Mariana Koskull

"[2] Koskull was given a good education and, thanks to her rank, was appointed hovfröken (maid of honour) to Queen Charlotte, thus acquiring one of few professions socially acceptable for a noblewoman.

She was a good harp player, and often played the main part in the amateur theatre at court at special occasions and festivities, during which she was described as having as much talent as a professional actress.

On 28 January 1811, Koskull participated to great acclaim in an amateur performance of The Barber of Seville, which was given by members of the nobility at the Royal Palace in honor of the king's name day and the arrival of the crown princess.

The affair reportedly started after Charles John's wife Désirée Clary left Sweden for France in 1811, and after the crown prince had first unsuccessfully courted Koskull's cousin Aurora Wilhelmina Brahe.

[4] In June 1815, Queen Charlotte summarized the relationship between Koskull, Charles XIII, Crown Prince and Prince Oscar in her journal: Marianne Koskull is not a true beauty but looks quite good, is thoughtless, vain, wishes only to amuse herself and is spoiled by having been commonly admired.

He wanted to keep this a secret and show all outwardly modesty, but Miss Koskull was so flattered to be in his favor that she was constantly bragging about it, flaunting magnificent jewelry of such value that they could only have come from the Crown Prince.

A crushing remark, when you consider the decrepit state of the King and the fact that Prince Oscar is so young that he could barely enjoy the pleasures of love as yet.

[5]Her position made her courted by supplicants but also other influential people: statesman count Johan Christopher Toll courted her influence, not only because she was a royal mistress, but also because she was related to countess Aurora Wilhelmina Brahe, who was the well-liked stepmother of the royal favorite Magnus Brahe (1790–1844).

[6] Koskull was appointed to the position of kammarfröken (senior maid of honour), the highest post possible for an unmarried noblewoman of the royal household, which she kept until her death.

[6] The queen seldom had any influence over who was appointed to her household, but the position of lady-in-waiting did not necessarily force her to spend time with any lady-in-waiting she disliked, and the position gave Koskull a high income and a legitimate reason to remain at court and live a comfortable life.

After the queen and the crown princess were installed, the formal representational court life was revived in Sweden and Koskull was no longer an official mistress of the king, and it is noted that she moved out of her grand apartments in the Royal Palace, which illustrated her position as an official mistress, to a more modest one befitting a normal lady-in-waiting.

[8] Whether the relationship between Koskull and Charles XIV John actually discontinued, or if it was simply conducted discreetly after this, is not known, but she is no longer mentioned in the position as his mistress after 1823.