Born: 1823 (Stockholm, Sweden)
Died: 1898
Biography:
Rosalie Ulrika Olivecrona, née Roos (December 9, 1823 – June 4, 1898), was a Swedish feminist activist and writer. She is one of the three great pioneers of the organized women’s rights movement in Sweden, alongside Fredrika Bremer and Sophie Adlersparre.
Rosalie Ulrika Roos was born into a wealthy family. She grew up in Stockholm and was among the first students at the Wallinska flickskolan in Stockholm, one of the oldest girls’ school in Sweden dating to 1831. The family moved in 1839 to Sjogeris at the foot of the mountainous plateau, Mösseberg in Västergötland.
One of her friends, Hulda Hahr, was a teacher at a girls’ school in Limestone, a town near Charleston, South Carolina, United States, and offered her a position at the school. In 1851, she traveled to the United States and stayed there for four years. Roos initially worked as a French teacher at the school in Limestone before becoming a governess at the plantation of two of her students, Eliza and Annie Peronneau. During her time in the United States, she wrote a description of her stay and the culture of the American South.
Although she did not witness any physical abuse of slaves herself, Roos considered slavery to be unnatural and emotionally disgusting. She was convinced that its abolition was inevitable, although it would face significant resistance. In 1855, she returned to Sweden.
In 1859, Olivecrona co-founded the paper Tidskrift för hemmet (Journal for the Home) with her friend Sophie Adlersparre and with financial support from Fredrika Limnell. This feminist publication advocated for women’s rights, particularly the right to higher education and professional opportunities. Olivecrona and Adlersparre wrote many of the articles themselves. The paper was published in Stockholm from 1859 to 1885.
In 1861, Olivecrona and Adlersparre embarked on a journey through Germany, France, England, Scotland, and Ireland to compare the feminist movements in these countries. They reported that the movement in Germany and France was relatively unknown compared to Great Britain.
In 1864, Olivecrona played a significant role in the founding of Svenska Röda Korset (Swedish Red Cross) alongside Adlersparre, General Major Rudebeck, and Dr. Lemchen.
On a personal level, Olivecrona married Knut Olivecrona, a widower who was a Swedish lawyer, statesman, and professor. Knut Olivecrona was a professor of law at Uppsala University and later served as a Supreme Court Justice and a member of the International Court of Justice at The Hague. Rosalie moved to Uppsala and became a stepmother to her husband’s son and three daughters. They also had a daughter and a son together.
Rosalie Olivecrona played a crucial role in the women’s rights movement in Sweden, using her writing and activism to advocate for equal rights and opportunities for women. Her work, alongside that of Bremer and Adlersparre, laid the foundation for future advancements in women’s rights in Sweden.