Source:
Biographum Fæmineum: The Female Worthies; or, Memoirs of the Most Illustrious Ladies, of All Ages and Nations, volume 1, pages 131 to 133, by anonymous author, 1766; original at The British Library
Above: Kristina.
The biography:
CHRISTINA, queen of Sweden, and daughter of Gustavus Adolphus the Great, was born the 8th of December in the year 1626; and has rendered herself, in some respects, as famous as her father before her. She succeeded him in the government of the kingdom in the year 1633, and governed it with great wisdom and prudence till the year 1654, when she resigned it in favour of her cousin Charles Gustavus. Some time before her resignation, Antony Macedo, a jesuit, was chosen by John IV, king of Portugal, to accompany the ambassador he sent into Sweden to queen Christina; and the jesuit pleased this princess so highly, that she secretly opened to him the design she had of changing her religion. She sent him to Rome with letters to the General of the jesuits; in which she desired that two of their society might be dispatched to her, Italians by nation, and learned men, that she might confer with them with more ease upon matters of religion. Her request was granted; and two jesuits were immediately sent her, viz. Francis Maline, divinity professor at Turin, and Paul Casatus, professor of mathematicks at Rome, who easily effected what Antony Macedo, the first confident of her design, had begun. She then retired to Rome; yet upon the death of Charles Gustavus, in the year 1660, she returned to Sweden, with design to resume the reins of government; but, as Roman catholicks, by the [l]aws and constitution of the country, are excluded [f]rom the crown, she could not be admitted; and as [t]his was impracticable, she confirmed her abdication, reserving only the free exercise of the romish religion for herself, domesticks and attendants, in case she should afterwards return to Sweden. But she never returned [sic], but died at Rome, April 15 [sic], 1689, aged fifty-four [sic].
She was universally acknowledged as a woman of uncommon parts and learning; she understood several languages, and was well versed in polite literature. The Greek tongue she made only her diversion at leisure hours; nor did the reading of this language, or any others, in the least interrupt her more serious studies, so she called, among others, Tacitus's history, some pages of which she constantly read every day. There is extant a letter of hers to Mr. Bayle, which gives us no small idea of her literary character. Bayle had offended her, in his No[u]velles de la Republique des Lettre[s] for June 1686, by some expression, which gave occasion to say, that she was not altogether a good catholic, and the making up this important matter drew on a correspondence between them by letters, in one of which from Christina there is the following passage: 'But you shall not get off so cheap as you imagine. I will enjoin you a penance; which is, that you will henceforth take the trouble of sending me all curious books, that shall be published in Latin, French, Spanish or Italian, on whatever subject or science, provided they are worthy of being looked into. I do not even except romances or satires; and above all, if there are books of chemistry, I desire you will send them to me as soon as possible. Do not forget likewise to send me your journal.'
As delicate, however, as her majesty was upon the subject of religion, and as sincere a convert as she professed herself to the church of Rome, she is said not to have been over strict in her life and morals; for it's certain, that the writers of that time, made no scruple to publish books of her intrigues.
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