She is known for her affair with Nicholas I of Russia.
She was the daughter of the Swedish nobleman Gustavus Adolphus Rutenskiöld (1758-1802) and Ulrika Charlotta Stenborg.
She served as a lady-in-waiting to the Swedish queen Frederica of Baden, who was married to Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden, and when Gustav IV Adolf was deposed in 1809, she continued her service to Frederica in Karlsruhe.
She was subsequently employed by Frederica's sister Elizabeth Alexeievna (Louise of Baden), empress of Russia.