During the Age of Liberty of the Swedish 18th century, decline of monarchical power led to an increase in the importance of the Council of the Realm and the Riksdag.

The Ostrobothnian priest Anders Chydenius was a driving force and author behind one of the three pleas for freedom of the press submitted to parliament.

[3] In his writing, he concludes:No evidence should be needed that a certain freedom of writing and printing is one of the strongest bulwarks of a free organization of the state, as, without it, the estates would not have sufficient information for the drafting of good laws, and those dispensing justice would not be monitored, nor would the subjects know the requirements of the law, the limits of the rights of government, and their responsibilities.

The adoption of the law therefore depended on the clergy, who voted in favour under the condition that prior censorship was maintained for religious writings.

In 1772, he restored royal power through a military coup and as a consequence the freedom of the press was only exercised with caution by authors and printers.

It was not until the dethronement of King Gustav IV Adolf in 1809 that freedom of the press was finally restored through § 86 of the new Instrument of Government issued the same year:Freedom of the press refers to every Swedish man’s right to publish writings without any obstacles imposed by public authorities in advance; to, subsequently, only be prosecuted for the content of ones writings before a court of law, and to not be punished unless the content violates defined laws issued to maintain public order, without hindering general enlightenment.This provision was elaborated in a detailed Freedom of the Press Act in 1810, which was revised in 1812.