken) was handled by the parish assembly (Swedish: sockenstämman). In 1863, rural municipalities (Swedish: landskommuner) were established to replace the parish (“socken”) as the governing body in rural areas. In the vast majority of cases, the territorial areas of the new rural municipalities corresponded to the old civil parishes, i.e., relatively small units. In addition to the rural municipalities, there were also a number of city and market town (Swedish: köping) municipalities. In 1946, the Riksdag decided to reform the municipal system. The 1952 municipal reform resulted in the number of rural municipalities being reduced from 2,281 to 816 through consolidations. During the 20th century, Sweden experienced extensive population migration and urbanization. The proportion of the population living in rural areas declined, and many of the small rural municipalities struggled to cope with the ever-increasing responsibilities placed on them, leading to challenges in providing essential services and maintaining infrastructure. More than 500 of Sweden’s rural municipalities had fewer than 500 residents in 1943. In principle, the municipal reform affected only rural areas, i.e., rural municipalities. The number of cities remained unchanged at 133. For more information, see the pages: Swedish Municipalities and About Municipalities

The 1971 Municipal Reform

The 1971 Municipal Reform was a significant milestone in the evolution of municipal governance. Following the 1952 municipal reform, the municipalities’ areas of responsibility were further expanded, which meant that the 1952 reform was deemed insufficient; in 1961, a government commission concluded that a new municipal reform was necessary. The politicians began to consider the principle of a central town. The commission’s proposal was to abolish the division into cities, market towns (Swedish: köping), and rural municipalities (Swedish: landskommun); instead, a uniform concept of municipalities was introduced. The Riksdag passed the municipal reform in 1962. On January 1, 1971, a unified municipal structure was introduced. All former rural municipalities, cities, and market towns were reorganized into municipalities (Swedish: kommun). The number of municipalities was drastically reduced, from just over 1,000 to 278. In 2019, there were 290 municipalities in Sweden. It was not until 1974 that the reform was largely completed, by which time most of the new types of municipalities had been established. Cities and rural areas would together form unified municipalities, with the city—or another major urban center—serving as the regional hub for the surrounding area. Typically, several rural municipalities were consolidated with the nearby town/city to form a single municipality, known simply as a “municipality” (“kommun”). For example, there were several rural municipalities around the city of Sundsvall—such as Njurunda, Matfors, Indals-Liden, and Stöde—which were merged with the city of Sundsvall to form the municipality of Sundsvall (the Sundsvall Kommun). The US term “consolidated city-county” probably best describes the Swedish “kommun”, as of 1971. [In the United States local government, a consolidated city-county is a city and county that have been merged into one unified jurisdiction. As such, it is simultaneously a city, which is a municipal corporation, and a county, which is an administrative division of a state. It has the powers and responsibilities of both types of entities.] Please note that a Swedish county (“Län”) is not at all the same as a “county” in the United States. For more information, see the page: The Swedish “Kommun”

