queen of Sweden, only daughter of Gustavus Adolphus, was born in 1626, and succeeded to the crown in 1632, when only six years of age. The solid and masculine education which she received from her father and guardians gave her, as she has expressed in her memoirs, an invincible antipathy to the employments and conversations of women; and she had all the awkwardness of a man in performing the little duties which generally fall to the share of her sex. In her youth she was fond of violent exercises; and her amusements generally consisted in feats of strength and agility. She also showed considerable ability and taste for abstract speculations; and made herself familiar with languages and the sciences, particularly with that of legislation. She derived her knowledge of ancient history from original sources: Polybius, Thucydides, and Tacitus, were her favourite authors. Independent of her acknowledged genius and ability, her position as the sovereign of a powerful kingdom made almost all the princes in Europe aspire to her hand. Amongst these were the prince of Denmark, the elector Palatine, the elector of Brandenburg, the king of Spain, the king of the Romans, Don John of Austria, Stanislaus king of Poland, John Casimir his brother, and Charles Gustavus duke of Deux Ponts, of the Bavarian Palatinate family, son of the great Gustavus's sister, and consequently her first cousin. To this nobleman, as well as to all his rivals, she constantly refused her hand, at the same time that she caused him to be appointed her successor by the states. Political interests, religious differences, and conflicting tastes, furnished Christina with pretences for rejecting all her suitors; but her real motives were love of independence, and a strong aversion, even from her infancy, to the marriage yoke. "Do not force me to marry," said she to the states, "for if I should have a son it is not more probable that he should be an Augustus than a Nero."

One of the most complicated affairs which occupied her attention was the peace of Westphalia, in which many conflicting interests were to be reconciled, and many claims to be decided. It was concluded in the month of October 1648. The success of the Swedish arms rendered Christina the arbitress of this treaty, at least in regard to the affairs of Sweden, to which the peace confirmed the possession of many important countries. No public event of importance took place during the rest of Christina's reign; for there were neither wars abroad nor troubles at home. Her reign was distinguished by an active encouragement of learning and genius. She drew to her court all the distinguished men of her time, including Grotius, Pascal, Bochart, Descartes, Gassendi, Saumase, Naudé, Vossius, Heinsius, Meibom, Scudéry, Ménage, Lucas, Holstenius, Lambeicus, Bayle, and many others. The arts never fail to immortalize the prince who protects them; and almost all these illustrious persons have rendered their patroness illustrious, either in poems, letters, or literary productions of some other kind.

Though Christina at first was fond of royal power and splendour, yet she soon began to feel embarrassed and restrained; and the same love of independence which had determined her against marriage at last made her weary of the Accordingly, as it grew more and more irksome to her, she resolved to abdicate; and, in 1652, communicated her resolution to the senate. The senate zealously remonstrated against it, and was joined by the people, nay, even by Charles Gustavus himself, who was to succeed her. She yielded to their importunities, and continued to sacrifice her own pleasure to the will of the public till the year 1654, when she carried her design into execution. Besides abdicating her crown, she also abjured her religion; an act which deeply wounded her Protestant subjects. No prince ever showed so much joy on being elevated to the throne as Christina did in quitting hers. When she came to a little brook which separates Sweden from Denmark, she got out of her carriage, and leaping on the other side, cried out in a transport of joy, "At last I am free, and out of Sweden, whither, I hope, I shall never return." She dismissed her women, and laying aside the habit of her sex, "I would become a man," said she; "yet I do not love men because they are men, but because they are not women." She made her abjuration at Brussels, where she saw the great Condé, who, after his defection, made that city his asylum. "Cousin," said she, "who would have thought, ten years ago, that we should have met at this distance from our respective countries?" During her residence in France she excited universal disgust by her open contempt and violation of the customs of the country. She treated the ladies of the court with the greatest rudeness, and when they came to embrace her, she exclaimed (alluding to her male attire), "What a strange eagerness these women have to kiss me! Is it because I look like a man?"

The murder of Monaldeschi, her master of the horse, on account of the betrayal of some secret, has left a deep stain on her character, notwithstanding the apologies that have been offered by Leibnitz and others. It is too much in keeping with expressions constantly used by Christina in her letters in regard to those with whom she was offended; for she scarcely ever signified her displeasure without threatening the life of the offender. "If you fail in your duty," said she to her secretary, whom she sent to Stockholm after her abdication, "not all the power of the king of Sweden shall save your life, though you should take shelter in his arms." With a musician who had quitted her service for that of the Duke of Savoy she was so enraged as to resort to a threat of murder. "He lives only for me; and if he does not sing for me he shall not sing long for anybody else."

The horror and indignation with which she was regarded in France, induced her to retire again to Rome, whence, on the death of Gustavus, in 1660, she went to Sweden; but meeting everywhere with hostility and coldness from the people, she quickly retraced her steps. Once more having quarrelled with the pope, she set out for her former dominions, but proceeded no further than Hanhergh, whence she again returned to Rome, and died in 1689.

Upon the whole, her character presents a strange combination of faults and foibles, pushed to the most extravagant excess. She says of herself, "that she was mistrustful, ambitious, passionate, haughty, impatient, contemptuous, satirical, incredulous, undevout, of an ardent and violent temper, and extremely amorous;" a disposition, however, to which, at least according to her own account, her pride and her virtue were always superior. See SWEDEN.