Trolle was born in 1863.[1] He worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in various capacities.[2] Trolle was appointed minister of foreign affairs in 1905 which he held until 1909.[2] Then he served as the Swedish envoy to German Empire between 1909 and 1912.[2] In 1912 he was named as the governor of Östergötland County and remained in the office until his resignation in 1930.[3] Next he was made the Marshal of the Realm in 1930.[2]
He married Alice Trolle (1872–1953) in 1893, and they had two children.[2] Eric Trolle died of pneumonia at the Mössebergs sanatorium in Stockholm in 1934 while serving as Reich Marshal.[2]