The Nationalization of the Swedish Police

Force in 1965

The origins of today’s Swedish police force, and of the police profession itself, can be traced back to the 1850 police reform in Stockholm. During the 1962 and 1964 sessions of the Riksdag (Parliament), it was decided that the police in Sweden would be nationalized, a decision that took effect on January 1, 1965. In connection with the nationalization, the National Police Board (Swedish: Rikspolisstyrelsen) was established as the coordinating authority for police operations. From 1850 until the police force was nationalized in 1965, law enforcement was referred to as the police only in cities and market towns (Swedish: köping). In rural areas, “länsmän” and “fjärdingsmän (roughly county sheriffs and deputy sheriffs in the US) continued to handle police matters. In 1918, the police force was reorganized, and the county sheriffs ((länsman”) were replaced by rural district police superintendent and public attorneys (Swedish: landsfiskal), while in cities they were replaced by city police superintendent and attorneys (Swedis: stadsfiskal). Until 1965, the Swedish police force was a municipal police force, meaning that the municipalities were responsible for policing within their respective jurisdictions. In other words, police officers were employed by the municipalities, towns and cities respectively. The image shows a municipal police officer equipped with a baton and a saber directing traffic in Örebro on Children’s Day in 1953. Photo: Örebro City Archives, ID PS-232-0108. However, as early as January 1, 1933, following a 1932 parliamentary decision, a State Police Department was established under the command of a State Police Superintendent stationed in Stockholm. The State Police Department was divided into the Public Order Police, the Criminal Investigation Police, and the Security Police. The force eventually grew to 226 criminal investigators and 306 public order officers. The State Public Order Police could be deployed anywhere in Sweden in the event of unrest. The State Police was primarily intended to serve as reinforcements for municipal police districts in rural areas. The rest of the time, the State Police carried out routine police work in the cities where they were stationed. In the late 1930s, following the outbreak of World War II, a State Police Criminal Investigation Department (Swedish: Rikskrim) was also established, whose primary task was to assist the regular municipal police in investigating serious crimes. On January 1, 1965, the entire Swedish police force was nationalized. The three branches of the system—police, prosecution, and enforcement—were now completely separated from one another, and three independent organizations were created: the police service, the office of the public prosecutor, and the enforcement service. As a result, both the city attorneys and their rural counterparts, the rural prosecutors, were abolished. A regional police chief (Swedish: länspolischef) became responsible for police operations within each region (Swedish: Län). The county administrative board (Swedish: Länsstyrelsen) became the highest police authority in a county (“Län”). In connection with the nationalization, the National Police Board (“Rikspolisstyrelsen”) was established as the coordinating authority for police operations. In 1967, police cars were painted with the word “POLIS” (“POLICE.”) A national police training academy was established in Solna in 1965 to serve police officers throughout the country. The image shows a police officer and his police car (Volvo Amazon) in Hälsingland province, late 1960s/early 1970s. Photo: Digital Bild in Söderhamn, ID: XTJ00114. On January 1, 2015, the police force was reorganized, and the 21 police agencies (one per county (“Län”)) were merged into two separate agencies: the Police Agency and the Security Service. For more information on the history of the police, visit the following pages: History of the Swedish Police and The Swedish Police of Today

The Switch to Right-Hand Traffic in 1967

On September 3, 1967, at 5:00 a.m., Sweden switched from driving on the left to driving on the right. This process was called the Switch to Right- Hand Traffic, also known as “H-Day” (the "H" stands for "Högertrafik," Swedish for right-hand traffic.) The change meant that all vehicle traffic, including cyclists, would henceforth travel on the right side of the road. The first regulation mandating right-hand traffic in Sweden was issued as early as 1718, but it did not last long. In 1734, it was replaced by a new regulation that instead mandated left-hand traffic. The fact that Sweden had left-hand traffic posed no problem until motor vehicle traffic began to expand significantly, at which point proposals were put forward to align with the traffic system dominant on the European continent. Improved road safety from an international perspective was the primary reason for switching to right-hand traffic. From the very beginning, Swedish automakers built left-hand-drive cars so that they would be ready for the switch to right-hand traffic that the authorities had indicated would take place. Furthermore, since right-hand traffic was the norm in most of the countries to which Sweden exported its cars, these vehicles had to be built with the steering wheel on the left side. As a result, the cars sold to Swedish drivers had the steering wheel on the left side (as they do today), even though we still drove on the left at the time. The arrangement made passing other vehicles more difficult and dangerous. As early as 1927, a committee suggested that a switch to right-hand traffic be studied. Several suggestions for right-hand traffic were raised in the Riksdag (the Parliament) during the 1930s and 1940s. In 1954, a committee plainly and definitely proposed that right-hand traffic be implemented. In 1955, an advisory referendum was held, and the transition to right-hand traffic was rejected. On May 10, 1963, the Riksdag finally decided that Sweden would switch to right-hand traffic at 5:00 a.m. on September 3, 1967. Since all vehicles sold in Sweden up to that point had the steering wheel on the left side, virtually all vehicles were already equipped for right-hand traffic. However, the buses were not designed for right- hand traffic. They had been right-hand drive during the era of left-hand traffic and had their boarding and alighting doors on the left side, i.e., facing the curb. They couldn't be used as is, as that would have required passengers to board and alight in the middle of the road. A large portion had already been prepared, but a significant portion of the funding for the transition went to bus companies for retrofitting. Either the newer buses were retrofitted or new buses were purchased. Buses that were not retrofitted were donated as a form of emergency aid to countries with left-hand traffic, such as Pakistan. Before the switch to driving on the right, the postal service’s vehicles were left-hand drive, which made it easy for the mail carrier to deliver mail to mailboxes directly from the vehicle. However, since the switch to driving on the right, postal vehicles are typically right-handed to facilitate the delivery of newspapers and mail. Many interchanges and intersections had to be rebuilt. Road signs, traffic signals, and lane markings had to be relocated and modified. In preparation for the switch to right-hand traffic on September 3, 1967, black hexagonal signs bearing a yellow “H” were put up. This was done to remind drivers to keep to the right after “H-Day.” At 4:50 a.m. on Sunday morning, September 3, 1967, all vehicles were to stop and remain stationary on the left side of the road for 10 minutes. The countdown to 5:00 a.m. was broadcast on the radio. After this pause, all drivers then carefully moved over to the right side of the road. Sweden thus switched from driving on the left to driving on the right. In the immediate period following the change, police traffic monitoring was very intensive. The image shows ongoing conversion to right-hand traffic on Kungsgatan, downtown Stockholm, at 5:00 a.m. on September 3, 1967. Photo: Wikipedia.

