Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1881-05-12
A Forgotten Assassination.

| To-day, "the Car sleeps !" 1t has
been said that since the day when
Henry ~. fell under the knife of Raw
aillac, no assassin has been successful
in his attacks on royalty. That is not
true. Gustavus Adolphus Ill, king Of
Sweden, fell MORALLY wounded by a
masked assassin at ball given in this
kings honor on March IS, 1892. Gus
| tavus had made himself absolute, and
overthrow the aristocracy. Ankar-
strom. then a ''fedrikar" in the Blue
Guards, was the avenger, but the plot
was widespread. He escaped for the
time-a very short time. Pistols found
in the ball room were declared 10y a
gunsmith to have been ordered by him
from England. Ankarstrom was asleep
in bed when the lieutenant of the po-
lice took him. This man, Jilensparre,
then proceeded to arrest others, who,
since the ball at the opera house, had
been going about talking loudly, and
asserting that the kings assassination
was only the work of some French rev.
olutionist. One had the audacity to
come to court; but as the presumpt-
Gus lie passed his lips, at is among
the French we should seek the culprt,"
a heavy hand was laid on his shoulder,
and the Baron d'Armfelt replied, "to
the shame of my country, it is Swed
ish noble who has done the deed-one
of the Blue Guards p as he discover
ed, said the man, after a pause. "Yes,"
replied NJ. de Jiliensparre, fixing his
eyes upon him, Il arrest you, Count
Ribung, as his accomphce. Other
arrests followed. One man hung him
self as the soldiers surrounded his
house; Baron Bjeike was found pos-
oned in his room; Gustavus was 50
deeply hurt at the treachery displayed
| by some whom he had known that he
| declared he wished TO know no names.
Mortally wounded, he fingered for
many hours, displaying great tirmness
and the utmost self-pOssession. He
passed away early in the morning of
March %, 1792-that month which now
thrice has witnessed the violent death
of sovereigns-Julius Caesar, Gustavus
Adolphus III, and Alexander II.
BY tn 18th of April the trials were
over. Three mobiles were banished ,
some were acquitted, others pronounc-
ed mot proven guilty.; but Ankar-
strom, the strange assassin, heard his
| fearful sentence with the most aston
ishing sangfroid. Il wished to kill the
| the.king, but not to torment him." he
said, and turned to his psalmbook, be-
| lieving himself to be martyr, sure of
an eternal reward. When the salyos
of artillery announced the kings death,
he threw himself on his knees" thank
God he suffers no more, and my task
has been accomplished"
The punishment Of Ankarstrom last
ed for four days; three times he en-
dured fifteen blows at different places
| in the city on three consecutive days /;
the sufferings caused were described as
great, yet he maintained his compos-
ure. On the fourth day, first his hand
then his head was cut off his remains
were quartered and left exposed on
four wheels. As he considered himself
martyr his party made this his shrine,
tall at last the government had the
bones removed. 1t is added by the BIZ
ographer that the sound party OF the
once-affronted nobility forgave Gusta :
vus for the abolition Of the Senate in
1772, for the triple reason that his
administration had been glorious
abroad, firm at home, and that he had
been chivalrous and honorable in most
of his dealings A melancholy halo
surrounded his end, and a sufferer must
always meet with the sympathie8 of
his fellow workmen.
1t has been thought that this short
account of the end of a conspiracy
might be of interest to the public now
as it seems to have been entirely for
gotten just at present,
L IL ,,nr,. nzn Cr,rrc,nr,l IL L., 4,