Source:
Christina, Queen of Sweden, pages 227 to 233, by Francis William Bain, 1890; original at the University of Connecticut Library
Father Paolo Casati's letter of November 25/December 5 (New Style), 1655 to Pope Alexander VII is here:
Kristina's letter of October 18/28 (New Style), 1651 to Antoine Godeau, Bishop of Grasse, is here:
Kristina's letter of March 10/20 (Old Style), 1652 to her cousin the Landgrave Friedrich of Hesse-Darmstadt is here:
The account:
The steps Christina took in preparing the execution of her plan, her refusal to marry, her substitution of Charles Gustavus, have been already related; she now made another advance.
The Portuguese ambassador, Don Joseph Pinto Pereira, who came to Sweden in 1650 [sic], could talk no language but his own; his secretary, who served him as interpreter with the Queen, fell ill, and Pereira, in the interval, made use of his confessor, Macedo (The honour of converting her has been disputed between Macedo and a certain Francken. Dates give the preference to the former: but it is to be observed, that the Jesuits were merely the instruments called in by Christina to complete her design, determined upon long before. This is apparent, not only from what has been said, but from the narration of Cassati. The Queen amused them with caustical questions, quite other than they expected, played with them a little, and then suddenly gave in just when they thought themselves furthest from their object.), for the same purpose. Christina seized the opportunity one day to inform Macedo that she would like to discourse with some one of his persuasion on private matters, if he could manage to bring them to Stockholm without writing for them, as she did not wish to entrust so dangerous a business to paper. The delighted Jesuit entered heartily into the scheme: they held frequent conversations in the presence of the unsuspecting Pereira, and it was arranged that Macedo should go to Rome and communicate with Piccolomini, General of the Order. He accordingly applied for leave of absence, on the ground that the climate did not suit him; this, however, being refused, he took French leave, and suddenly disappeared. The ambassador prevailed on the Queen to send after him: but she took good care that he should not be caught. On his arrival at Rome, he found Piccolomini dead; the new General, however, immediately selected two men suitable for the task: Francesco Malines, Professor of Theology at Turin, and Paolo Cassati, Professor of Mathematics at Rome. They arrived at Stockholm in March, 1652, so well disguised that Rosenhane, a senator, and Wachtmeister, Grand Equerry, with whom they fell in, took them for two Italian gentlemen travelling to view the country, and told the Queen so. Christina swiftly divined their errand and summoned them to Court. Seizing a favourable moment, when all were leaving the dining-hall, she whispered to Cassati, "Perhaps you have letters for me?" and he, without turning round, answered "Yes." She rejoined: "Do not mention them to any one." They now held frequent interviews with her, and were very much astonished at the questions she put them — as to whether there was any real distinction between good and evil other than utility; of the existence of Providence, and the immortality of the soul; in short, philosophical lemmas rather than religious points of dispute between the churches. In the whole course of their efforts it is perfectly obvious that Christina was merely delaying a foregone conclusion. "What should you think", she suddenly asked them at a moment when they were inclined to despair, "if I were nearer becoming a Catholic than you suppose?" "Hearing this", says Cassati, "we felt like men raised from the dead." She then asked whether the Pope could grant permission to receive the Lord's Supper once in the year, according to the Lutheran rites. He replied that he could not. "Then", she exclaimed, "there is no help for it — I must resign the crown."
She now sent Cassati back to Rome to prepare for her subsequent arrival and find out what her expenses might come to should she reside there; just as it is probable Bourdelot had some such commission in France. She wrote letters to the Pope, Innocent X., and Cardinal Chigi by means of Malines. In the meantime she carefully preserved silence; the only man in Sweden who was privy to her design was Pimentelli, who kept the secret. She had indeed great reason to be cautious. In a country like Sweden it could have gone hard with her had her intention of becoming a Catholic been commonly known. To reject Lutheranism was to desert the traditions of her house, and a kind of national insult, for which her countrymen have never forgiven her. She wrote ambiguously to Godeau, Bishop of Grasse, who had written to her expressing his wish that she might put the coping stone on her virtues by being converted, to say that what he wishes cannot be; she has long been persuaded that what she believes is that which she ought to believe. And in the very month in which the Jesuits arrived in Sweden, she wrote to Prince Frederick, Landgrave of Hesse, to dissuade him from taking the very step she was meditating herself, wherein she confines herself to purely political grounds:
"March 10, 1652.
"MY COUSIN,
"My reason for not breaking silence before was that I might not bother you with a letter which will not please you, since you will learn from it the rumour that is flying about here of the change you are meditating after the example of my cousin your brother, who has just declared himself a Roman Catholic. But our friendship of so many years' standing forbids me to keep you in ignorance of the unfavourable criticism all your friends are making of you in this matter. I think you cannot fail to notice it if you give it your attention, and you will easily judge that it is by reason of their instant request that I am speaking to you on the subject. They suppose that the influence arising from your friendship for me gives me sufficient power over your mind to enable me to restore it to its original sentiments. And therefore they have begged me to make this last effort, hoping that it may not be without effect. It is then in compliance with their wishes and to perform the duty which friendship imposes on me that I write you this letter, begging you to reflect upon it. It is not for me to deal with this matter after the fashion of Colleges or the Chairs of Theologians. I leave it to those whose business it is to discuss controversial points to cut their throats over the case at their good pleasure: it would sit ill upon me to preach to you on a subject so foreign to my profession. On this account I set aside the points of dispute between your Doctors and those of the Church of Rome. And since I am of a third religion, which, having discovered the truth, has cast away their views as false, it behoves me to speak to you as a neutral party, who will attack you on only one point, on which you ought to be sensitive; and it is that of honour. Can you be ignorant how much converts are hated by those whose views they quit? and do you not know, from so many illustrious examples, how they are despised by those whose side they adopt? If you take all this into consideration, I feel sure you will readily disapprove of your design. And I do not believe you would wish to do that, which, in my opinion, is so likely to cause you to repent, a thing that would be irretrievable, and would leave you for the rest of your life an eternal remorse. ... You see that I keep my word, and avoid burying myself in religious matters. ... We are born for the Sceptre and Arms; ... after making our profession so loud, it would be to profane the sanctuary to enter and handle the sacred objects: I must take care not to play the theologian."
Above: Kristina.
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