The Unicameral Parliament of 1971

The old Parliament of the Four Estates was abolished in 1866. The electoral reform was adopted in December 1865. It took effect after the conclusion of the parliamentary session on June 22, 1866. With the reform, the estates-based representation was replaced by a system with two separate chambers, i.e., a bicameral parliament: the First Chamber, elected by the county councils, and the Second Chamber, elected in direct parliamentary elections. The bicameral Riksdag was replaced by a unicameral Riksdag following an amendment to the Riksdag Act in 1971. The Riksdag now consisted of a single chamber with 350 members. Three years later, in 1974, Sweden adopted both new parliamentary rules of procedure and a new constitution. The Constitution entrenched the ideas of parliamentarism and accorded the Speaker a prominent role in the formation of governments. For the 1976 election, the voting age was lowered from 20 to 18. At the same time, the number of members of the parliament was reduced from 350 to 349. In 1994, the Riksdag decided to extend the electoral term from three to four years. The Parliament Building is the seat of the Swedish Parliament and is located on Helgeandsholmen in downtown Stockholm. The image shows the Parliament Building on Helgeandsholmen in Stockholm. Photo: Wikipedia. After the bicameral Riksdag was replaced by the unicameral Riksdag in 1971, the parliament building was refurbished to accommodate the new plenary chamber. During the renovation, the Riksdag was temporarily housed in the then-newly constructed Kulturhuset on Sergels Torg. In 1975, the Riksdag moved back to Helgeandsholmen.

