Jacob Magnus Sprengtporten (1727 – April 2, 1786) was a Swedish

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 and Finnish officer and politician, and half-brother of Georg Magnus Sprengtporten

Georg Magnus Sprengtporten

Count Georg Magnus Sprengtporten, or Göran Magnus Sprengtporten as he preferred to call himself, was a Swedish, Finnish and Russian politician, younger brother of Jacob Magnus Sprengtporten....

.

In his twelfth year he chose the profession of arms, and served his country with distinction. The few and miserable triumphs of Sweden during the Seven Years' War

Seven Years' War

The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...

 were due almost entirely to young Sprengtporten, and he emerged from it with a lieutenant-colonelcy, a pension and the reputation of being the smartest officer in the service.
Sprengtporten had too hearty a contempt for "Hats

Hats (party)

The Hats were a Swedish political faction active during the Age of Liberty . Their name derives from the tricorne hat worn by officers and gentlemen. They vied for power with the Caps. The Hats, who ruled Sweden from 1738 to 1765, advocated an alliance with France and an assertive foreign policy,...

" and "Caps

Caps (party)

The Caps were a political faction during the Age of Liberty in Sweden. The primary rivals of the Caps were known as the Hats. The Hats are actually responsible for the Caps' name, as it comes from a contraction of Night-cap, a name used to suggest that the Caps were the soft and timid party...

", the two main political factions during the Age of Liberty (1719–1772) in Sweden, to belong to either. He made no secret of his sentiments, and soon gathered round him a band of young officers of strong royalist proclivities, whom he formed into a club, the so-called Svenska Botten (Sweden's groundwork). The club was suppressed by the dominant "Caps" who also sought to ruin Sprengtporten financially by inciting his tenants in Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

 to bring actions against him for alleged extortion, not in the ordinary courts but in the Riksdag

Riksdag of the Estates

The Riksdag of the Estates , was the name used for the Estates of the Swedish realm when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866, the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the King...

 itself, where Sprengtporten's political adversaries would be his judges. The enraged Finnish colonel thereupon approached Gustav III of Sweden

Gustav III of Sweden

Gustav III was King of Sweden from 1771 until his death. He was the eldest son of King Adolph Frederick and Queen Louise Ulrica of Sweden, she a sister of Frederick the Great of Prussia....

 with the project of a revolution against the "Caps". It was to begin in Finland where Sprengtporten's regiment the Nylandia

Nylandia

Uusimaa , is a historical province in the south of Finland. It borders to Finland Proper, Tavastia, Savonia, and Karelia. The English translation would be "new land". From the Middle Ages to 1809, most of the present-day Finland was a part of Kingdom of Sweden...

 dragoons, was stationed. He undertook to seize the impregnable fortress of Sveaborg by a coup de main. The submission of the whole grand duchy would be the natural consequence of such a success, and, Finland once secured, Sprengtporten proposed at the head of his Finns to embark for Sweden, meet the king and his friends near Stockholm, and surprise the capital by a night attack. This plan, subsequently enlarged by a suggestion of a fellow plotter, Johan Christopher Toll

Johan Christopher Toll

Count Johan Christopher Toll , Swedish statesman and soldier, was born at Mölleröd in Scania Count Johan Christopher Toll (1 February 1743 – 21 May 1817), Swedish statesman and soldier, was born at Mölleröd in Scania Count Johan Christopher Toll (1 February 1743 – 21 May 1817), Swedish...

, was warmly approved of by the king.

On July 22, 1772 Sprengtporten left Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...

. On August 9 he reached Helsingfors. On August 16 he persuaded to submit to him fortress of Sveaborg, soon followed by that of Helsingfors. A week later all Finland was under the colonel's control. By August 23, Sprengtporten was ready to re-embark for Stockholm with 780 men, but contrary winds kept him back, and in the meantime Gustav III himself had carried out his revolution unaided. On his return to Sweden, however, Sprengtporten was received with the greatest distinction and made a lieutenant-general and colonel of the guards. He was also appointed the president of a commission for strengthening the defences of Finland. But Sprengtporten was still dissatisfied. He could never forgive Gustav for having forestalled the revolution, and his morbidly irritable and suspicious temper saw slights and insults in the most innocent conjunctures. His first quarrel with Gustav happened in 1774 when he refused to accept the post of commander-in-chief

Commander-in-Chief

A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...

 in Finland on the eve of threatened war with Imperial Russia. The king good-naturedly overlooked his outrageous insolence on this occasion, but the inevitable rupture was only postponed. A most trumpery affair brought matters to a head. Sprengtporten had insulted the guards by giving precedence over them at a court-martial to some officers of his own dragoons. The guards complained to the king, who, after consulting with the senate, mildly remonstrated with Sprengtporten by letter.

Sprengtporten thereupon tendered his resignation as colonel of the guard, and at a personal interview with Gustav was so violent and insolent that anything like agreement between them became impossible. Sprengtporten was haunted by the fixed idea that the "jeunesse dorée" of the court was in league with his old enemies to traduce and supplant him, and not all the forbearance of the king could open his eyes. He received a pension on his retirement and was allowed the extraordinary privilege of a guard of honour as long as he lived. Nevertheless, to the end of his career, he continued to harass and annoy his long-suffering benefactor with fresh impertinences.