| Surname: | Fersen |
| Caption: | Coat of arms granted to the Barons Fersen |
| Type: | Noble family |
| Origin: | Niedersachsen |
| Country: | Germany, Prussia, Russian Empire and Sweden |
| Region: | Northern Europe (mainly Estonia, Latvia, Germany and Sweden) |
| Early Forms: | Versen |
The Fersen family, stylized as the von Fersen (German: Versen), is a Baltic-German noble family grouped into several ennobled branches that settled in and around the kingdoms bordering the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe.[1] The most well-known holders of the surname settled in modern day Sweden and Livonia (modern day Latvia and Estonia) which was once part of the Swedish Empire, and later of the Russian Empire.
The family was first mentioned in the historical region of Pomerania in the 13th century.
The earliest records of the Fersen family in Livonia area in the late 17th century suggest possible links to earlier participation in the Northern Wars; service in Northern Europe was commonplace and Scots had served in great numbers in the series of Northern Wars, whose onset was marked by an invasion of Livonia by Ivan the Terrible in 1558. More secure is their participation in the Thirty Years' War (1619–1648). The official alliances of the Stuart regime, the independent diplomacy of the Scottish Parliament, and the actions of numerous well placed individuals at various European courts combined to make Scotland one of the prime providers of military manpower in Europe, with some 50,000 Scots fighting between 1618 and 1640.[2] After the 1629 peace of Lübeck, many left to join substantial numbers of their compatriots in the Swedish army. During the 1620s the number of Scots serving in the Swedish army is estimated at around 20,000.[3]
The Estonian branch of the Fersen family possessed several manor houses.
The Swedish branch of the Fersen family originally derived from the line in Livonia. After moving to Sweden, some of its members were awarded Countships for gallant military acts. This line is best known through its line of distinguished military service[4] and for Axel von Fersen the Younger's possible love affair with Marie Antionette, suggested in court accounts and a recently uncovered series of "torrid" love letters.[5]