New license plates on Swedish vehicles in

1973

Until 1973, every vehicle in Sweden was registered in the county (“Län”) where it was based. In other words, there was no national registry prior to 1973. The county administrative board (Swedish: Länstyrelsen) in each county maintained a registry of vehicles in the county. The license plate, therefore, consisted of the county letter plus a serial number of up to five digits. Each county in Sweden has a unique county letter, such as “C” for Uppsala County, “D” for Södermanland County, “E” for Östergötland County, and so on. If a county had more than 99,999 registered vehicles, the county code was extended by an A and, where applicable, by a B. The City of Stockholm had many registered vehicles and used the following different county codes on its cars: A, AA, and AB, while Stockholm County used B, BA, and BB. The image shows an example of a license plate from Stockholm County prior to 1973 (BA85392). Image: Wikipedia. It was fun with those old license plates that had the county letter on them. On a road trip in Sweden, people would wave to each other if they saw a car with the same county letter. On May 1, 1973, a centralized vehicle registration system was introduced in Sweden, thereby abolishing the system of county-specific license plates. The new format consisted of three letters followed by three numbers, such as HBP 622. The transition to the new system took place on a county-by-county basis, beginning in Uppsala County as early as 1972. All vehicles in Sweden were issued new license plates, not just newly registered ones. The image shows a Swedish license plate (HBP622) with a vehicle inspection sticker. The plate was issued after 1973 but before 2003. The inspection sticker indicated that the vehicle had passed the inspection, that the vehicle tax had been paid, and that the vehicle had valid third-party motor insurance. The inspection stickers were abolished in 2010. The so-called EU license plate was introduced in Sweden on April 1, 2003, featuring a blue section with the EU symbol and the country code letter “S.” Starting in 2003, all newly registered vehicles in Sweden were issued license plates bearing the EU symbol. The image shows a license plate from 2003 with an inspection sticker and the EU symbol. Image: Wikipedia. License plates from 2019: During the 2010s, it became clear that a new system for vehicle registration numbers would be needed, as the system used up to that point would not be sufficient for all the new vehicles that would be registered in the future. The solution was to introduce a letter as the last character in the registration number. On February 16, 2017, the government made a decision allowing the Swedish Transport Agency to issue license plates where the last character is alphanumeric (i.e., a number or a letter), such as MLB 80A—that is, three letters, two numbers, and one letter or number. The decision applied only to newly registered vehicles. The new type of registration number began to be used on January 16, 2019. The image shows an example of a license plate from 2019 with a letter as the last character.

The 1980 Nuclear Power Referendum

Folkomröstningen om kärnkraften i Sverige hölls den 23 mars 1980. Folkomröstningen hade inte bara två alternativ, JA eller NEJ till kärnkraft utan tre. Folkomröstningen gällde tre förslag som kallades Linje 1, Linje 2 och Linje 3. De olika linjernas valsedlar talade alla om avveckling av kärnkraften. Vad som framför allt skiljde dem åt var takten på avvecklingen. Linje 3 inom högst 10 år, de övriga i den takt som är möjlig med hänsyn till behovet av elektrisk kraft för upprätthållande av sysselsättning och välfärd. Linje 2 fick flest röster. Utfallet blev 18,9 procent för Linje 1 (successiv avveckling), 39,1 procent för Linje 2 (successiv avveckling, offentligt ägande, hushållning, satsning på förnybar energi) och 38,7 procent för Linje 3 (avveckling inom 10 år och satsning på förnybar energi). Moderaterna drev Linje 1, Folkpartiet (nuvarande Liberalerna) och Socialdemokraterna Linje 2 och att Centerpartiet och VPK (nuvarande Vänsterpartiet) ställde sig bakom Linje 3. KDS, nuvarande Kristdemokraterna (som då ännu inte var ett riksdagsparti), ställde sig också bakom Linje 3. Beslutet om folkomröstningen togs till följd av ökad insikt om kärnkraftens risker efter Harrisburgolyckan 1979 och med en växande opposition mot kärnkraften i Sverige. Efter folkomröstningen beslutade riksdagen att alla reaktorer skulle vara avvecklade till år 2010. År 1997 beslutade riksdagen (1997:1320) om kärnkraftens avveckling utan att något slutdatum fastställdes. Den 17 juni 2010 röstade riksdagen JA till att tillåta byggande av nya reaktorer för att ersätta de befintliga, något som inte fanns med bland alternativen i kärnkraftsomröstningen. År 2020 hade Sverige sex reaktorer i drift.

