Source:
Christina, Queen of Sweden, pages 97 to 117, by Francis William Bain, 1890; original at the University of Connecticut Library
Kristina's letter of January 5/15 (Old Style), 1644 to Karl Gustav is here:
The account:
The fame that Christina acquired by her personal qualities, her generous and universal patronage of learning and the learned, and her commanding position as head of the leading Protestant power, brought numerous suitors into the field for her hand. This had long been the subject of anxious consideration. Of these aspirants, the two sons of Christian IV. of Denmark are first to be noticed, Prince Ulric and Prince Frederick. Their alliance was supposed to have been favoured by the Queen-mother; we have already seen her close connection with Denmark. But however eagerly their suit might have been pressed, there was never the slightest probability that it should succeed: the relations between the two countries put such a match out of the question — Oxenstiern himself assured the Senate that any attempt to press this matter might lead to civil war, and endanger the life and crown of the young Queen, who never showed, moreover, the slightest inclination for it.
More important were the proposals of the Elector of Brandenburgh. This had been a project dear to the heart of Gustavus Adolphus. In a letter of the Chancellor's to the Senate, dated Berlin, February 4, 1633, he writes: "His Majesty of Christian memory, when he was a year ago at Frankfort-on-the-Maine, himself proposed to the commissioners of the Elector of Brandenburgh a match between his daughter and the young Elector, and commanded me to communicate further regarding it with the envoys, as I have also done several times. .... The principal reason was that His Majesty would not cede Pomerania, and yet found that it could not be kept without notable detriment and great umbrage to the Elector of Brandenburgh; next[,] that the King also perceived that if Sweden and Brandenburgh with their dependencies could be conjoined, hardly such a state could be found in Europe, and they might offer the headship to whom they would." This fine scheme was viewed with great jealousy and disapproval by all the Powers except England and Holland: but the soldiers in the Swedish army were already drinking healths to the young couple when Gustavus died, and the project died with him.
Under the pretext of settling the difficulties connected with the Queen-mother's escape to Denmark, the Elector sent an embassy to Sweden in 1641 to make final proposals. The Regents, however, who had no longer any intention of pursuing the design, fearing the foreign influence of German Princes, put him off with fine words; and although from time to time he made various attempts to reopen the subject, at length, in 1646, he recognised his suit was hopeless, and married a Princess of Orange. It was hinted by the Chancellor's enemies that he had expressly prevented this marriage in order to make the way clear for his son Eric; we have already seen that, whatever truth there might have been in these malicious insinuations, the only effect of them was to sow dissension between Christina and the Oxenstierns, and that the Chancellor had to write to his son, recommending him to marry in order to give the lie to scandal.
Besides these, there were at different times proposals, more or less serious, set on foot in favour of Philip IV. of Spain, King John of Portugal, the three sons of Sigismund, King of Poland, the King of Hungary, Don John of Austria, and others, all of which were, for obvious political or religious reasons, palpably absurd, and came to nothing. But of all the suitors of Christina, the one who seemed to be most in favour, both with herself and the Swedes, was Charles Gustavus, the Prince Palatine, her cousin. Brought up[,] as she was[,] by his mother, the Princess Catharine, for whom she always had a great affection, Christina had from her youth up been accustomed to consider Charles as her future husband; in their children's play, they would call themselves husband and wife; Christina promised in this way to marry him when they were grown up. Yet such a plan would no doubt be considered and approved by the Princess Catharine and her husband: to this doubtless refers the dangerous question which he put to the Regents, when he applied them to direct him how his children should be educated; they answered that it was his own affair and not that of the State. Charles Gustavus, after travelling abroad for two years, returned to Sweden in 1640, and was viewed by the Regents, who were doubtless aware of his schemes, with great disfavour: it was apparent to Christina that he must go away again for a time. She wrote to his father that everybody was surprised "at the tracasseries which had been shown to his son, and that whatever may be his father's reasons for not wishing him to come to him, she, at least, perceives that he cannot remain at Stockholm consistently with his good fame, for fear lest they may push things to a rude conclusion with him": and again, "Providence, which knows better than ourselves what is good for us, will be able to set bounds to this iniquitous affair, and turn it to our advantage." Accordingly[,] Charles Gustavus went to Germany, and distinguished himself greatly in the war, especially at Jankowitz, where he was almost killed, being shot through the hair, hat, and clothes.
