Louis Gerhard De Geer
Louis Gerhard De Geer af Finspång (18 July 1818 – 24 September 1896) was a Swedish statesman, lawyer, and writer. He became Sweden’s first Prime Minister in 1876 and served until 1880. Earlier, he was Prime Minister for Justice from 1858 to 1870.
De Geer led a major reform that transformed Sweden’s parliament. In 1865 he helped replace the old Riksdag of the Estates with a new two‑chamber Riksdag, a change that modernized Swedish politics. The reform was approved in 1865 and took effect in 1866.
Born at Finspång Castle into the noble De Geer family, he worked as a lawyer and became president of the Göta Court of Appeal in 1855. He sat in the new Riksdag, representing Stockholm in the first chamber from 1867 to 1878, and supported liberal reforms and free trade.
De Geer married Countess Carolina Lovisa Wachtmeister in 1848. They had six children, including Gerhard Louis De Geer (prime minister of Sweden from 1920 to 1921) and Gerard De Geer (a geologist).
After initially retiring from government in 1870, he returned as Prime Minister for Justice from 1875 to 1876. In 1876 he became the first Prime Minister under the new system that split the old offices, and he served until 1880, resigning over disagreements about armaments. He later served as Chancellor for the Universities of Uppsala and Lund (1881–1888) and wrote several memoirs and other works.
De Geer died at Hanaskog Castle in Scania and is buried at Kviinge Church. He is remembered as a liberal reformer who helped lay the groundwork for Sweden’s later economic growth.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 11:42 (CET).