Svenskt EU-medlemskap 1995

Den 13 november 1994 genomfördes en rådgivande folkomröstning i Sverige om EU-medlemskap. 52,3 procent röstade för ett svenskt medlemskap. Efter folkomröstningen gick Sverige med i Europeiska unionen (EU) 1 januari 1995. Sverige hade varit medlem av EFTA (Europeiska frihandelssammanslutningen - European Free Trade Association, EFTA) sedan 1960. År 1987 uttalade Sverige ett önskemål om att vara del av Europeiska gemenskapens (EG:s) inre marknad. Efter Berlinmurens fall hösten 1989 förekom mer diskussioner om ett svenskt EG-medlemskap. I juli 1991 lämnades Sveriges ansökan om medlemskap in av statsminister Ingvar Carlsson. Finland gick med i EU samtidigt som Sverige. Europeiska unionen (EU) är en fördragsbunden union mellan 27 europeiska länder och en internationell organisation med en unikt hög grad av överstatlighet. Europeiska unionen bildades den 1 november 1993, men dess historia sträcker sig ända tillbaka till upprättandet av Europeiska kol- och stålgemenskapen (EKSG) den 23 juli 1952. En ekonomisk gemenskap (EG) upprättades den 1 januari 1958 och drygt tio år senare fulländades inrättandet av en tullunion.

Svenska kyrkan skiljs från staten år 2000

Den 1 januari 2000 skiljdes Svenska kyrkan formellt från staten. Men, i verkligheten fullbordades inte separationen fullt ut då Svenska kyrkan alltjämt har stats-liknande privilegier i förhållande till andra religiösa samfund och organisationer. Lag om Svenska kyrkan (SFS 1998:1591) är en svensk lag som bland annat reglerar svenska statens förhållande till Svenska kyrkan. Lagen utfärdades den 26 november 1998 och trädde i kraft 1 januari 2000. Lagen definierar att Svenska kyrkan som ett evangelisk-lutherskt trossamfund. Svenska kyrkan ska fortsätta vara en öppen folkkyrka, som styrs och leds i samverkan mellan en demokratisk organisation och kyrkans ämbete. Församlingens grundläggande uppgift definieras är att fira gudstjänst, bedriva undervisning samt utöva diakoni och mission. Kyrkomötet anges som högsta beslutande organ. Sedan år 2000 ansvarar Svenska kyrkan själv för kyrkovalet som äger rum vart fjärde år. Sedan Svenska kyrkan skildes från staten år 2000 har antalet församlingar reducerats med drygt 1 100.