That Christina had at this time a great affection for him is proved by the following letter, dated January 5th, 1644: —
"BELOVED KINSMAN, — I see by your letters that you do not dare to commit your thoughts to the pen. Yet we can write to one another with all freedom, if you will send me the key to a cipher, and compose your letters according to it, and put the initials C. R. on the address as well as inside, sealing it at the same time with a different seal expressly devised for that purpose, as I do with mine. The letters can then be sent to your sister, the Princess Maria. We must observe every possible precaution, for people have never been so much against us as now. But they shall effect nothing, if only you will remain as firm as I hope. People talk a great deal about the Elector, but neither he nor anyone else in the world, rich as he may be, shall ever turn me from you. My love is so strong that it can only be overcome by death; and if, which God forbid, you should die before me, my heart shall be dead for every other, but its memory and affection shall follow you to eternity, and there abide with you. It may be that some one will advise you to demand my hand now and openly, but I implore you by all that is sacred to have patience for yet a year, till you have won more experience in war, and I myself have got the crown on my head. I beg you not to let yourself think the time too long, but to remember the old saying, 'He waits not too long who waits for something good.' I hope, with God's help, that it may be a good we both wait for."
These tender feelings, however, were destined not to last: from this time a great change came over Christina's mind. Her letters gradually became colder, she assures the prince of her continued affection provided he keeps within bounds. In proportion as she seemed inclined to draw back, Charles grew even more eager. On his return to Sweden he pressed her eagerly to declare herself. It was the common opinion that she would marry him; it was[,] moreover[,] becoming a point of importance with the Estates in order to ensure the succession, now that Christina was of ripe age. In 1647 the clergy and the two lower Orders presented a petition recommending her to marry; the nobles, who were by no means so anxious, stipulating that no special person should be named: they would have been very well pleased to see things continue as they were, and were particularly unwilling to further the claims of Charles. The Queen, though she received the petition generously, said that at the moment she had no inclination to marry, yet inquired whether, should she make choice of the Prince, he would be acceptable to the Estates. They answered, Yes, and the matter remained there.
In the meantime, Charles felt himself in a very ambigious position. The more he pressed her, the more she recoiled. In 1647, she signified to him her intention of appointing him Generalissimo of the Armies in Germany. But the Prince was determined not to go without gaining a definite declaration from her on the subject next to his heart. This Christina would not give; when he thereupon informed her that in that case the earlier he left for the war the better, she replied that he must then remain satisfied with his ordinary rank. Nevertheless, she applied herself to his appointment with interest, and succeeded in carrying it against the opposition of the Chancellor and High Marshal. Charles Gustavus endeavoured to shake her resolution in a remarkable conversation which he had with her in the presence of Matthiæ and the Count Magnus de la Gardie. The Queen informed him that she could give him no promise to marry him; she would[,] however[,] promise not to marry any one else; and further, that if she finally determined never to marry, she would cause him to be appointed her successor to the throne; more she could not do. The Prince declared emphatically that if he did not marry her[,] all was indifferent to him; he would never return to Sweden. The Queen angrily retorted, that all this was mere romance; he must recollect he was born for higher things than idling about on his paternal estate, and prepare to apply himself to his duty. When he referred to her childish promises, she told him that she did not consider herself bound by promises made at a time when she was incapable of recognising the seriousness of the position; he must be content with what she had said, and consider it an honour, should he die before gaining his hopes, that he had ever been considered worthy of such a fortune. Charles ungenerously taunted her with the reports that had been spread of her marriage with Eric Oxenstiern, and said it did not apparently need much honour to aspire to her hand. This irritated the Queen, who declared he was unworthy of what she had done for him. The further expostulations of the Prince could not succeed in drawing from her anything more definite than what she had already told him; to his demand that he might be allowed to write to her, she replied that he had her permission to correspond with his father and Matthiæ. They parted on these terms; yet when the Prince embarked for his post, she followed him with her eyes as far as possible from the terrace of her castle.
