Baltzar von Platen, creator of Göta Canal, never got the chance to see it finished.
Von Platen managed to come to the decision about building the canal, and he managed thanks to stubborness, vast knowledges, great fantasy and important connections throughout the Swedish sociaty to keep the work going. He did live to see the inauguration of the western section of the canal in 1822, but the eastern part was not finished until 1832 and von Platen died in Kristiania on December 6th 1829. But thanks to the inaugurator king Karl XIV Johan, Baltzar von Platen had a leading part of the solemn act.
At the dethbed von Platen asked for a calm and peaceful funeral. He did not get that.
To honour his memory a grand grave memorial was built on the canal embankment in Motala where he was buried with vast marks of honour on February 7th 1830, acompanied by a salute from 800 soldiers.
Read more about Baltzar von Platen and other canal builders.
Click here to get back to the Göta Canal page.
This page was modified at