Kvinnors tillträde till typiskt

mansdominerade yrken

Kvinnliga poliser Sveriges första kvinnliga poliser började tjänstgöra år 1908. De första kvinnliga poliserna som anställdes var sjuksköterskor och titulerades polissystrar. Arbetsuppgifterna för polissystrarna var främst inriktade på att erbjuda social och medicinsk hjälp åt de kvinnor och barn som av olika anledningar hade omhändertagits av polisen. Polissystrarna tjänstgjorde inte i polisuniform utan i sjuksköterskedräkt och de var heller inte beväpnade. De tilldelades dock från första början polismans skydd och befogenhet – de var alltså poliser. Därför bar de också polisens tjänstetecken, det vill säga polisbricka. Från och med 1940-talet började de att alltmer benämnas som kvinnliga poliser, även om deras officiella titel var polissyster. Titeln polissyster avskaffades 1954. Hösten 1957 antogs 24 kvinnliga elever vid Statens polisskola i Stockholm. I januari 1958 började de ordningspolistjänst, och de rekryterades för uniformstjänst vid de olika distrikten med patrulltjänst som uppdrag. Från detta år började således kvinnliga poliser patrullera i uniform. Vid denna tid var polisen fortfarande kommunal. Bilden visar kvinnliga svenska poliser i Stockholm 1958. Bild: Wikipedia. År 1958 examinerades med andra ord kvinnliga poliser från samma polisutbildning som männen (innan dess hade det funnits specialkurser för kvinnliga poliser). Men, att de skulle få bära samma uniform som männen var helt otänkbar. På avstånd skulle vara tydligt vilka som var manliga och kvinnliga poliser. Detta ledde till att kvinnlig användning av byxor uteslöts. Man insåg dock att det skulle vara problematiskt och olämpligt med kjol i yttre tjänst varvid byxkjol introducerades. Bilden visar en kvinnlig polis i uniform bärande kjol (byxkjol) cirka 1955 - 1970. Foto: Bo Trenter. Bild: Nordiska museet, ID: NMA.0110628. År 1957 antogs de första kvinnliga poliserna i Stockholm. I januari, året därpå, började de sin ordningspolistjänst. Kvinnorna hade samma arbetsuppgifter som de manliga poliserna men var utrustade med batong i stället för sabel. Under 1960-talet deltog kvinnliga poliser på prov i ordinarie spanings- och utredningsverksamhet. Förstatligandet av polisväsendet 1965: Efter förstatligandet av polisväsendet 1965 beslöt den då nyinrättade Rikspolisstyrelsen att starta en försöksverksamhet med speciella arbetsuppgifter för kvinnliga poliser. Verksamheten innebar att kvinnor anställda av polisen 1969 och senare enbart skulle användas för utrednings-, spanings- och skyddspolisverksamhet. De skulle inte ha uniformerad polistjänst, dvs kvinnliga poliser fråntogs rätten att bära uniform. År 1971 biföll dock Justitiedepartementet en framställan att kvinnliga poliser skulle få fullgöra yttre polistjänst. Kvinnor i polistjänst har sedan dess i princip samma arbetsuppgifter, utbildning, utrustning och avlöningsförmåner som manliga kollegor. Det var alltså först 1971 som kvinnliga poliser började arbetar under samma villkor som sina manliga kollegor och uniformerade kvinnliga poliser tilläts för första gången patrullera i yttre tjänst. Förbudet för kvinnliga poliser att bära uniform upphävdes med andra ord 1971 och tre år senare, dvs 1974, fick de också rätt att bära byxor. Bilden visar en kvinnlig polis i uniform klädd i byxor, den 13 juni 1974 i Örebro. Foto: Roger Lundberg. Bild: Örebro läns museum, ID: OLM-2012-8-11413

Kvinnor i Försvarsmakten

Kvinnor fick formellt inträde till alla delar av Försvarsmakten 1989, men fram till 1994 krävdes att kvinnor avsåg att göra officersutbildningen för att överhuvudtaget få göra värnplikt. Av de som dagligen arbetar i Försvarsmakten idag är cirka 22 procent kvinnor och 78 procent män. Den första kvinna som gjorde (frivillig) värnplikt var Inger-Lena Hultberg, som 1962 gjorde marktjänst inom flygvapnet. Hon var dock ett undantag. Det skulle dröja till 1980 innan kvinnor kunde söka vissa tjänster och utbildningar i det militära. Året därpå, dvs 1981, beslutade riksdagen att både kvinnor och män ska kunna rekryteras till befälsyrken inom alla försvarsgrenar. Kvinnor tilläts tjänstgöra som officerare, och senare också som soldater och sjömän. Kvinnor fick formellt inträde till alla delar av Försvarsmakten 1989, men fram till 1994 krävdes att kvinnor avsåg att göra officersutbildningen för att överhuvudtaget få göra värnplikt. Kvinnor har dock funnits i Försvarsmaktens tjänst sedan början av 1900-talet inom frivilligorganisationer som Blå Stjärnan, Röda korset, Lottakåren, m.fl. Bilden visar en svensk luftbevakningslotta i tjänst i ett luftbevakningstorn med kikare, gevär och ammunitionsbälte under andra världskriget. De hade skarp ammunition och hade rätt att skjuta om de blev angripna. Bild: Krigsarkivet. Sedan den allmänna värnplikten infördes 1901 har det varit en plikt för alla unga män att genomgå värnpliktsutbildning, dvs det var en skyldighet att göra värnplikten. Från 1980 har kvinnor haft möjlighet att frivilligt göra värnplikt. Sedan 1989 är samtliga befattningar inom försvaret öppna för kvinnor, även stridande, och sedan1994 har det dessutom varit möjligt för kvinnor att göra värnplikt utan att genomgå påföljande officersutbildning. År 2010 pausades värnplikten till förmån för ett yrkesförsvar. Då det var svårt att fylla alla vakanser i Försvarsmakten med anställda soldater och sjömän återaktiverades värnplikten på nytt 2017, men nu med ett begränsat antal värnpliktiga per år. Den år 2017 återaktiverade värnplikten gäller nu både män och kvinnor. Mönstringsplikt införs den 1 juli 2017 och den 1 januari 2018 infördes skyldighet att genomföra värnpliktig grundutbildning. Så, 2018 utökades värnplikten i Sverige till att inkludera både kvinnor och män i 18- årsåldern för grundutbildning, dvs en könsneutral värnplikt. Bilden visar två kvinnliga svenska soldater, mars 2026. Foto: Johanna Åkerberg Kassel. Bild: Försvarsmakten.

