Olof von Dalin
Olof von Dalin (29 August 1708 – 12 August 1763) was a Swedish nobleman, poet, historian and courtier. He was an influential literary figure of the Swedish Enlightenment.
Also recorded as Olof Dalin
Olof von Dalin

Johan Henrik Scheffel · Krageholms slott · Public domain
- Born
- 1708. · Vinberg parish.
- Died
- 1763. · Drottningholm Palace.
- Nationality
- Sweden.
- Occupation
- poet, writer, historian and literary critic.
- Education
- Lund University.
- Known for
- Svea Rikes Historia Ifrån dess begynnelse till wåra tider.
- Honours
- Knight of the Order of the Polar Star.
- Languages
- Swedish.
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Documentary summary
Olof von Dalin (29 August 1708 – 12 August 1763) was a Swedish nobleman, poet, historian and courtier. He was an influential literary figure of the Swedish Enlightenment.
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Authority files
wikidata · Q1373367 · wikipedia · Olof von Dalin
In this article
Background
Background
Olof von Dalin studied at Lund University. The recorded working language is Swedish. Places of work recorded in the authority are Stockholm. Positions recorded include kancelliråd and Rikshistoriograf. Works named in the authority record are Svea Rikes Historia Ifrån dess begynnelse till wåra tider. Work by Olof von Dalin is recorded in the collections of Nationalmuseum. Distinctions recorded are Knight of the Order of the Polar Star.
Olof Dalin was born in the parish of Vinberg in Halland. His father was the parish minister. His birth name prior to knighthood was Dahlin. Olof Dalin's father had taken his name from his hometown, Dalstorp in the County of Älvsborg. He was closely related to Andreas Rydelius (1671–1738), Bishop of Lund, and he was sent at a very early age to be instructed by him. Carl Linnaeus was one of his fellow-pupils.
Career
Career
In 1723, while studying at Lund University, he first accompanying his stepfather, Severin Böckman, to Stockholm and in 1726 he entered into public office there. Under the patronage of Baron Claes Rålamb (1682–1751) he rapidly rose to favor, and his skill and intelligence won him a golden reputation. In the 1730s, Dalin wrote plays for the theatre, inspired by French dramas and much admired by his contemporaries. In 1733 he started the weekly Svenska Argus, on the model of Joseph Addison's The Spectator, writing anonymously until 1736. Svenska Argus was a champion of the Enlightenment and aimed to raise the level of culture in Sweden. His next work was Tankar öfver Critiquer (1736). He became Royal Librarian (1737–39) and was later appointed Rikshistoriograf (National Historiographer) (1755–56). With the avowed purpose of enlarging the horizons of his cultivation and tastes, Dalin set off, in the company of his pupil, Baron Rålamb's son, on a tour through Germany and France, in 1739-1740. Upon his return, the shifting political life at home caused him to write his famous satirical allegories, Sagan om Hästen and Aprilverk (1738), that were very popular and inspired countless imitations. During the early part of his life, he was universally admitted to be facile princeps among the Swedish poets of his time. His dramas were also of interest, particularly his comedy of Den afvundsjuke (1738). He also wrote a tragedy, Brynilda (1759), and a pastoral in three scenes upon King Adolphus Frederick's return from Finland. His didactic epos of Svenska Friheten appeared in 1742. Hitherto, Addison and Alexander Pope had been his models. In this work he draws his inspiration from Thomson, whose poem, Liberty, he emulated. In 1742, he was made a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Dalin started publishing his Swedish history, Svea Rikes Historia in 1747. He would die before this work was complete. On the accession of King Adolphus Frederick of Sweden in 1751, Dalin received the post of Tutor to the crown prince – afterwards Gustavus III. He had enjoyed the confidence of Queen Louisa Ulrika, sister of Frederick the Great of Prussia, while she was crown princess, and she now made him secretary of the Swedish Academy of Letters, founded by her in 1753. His position at court involved him in the queen's political intrigues, and separated him to a vexatious degree from the studies wherein he had hitherto been absorbed. He held the post of Tutor to the crown prince until 1756, when he was arrested on suspicion of taking part in the attempted coup d'état that year, and was tried for his life before the diet. He was acquitted, but was forbidden to show himself at court on any pretense. This period of exile, lasting until 1761, Dalin spent in the preparation of the third volume of his great historical work, the Svea Rikes historia, that related events up to the death of King Charles IX of Sweden in 1611. The first two volumes appeared in 1746-1750; the third, in two parts, in 1760-1762. Dalin had been made a noble in 1751, and made privy councillor in 1753. In 1761, he once more took his place at court. During his exile, however, his spirit and his health had been broken. In a fit of panic, he had destroyed some manuscripts of his best unpublished works, and this he constantly brooded over. In 1763, he died at his house in Drottningholm.
Posthumous works
Posthumous works
In the year 1767, his writings in belles lettres were issued in six volumes, edited by his half brother, J. C. Bökman. Amid an enormous mass of occasional verses, anagrams, epigrams, impromptus and the like, his satires and serious poems were almost buried. But some of these former, even, are found to be songs of remarkable grace and delicacy, and many display a love of natural scenery, and a knowledge of its forms.
Selected works
Selected works
Brynilda (1738) Den afwundsiuke (1738) Sagan om hästen (1740) Swenska friheten (1742) Svea rikes historia (Volume 1-4, 1747–1762) Witterhets-Arbeten (Volume 1-6, 1767; postumt)
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1708
Olof von Dalin was born in 1708 at Vinberg parish.
1763
Olof von Dalin died in 1763 at Drottningholm Palace.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Vinberg parish.
Birth place
Drottningholm Palace.
Death place
Olof von Dalin Society
The Olof von Dalin Society was founded in 1995 at Dalin's native Vinberg near Falkenberg, Sweden. Its mission is to encourage the study, appreciation and understanding of Olof von Dalin, his works, his life and his times.
Other sources
Other sources
Carlsson, Ingemar Olof von Dalin - Samhällsdebattör, Historiker, Språkförnyare (CAL-förlaget. Falkenberg 1997) Carlsson, Ingemar Olof von Dalin som tecknare (Förlag Utsikten, Falkenberg 2003) Warburg, Karl Johan, Olof Dalin: Hans life och gerning: Litterturhistorisk Avhandling (Stockholm: Norstedt, 1884) Wikander, Ruth Studier över stil och språk i Dalins Argus (Uppsala: Appelberg, 1924)

Olof von Dalin porträtterad av Johan Henrik Scheffel, avfotograferad porträttbild från Allhems Svenskt konstnärslexikon.
Johan Henrik Scheffel · Svenskt konstnärslexikon

uploaded from Portrattarkiv.se
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Dalin, Olof von (Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon)
- 2.EB1911 y Dalin, Olof von 7 767
- 3.Skriftställare. Olof Dalin (Svensk litteraturhistoria i sammandrag)
- 4.Olof von Dalin - Public Debater, Historian, Renewer of the Swedish Language.
- 5.Andrew Ramsay’s and Olof Dalin’s influence on the Romantic Interpretation of Old Norse Mythology (Lars Lönnroth. Gothenburg University)
References
Citations
References
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reference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q1373367: Olof von DalinWikimedia Foundation
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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