The fullest biographic information available on Carl Gustaf Dahlberg is that provided by Paulin (1951: pp. 95-102). There seems to be no portrait available.
Dahlberg must have been born in 1721 or late 1720.
It seems like Dahlberg participated in the Swedish war on Russia in Finland 1741-1743. He received much merit for action during an internal revolt in Stockholm in 1743, while serving as an artillery trainee. He later entered Dutch service, became lieutenant-colonel and married a Dutch widow (in 1746 apparently) through whom he acquired considerable land and plantations in Surinam, making him a man of extraordinary wealth.
Dahlberg visited Sweden in 1754-1755, carrying with him considerable zoological and botanical collections, apparently from Surinam, which he presented to King Adolf Fredrik and which were then exhibited in the Drottningholm Castle according to Paulin. It seems unlikely that this material was included in Museum Adolphi Friderici volume I (1754), but some specimens may have been used for the second volume (1764).
Dahlberg sponsored Daniel Rolander's travel and stay in Surinam in 1755-1756. Also Charles de Geer provided financial support to Rolander.
Dahlberg visited Sweden in 1762 and brought natural history collections with him.
In 1771 Dahlberg came with his wife to Amsterdam, returning to Surinam at the turn of the year 1775-1776. On this occasion he obviously sent a large collection of plants in spirits-of-wine to the king of Sweden. Adolf Fredrik, however, died in 1771, and was succeeded by his son, Gustaf III, who did not take any interest in natural history.
Dahlberg received the Order of the Sword (svärdsorden) from Sweden on 27 November 1775.
Dahlberg and his wife celebrated their Silver Wedding in Surinam on March 27, 1776.
Dahlberg occurs in Linnaeus's letters, as donor of scientific collections to the king as well as to institutions under Linnaeus. The 1771 donation was obviously forwarded to Linnaeus.
Dahlberg died on 6 December 1781 in Surinam, aged 60. He was then Supreme Court judge in Surinam.
The plant Dahlbergia is named for Carl Gustaf Dahlberg.
Adolf Fredrik's Russian connection (mostly from Nationalencyklopedin)
Adolf Fredrik of Holstein-Gottorp (1710-1771) was prince bishop of Lübeck 1727-1750, and administrator of the Duchy of Holstein-Gottorp 1739-1745 (his older brother was the duke). Adolf Fredrik was elected king of Sweden on 23 June 1743, and entered in service in 1751, remaining till his death (except for five days in 1768). In 1744 he married Lovisa Ulrika, sister of Fredrik II, and she became Queen of Sweden. The choice of Adolf Fredrik as Swedish king was enforced by Elisabet of Russia, who in exchange abstained from occupying Russia after the Swedish-Russian war in 1741-1743, which Sweden lost. Politically, Adolf Fredrik leaned first on Elisabet, but later he became a francophile. Holstein-Gottorp is incorporated in Denmark since 1773.
Elisabet was of the Romanov family, empress of Russia 1741-1762, succeeded by Peter III of the Gottorp-Holstein-Romanov branch.
The Holstein-Gottorp family, a branch of the Oldenburg family, penetrated the Swedish and Russian royal or imperial families extensively, in Sweden first with Kristina (1573-1625), married to Karl IX of Sweden, and in Russia from Karl Fredrik (1700-1739), married to Anna of Russia.
Adolf Fredrik's uncle, Fredrik IV (1671-1702), duke of Holstein-Gottorp, was married to Hedvig Sofia (1681-1708), daughter of Karl XI of Sweden. Their grandson, Peter II (1728-62) was emperor of Russia (1762), and married to Katarina II (1729-1796), empress of Russia 1762-1796. Katarina II was a niece of Adolf Fredrik.
There were thus strong family bonds between the Russian and Swedish royal/imperial families.
References
Paulin, A. 1951. Svenska öden i Sydamerika. Norstedts, Stockholm, 618 pp.
Nationalencyklopedin. 1992. Band 9. (Holstein-Gottorp, pp. 86-87).
Written by Sven O Kullander, © Sven O Kullander, 1998.