Kvinnliga präster i Svenska kyrkan

Redan 1919 väcktes frågan om kvinnors möjlighet att bli präster i Sverige. Det skulle dröja nästan 40 år innan kvinnan fick tillträde till prästämbetet. Först år 1958 blev möjligt för kvinnor prästvigas i Svenska kyrkan. År 1960 vigdes de första kvinnliga prästerna. De var Margit Sahlin och Elisabeth Djurle Olander för Stockholms stift och Ingrid Persson för Härnösands stift. År 1973 blev Dora Wikner den första att prästvigas i Skara stift. Beslutet att tillåta kvinnor prästvigas var dock omstritt. År 1958 när beslutet togs att kvinnor skulle kunna bli präster var kyrkans majoritet var emot detta. Nyordningen hade pressats fram av regeringen. Då Svenska kyrkan fortfarande var en statskyrka vid denna tid, låg makten ytterst i politikernas händer. För regeringen handlade det om jämställdhet, för kyrkan om teologi. Kyrkans högsta beslutande organ, Kyrkomötet, fick 1957 en förfrågan från Sveriges riksdag om hur mötet såg på kvinnopräster. Svaret blev negativt. Regeringen ogillade beskedet och lade då fram en proposition i riksdagen om en ny lag och påminde Svenska kyrkans att dess personal var statsanställd och könsdiskriminering fick inte förekomma. Ett extrainkallat kyrkomöte 1958 beslutade då att tillåta prästvigning av kvinnor. För att minska kritiken från motståndarna till kvinnliga präster antog kyrkan en så kallad samvetsklausul som gav präster rätt att följa sin egen övertygelse om de inte ansåg sig kunna samarbeta med kollegor av kvinnligt kön. En biskop kunde heller inte tvingas att prästviga en kvinna mot sitt samvete. Detta innebar att kvinnopräster blockerades i vissa stift. Samvetsklausulen upphävdes dock av Kyrkomötet 1982. Kyrkomötet år 1993 beslutade vidare att om en man som skall prästvigas motsätter sig kollegor av kvinnligt kön inte får prästvigas. Präster av kvinnligt kön har också varit en kontroversiell fråga i andra länder. Danmark vigde sin första kvinnopräst 1948, Norge 1961, och Finland 1988. I den lutherska kyrkan i USA (ELCA) prästvigdes den första kvinnan 1970. Den romersk-katolska kyrkan säger fortfarande nej till prästvigning av kvinnor, likaså de ortodoxa kyrkorna. Ingrid Persson (1912 - 2000) var en av de första kvinnliga prästerna i Sverige. Palmsöndagen 1960 prästvigdes hon i Härnösand av Svenska kyrkan. Från 1963 var hon komminister i Svartviks kyrka, Njurunda församling, strax söder om Sundsvall. När undertecknad konfirmerades i mitten av 1960- talet gick han och läste hos just Ingrid Persson.