What now were the reasons which determined Christina against marriage? They were not merely personal. Charles Gustavus was a man of daring courage and ambition, and, if Christina in jest used to call him "the little Burgomaster", she seems always to have preserved a respect and affection for him. It was said, indeed, with what truth we cannot determine, that she had heard rumours of his liaisons with other women, which were not likely to impress her proud spirit in his favour. Further, Chanut tells us, that Christina, before her resignation in 1654, sent to Charles Gustavus to say that Count Magnus (then in disgrace) was unworthy of his affection or compassion, inasmuch as he had been a false friend to him while in favour. She wished him to know that her not having married him was owing to the Count, who had inspired her with a special aversion to the Prince. This is by no means impossible; although Count Magnus was considered to be a great friend of the Prince; yet the meanness of his character, which will amply appear in the course of this narrative, and the fact that his influence was destined to come to an end should Christina marry Charles, give a colour to the report.
However this may be, it is certain that the determination of the Queen never to marry lay much deeper down. The proud and ineradicable independence of her mind and character recoiled instinctively from the idea of giving herself a master. "I will live and die free", she said to the Jesuit Mannerschied; in later life she had a medal struck with the inscription, libero io nacqui e vissi e morro sciolto [sic]. She told Chanut in 1651, that she would rather choose death than a husband. The idea of belonging to another, of being anyone's chattel, disgusted her; she shrank from classing herself in any respect with a sex she despised. From an anecdote preserved to us, quite in keeping with her character, but which will not bear repeating, it seems that the merely physical aspect of marriage was an insuperable obstacle to her. With all this agrees what Duke Adolphus told Whitelocke, that the Queen's refusal to marry Charles came from her innate abhorrence of the tie.
Yet to this must be added what is, undoubtedly, the strongest motive of all. At this time she was pondering a change of religion. To the statement in a history of that time, assigning as a reason for her abdication in favour of Charles "that she wished to become a Catholic", Christina has added a note: "This is the sole foundation of Charles's fortune; all the rest is false." Even when she was a child, when she heard that among Catholics the highest merit was assigned to the unmarried state: "Ah!" she had exclaimed, "how fine that is; it is of that religion that I will be."
We shall go more fully into the question of her conversion and its motives further on, when it will be seen that she had at this time already determined to become a Catholic; here it will be sufficient to point out how strongly the religious aspect of celibacy influenced her at this crisis. In the very singular fragment entitled her Memoirs, which is addressed to the Deity, there are many passages which throw great light on this point of a single life. "Thou hast been willing to let me know, from the cradle, the advantage of this great independence; which I have been able to maintain and will maintain till death." "I was called to the glory of sacrificing all to Thee, and I had to obey my vocation;" ... "my ardent and impetuous temperament has given me no less inclination for love than for ambition; into what misfortune might not so terrible an inclination have hurled me, had not Thy grace made use even of my defects to correct me of it; my ambition, my pride, incapable of submitting to anyone, my disdain, despising all things, have served me as admirable preservations; and[,] by Thy grace[,] Thou hast added thereto so fine a delicacy, that Thou hast saved me from an inclination so perilous for Thy glory and my happiness; however near the precipice I have been, Thy powerful hand has drawn me back. ... I should without doubt have married, had I not been conscious of the strength Thou hast given me to go without the pleasures of love. I knew the world too well to be ignorant that a girl who wishes to enjoy her life needs must have a husband: above all, a girl of my rank, who marries only to gain a subject, rather, a slave to her will and caprice. I was born to such a condition and walk in life that I might have chosen among all men him who took my fancy, for there was not one in the world who would not have deemed himself lucky if I had been willing to give him my hand, I knew my advantages too well not to have the mind to make use of them. Had I been conscious of any weakness, I should have known how, like so many others, to marry for pleasure's sake, and enjoy my good fortune; and I should not have had that insensible [sic] aversion for marriage, of which I have given so many striking marks, had it been necessary to me. But Thou hast given me a heart meet to be taken up with Thee alone; Thou hast formed it of so admirable and vast a capacity that nothing could fill it but Thyself."
To these extraordinary passages may be added the numerous places in her sentences and maxims which touch scornfully on marriage; and as a proof that this is not mere bravado, her conduct in later years, when, after the abdication of John Casimir, she endeavoured to gain the throne of Poland; at which time she would not yield to the condition necessary, and declared that for the empire of the whole world she would not marry, much less for the crown of Poland.
