the svea court of appeal in the early modern period 330 tional objectives and means still remained. In 1655, for instance, Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie, head of the Treasury (riksskattmästare) at the time, suggested that students should clearly choose a theological or state-oriented path at university, so that their training would be more specialised. This proposal was not realised, however. Many suggestions were made concerning the education of noblemen as well.968 Some perspective on anobleman’s view on education as well as the close connections between administration, judiciary and commerce can be found in Schering Rosenhane’s advice to his son Johan (1642 – 1710) in 1660. Rosenhane encouraged him to study in the Netherlands and focus on questions of commerce. He felt that a practical education was necessary for a nobleman, and the way to obtain it was through study abroad. Johan Rosenhane ended up working at the Board of Commerce and later the Wismar Tribunal, so his father’s advice seems to have beenworth taking.969 The first decades of the court coincide with Sweden’s rise as a great power in Europe, expanding both territorially as well as economically.970 This, of course made a functioning diplomacy essential during the seventeenth century, and many of the brightest men were often sent on diplomatic missions.971 Accordingly, many of the (noble) judges had taken part in foreign journeys as legates or being members of embassies. Legal knowledge was essential to have successful negotiations, and many of the learned men of the seventeenth century were assessors of the Svea Court of Appeal. Sweden’s new position in Europe affected the courts as well. Active commerce threw up cases with international aspects, as did the incorporation of new territories. Complicated cases from Reval and Livonia were coming to the court in its early years, making an understanding of the ius commune important.972 Academically trained judges were therefore needed, and this gave the impulse in 1626 for hiring Bengt Crusius, doctor of laws from Giessen University and professor of law at the University of Upp968 Edlund, P.J. 1956, pp. 183-196, 239-268. 969 Göransson, Sven 1951 pp. 69-71; Mörner, Magnus – Skoglund, Lars-Olof 1998-2000. 970 See, e.g., Villstrand, Nils Erik 2011 pp. 90-148. 971 Roberts, Michael 1953 p. 275. 972 Petrén, Sture 1966 p. 267. For the role of the ius commune in Livonia, see Pihlajamäki, Heikki 2007a pp. 68-70, 79. Foreign Policy and the Law
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