An heir to the crown!
The war against Denmark was finally over. The Danes ceded control over all their lands, except for the islands in the Sund. Sweden’s rule now extended over all Scandinavia, Iceland and Greenland. King Fnuco was beginning to see new possibilities of colonizing in the new world. Sweden’s glory will be taken to new heights… but not by him… 60 years of age, he was already an old man, and getting his beautiful young Russian wife pregnant was already a miracle.
Walking through the large halls of the newly built palace in Göteborg, he was waiting for his physician to give him an update on his wife’s state. They were expecting a child, and Fnuco prayed every night that it be a boy, an heir to whom he could leave his most magnificent work: the kingdom of Sweden.
“Come, your Majesty. The queen has entered labor.” The physician approached him running.
When the king entered the queen’s chamber, he could only see the royal family’s doctors swarming around the queen’s bed, trying to aid her in this delicate moment. The queen’s cries could be heard throughout the whole palace, as obviously producing an heir to the king was no easy task.
As loud as the mother’s screams were, Fnuco heard one sound. One lovely, unmistakable, promising, hope-giving, life-saving sound. The cry of a newborn baby.
“It’s a boy!” the doctor said, handing him to king Fnuco, after cutting his umbilical cord.
The same phrase was heard in the room, then in the halls, then in the entire palace. A loud gunshot was heard, the first of 101 to announce the birth of a Prince of Jutland. If the child had been a girl, she would have become princess of Gotland, and only 50 gunshots would be fired. To all the people in Goteborg that day, the pause between the 50th and the 51st gunshots was painstakingly long, and it seemed the gunners tried to enhance the suspense by firing the 51st shot with a small delay. Needless to say the 51st shot was greeted with loud cheers, shouts, cries, and prayers of gratitude, as a male heir meant no instability when the king would pass away. A male heir meant a strong Sweden. A male heir meant hope.
King Fnuco was holding his child, looking at him with immense joy. A smile enlightened the king’s wrinkled sun-burnt face. His son! His successor! The future king of Sweden, Denmark and Norway!
“Wait! We are not finished here!” the doctor said.
“Oh my god! Twins?” the queen cried in agony.
The king looked up from the baby and stared quizzically at the physician.
The doctor turned to the king and said:
“N-no, it’s a… ummm… map… of…. The Baltic…”