Sven Adolf Hedlund was born on the island of Eldgarn, now in
Ekerö Municipality at
Mälaren,
Stockholm County, Sweden, He was the son of the farmer Carl Adolf Hedlund and his wife Regina (
née Björner). He earned a
Bachelor of Arts degree in 1845 from
Uppsala University. Hedlund was elected as a
Member of Parliament, representing
Gothenburg Municipality in the lower house from 1867 to 1869 and from 1879 to 1883. He later represented
Gothenburg and Bohus County in the upper house from 1875 to 1876, and
Kristianstad County from 1886 to 1889. During his first period in the parliament Hedlund opposed the agrarian
Lantmanna Party, which put him in opposition to the liberal government of
Prime Minister Louis De Geer. Although he later decided to side with the party he never became a devoted party member. Both as a publisher and politician, Hedlund was a prominent proponent of liberal reforms. He was a strong proponent of political liberties such as
freedom of speech,
freedom of religion and
free trade. He also supported the Swedish representative reform of 1866, in which the old
Estates Assembly was replaced with a
bicameral parliament. Hedlund was also active as a local politician and served in the Gothenburg Municipal Council for over thirty years. As such he contributed to the reforms and establishment of many local institutions, particularly in the educational system. He was a force behind the founding of
Gothenburg Museum in 1861 and a proponent behind the establishment of the
University of Gothenburg (
Göteborgs högskola) in 1887.{{cite web|url= https://runeberg.org/nfbj/0495.html ==Personal life==