Inheritance and wealth accumulation among Sweden’s business elite. The case of the Ekman family (1800–1950)

This article investigates how inheritance shapes wealth accumulation and distribution within Sweden’s business elite. It focuses on the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a period characterised by rapid industrialisation, expanding financial markets, and the creation of massive wealth. Through the study of the Ekman family, we explore how intergenerational transfers, family networks, and individual agency interacted in the creation and preservation of large fortunes. Building on research describing a shift in the nineteenth century from vertically oriented, lineage-based kinship structures toward more horizontally organised family networks, we ask whether such patterns can be observed in a prominent Swedish business family, and whether they affected long-term wealth accumulation and elite persistence over time. The study relies on a genealogical approach to reconstruct wealth trajectories across four generations. The method enables detailed analysis of asset composition, the role of family businesses, and the impact of inheritance on individual outcomes. To assess the importance of inherited versus self-created wealth, we also compare capitalised inheritances with wealth at death. The analysis suggests that financial assets rather than land constituted the core of the Ekman fortune, enabling flexible transfers and shared ownership across generations. Wills generally prescribed equal division and strengthened the position of spouses, reinforcing horizontal relations within the family. Inheritance was therefore widely distributed rather than concentrated. The article concludes that the Ekman family represents a hybrid wealth regime in which inheritance was essential, but success depended on the interaction between horizontal family networks and personal agency. This micro-level perspective contributes to broader debates on elite persistence, family, and wealth in modern Scandinavia.