Verner von Heidenstam

Verner von Heidenstam (1859-1940), Swedish poet and novelist, winner of the Nobel Prize for literature in 1916. In his works, Heidenstam evoked the heroism and grandeur of Sweden's past in an effort to incite his contemporaries to embrace their heritage.

Heidenstam was born to an aristocratic family in Olshammar, on Lake Vättern, Sweden. As a child, he divided his time between Olshammar and the Swedish capital, Stockholm, where he attended an exclusive boys' school. His poor health prompted his parents to withdraw him from school at the age of 17 and send him on an extended trip to the Near East and Greece. The literary results of Heidenstam's travels in that region were Från Col di Tenda till Blocksberg (From Col di Tenda to Blocksberg, 1888), a book of sketches, and Vallfart och vandringsaar (Pilgrimage and Wanderyears, 1888), a volume of poetry.

Heidenstam's next works, Renässans (Renaissance, 1889) and Pepitas bröllop (Pepita's Wedding, coauthored with Oskar Levertin, 1890), are credited with bringing about a new era in Swedish literature. These novels broke with the naturalist literary movement of the 1880s, which stressed objectivity. Heidenstam sought instead to revive the romanticism of the mid-19th century, which focused on idealized visions of rural life and the importance of history and tradition.

Heidenstam's most highly regarded lyrical poems are his two patriotic tributes to his homeland, Dikter (Poems, 1895) and Nya Dikter (New Poems, 1915).