The motives which led Christina to remain unmarried, to resign the crown, and to go over to Rome, are so inextricably blended together that it is only after considering all three points that a complete judgment can be formed on any one of them. Enough has been said for the moment to throw a light on her love of celibacy, and let us partially understand her conduct to Charles Gustavus. Starting from the intention to become a Catholic, and, in close connection with this, to remain single, she found herself in a difficulty as regards the throne. The constitution of Sweden, and the national antipathy to Rome, would not allow her to retain the crown: this explains her exclamation to the Jesuit: "There is no help for it, I must resign." There were, indeed, further motives to assist her in her resignation, to which we shall return. This point gained, it was necessary for her to prepare the succession to the throne, and she now set herself to make smooth the way for Charles Gustavus. To do this was a task of no ordinary difficulty, but she showed in this as elsewhere her diplomatic skill and masterful strength of character.
Although all Christina's subjects were not equally desirous to see her married, a maiden queen and a disputed succession being thoroughly to the taste of the noble oligarchy, yet by the other Orders, and especially the clergy, to whom the celibate state was a stone of offence, representations and petitions continued to be addressed to her, recommending her to choose a consort. No suspicion of the actual state of her mind was at this time entertained, till in February 1649 the Queen herself opened the subject. She informed the Senate that for some years she had been continually solicited to marry; she could not disapprove of the foresight of those who loved their country and desired to prevent the evils that might arise, if God withdrew her from the world without leaving a fixed succession. ... She could not, however, get over her repugnance to marriage; and accordingly, out of her anxiety and love for her country, she had determined to consult the safety of the State by a course which might finally be detrimental to herself, viz., to propose to the Estates a successor to the throne, whose nomination would deliver them from the fear of her death: for which office none were more suited than her cousin, Prince Charles Gustavus, upon whose qualities she proceeded to expatiate. She then laid before them for their consideration two questions: — 1. Whether the marriage of the Queen was the only method of providing a successor to the throne. 2. Whether the good of the State would not better be consulted by naming Prince Charles heir to the throne in case of her own death. If the Senate would give its decision, she would propose it to the Committee of the Estates, and then bring it before the assembled Diet for confirmation.
After recovering themselves from their astonishment, they all spoke at once to try and dissuade her from the scheme, and assured her they would oppose it to the death. "I know well", said Christina, "that some of you are minded to establish an elective monarchy after my death; to these I must say that none of them are to be compared to Prince Charles; others wish for an aristocratic government, wherein they follow their own interests; such a constitution is by no means suitable for Sweden, otherwise I would myself at this moment try to establish it: everyone knows what the Chancellor and the High Steward are aiming at." Field-marshal Torstenson replied that except out of consideration for her Majesty, no one would ever have thought of Prince Charles; they must think twice before making themselves slaves; as to a Republican Government, no one had ever thought of it. ... Finally, however, each senator severally answered for it that if the Queen died childless[,] they would give their votes for Prince Charles. Christina answered that she could not trust to mere words, but must have this reduced to writing in due form. They endeavoured to point out the inconvenience arising from an heir-presumptive, especially for herself: they cited the evils caused by princes of the blood, and feared lest she might even after this marry some one else, the consequences leading possibly to civil war. Christina replied, she would answer for a good understanding between the Prince and herself; she solemnly engaged herself to marry none but Prince Charles; in any case[,] this remote possibility was not to be compared to the danger of her dying without heirs: and if there was to be a civil war, it would be no worse that it should arise out of the conflict between heirs of the Prince and her own, than that of the Houses of Oxenstiern and Brahé for the elective monarchy. When one of the House of Oxenstiern begged her not to cite his house in this invidious way, she said that she had named it as she might have named any other. The Senate still continued obstinate not to entrust their promises to writing. "If", said the Queen, "I marry Prince Charles, you will doubtless recognise his children; but if I die without heirs, I will bet my two ears he will never sit upon the throne." "Prince Charles", said Torstenson, "will never marry, if not your Majesty." "O, but he will", exclaimed the Queen; "love burns not for one alone; the crown is a pretty girl."
