Severin Lorich

Severin Lorich began as a soldier, commanding a detachment on Swedish Saint Barthélemy in 1815–1816 before traveling through the Caribbean and the United States. His travels brought him into contact with the independence movements of Spanish America. A later report described meeting Simón Bolívar in Haiti while Bolívar was preparing another expedition to the mainland. ¹

In 1823 Sweden sent Lorich to Gran Colombia to explore commercial arrangements without committing to formal recognition of independence. He negotiated with foreign minister Pedro Gual over shipping, port charges, and consular privileges, but no treaty resulted. He subsequently served as consul in Philadelphia and, from 1834, New York. His report on Colombia surveyed its institutions, trade, finances, and military resources. He died in Washington in 1837. ¹