On resuming the discussion a few days later, seeing them resolving to put the matter off to the ensuing Diet, the Queen said that she saw no reason for postponing the settlement, the matter being one on which she had reflected daily for three years. Should she determine to marry, she could not give her hand to a mere Palsgrave; he must first be nominated successor to the throne. It was accordingly arranged that next day the Committee of the Estates should be summoned to the Senate. After much discussion the Queen declared that they should get nothing out of her on the subject of marriage; it was, further, impossible for her to marry before she was crowned. Thereupon Matthiæ pointed out that her Majesty was bound by the laws of the realm to marry in order to ensure succession. Christina answered, no one could compel her to it; what more, besides, could they desire that the succession should be secured? Till the Prince was declared successor[,] she could give no promise to marry; but at all events nothing should compel her thereto. Matthiæ assured her that it was noised throughout Europe that she was to marry Prince Charles. "When they have chattered enough about it", rejoined the Queen, "they will find something else to talk about." They could get nothing further from her than this: Charles must be declared successor before she could think of marrying him, and upon this she would not declare her mind till she was crowned.
The Committee retired after giving its consent. In the Diet, the three lower Orders agreed to accept Prince Charles; but the nobility still drew back, till the Queen exposed to them the danger they ran of getting a king in spite of themselves; adding, that the three other Orders had given their consent; she well knew that it was only a small part of them that set itself in opposition to her wishes; she could distinguish between them, and mark those who consulted their own interests in preference to those of the State. They accordingly withdrew, amazed, and the bravest among them began to take another tone. The Senate, now left alone, saw itself obliged to give in.
One opponent only remained. "The Chancellor", says Christina in her Memoirs, "was one of the greatest obstacles I had to overcome in order to carry out my design of sacrificing all to Thee." He had been absent from the Senate through illness; Mr. Nicolas Tungel, Secretary to the Court, was despatched by Christina to take him the Act of Succession to sign, on March 11, 1650. Tungel drew up a report of the conversation. Oxenstiern answered, with a sinister air, that he had but little knowledge of the matter, and would not therefore have it said that he had ever a hand in it; had they taken his opinion on it, he might have given better counsel on so important a matter, which had been too much hurried on. "I assure you", he added, "that if at this moment I saw my grave open before me, and I had to choose either to get in or sign this act, devil fly off with me, if I would not rather lie down in it than sign this instrument, not that it is not well drawn up, but that the future will show when it is too late that the consequences will be quite other than many persons suppose, and bring repentance with them; my consolation lies chiefly in my old age, which will prevent me from seeing that time. If I am mistaken, I will allow that all my principles are false, and have deceived me; and others may say that I am an old fool, understanding nothing in these affairs." The Secretary saying that the rest of the Senators and the Estates had consented; were their hearts all tablets, said the Chancellor, and her Majesty able to read them, she would see written thereon quite other things: how few were those who were sincere in the matter. As for himself, he would stand out no longer, now that things had gone so far, but go over to the majority; but he wished to stand excused before God and posterity, convinced as he was that the affair would end badly for the weal of the State. Never since the House of Vasa sat on the throne had there come up for decision anything so important.
Well might the old Chancellor feel disturbed. He had seen three monarchs of his beloved house, Charles IX., Gustavus Adolphus, and Christina, and his long life had been devoted to their service; now[,] at the close of his career[,] came an act, which seemed to herald the ruin of all his labours and strivings, and hand over the national throne of the Vasas to a hated stranger.
Christina alluded to his opposition in the Senate, blaming him, yet without bitterness, for his antagonism to her wishes. She had gained her point, the first step and the most difficult, to the full accomplishment of her design. That she could so completely overcome all opposition, and successfully carry through so delicate a business, gives us a great idea of her power and influence in the government. Charles Gustavus had in truth great reason to be thankful to her; yet she did not content herself with this. In the following year, on his return, she caused him and his descendants to be declared heirs to the throne, in the event of her dying without issue. He was entitled "Prince of Sweden", and "Royal Highness", with a yearly pension of 50,000 thalers. Yet she would not permit him to hold any office, nor take any part in the government, nor would she endow him with any principality, calling this an arcanum imperii. The Prince on his side took an oath to recognise the Queen as his legitimate sovereign, and obey her, himself and his heirs; to do nothing of importance without her advice and that of the Senate; and to observe in every particular the constitutional rights and duties, should he ever come to the throne.
Above: Kristina.
Above: Karl Gustav.
Note: Jankowitz is the German name for the village of Jankov in the Benešov District in the Central Bohemian Region of what is now the Czech Republic.
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