Christina of Sweden
Christina (Swedish: Kristina; 18 December [O.S. 8 December] 1626 – 19 April 1689), a member of the House of Vasa, was Queen of Sweden from 1632 until her abdication in 1654. Her conversion to Catholicism and refusal to marry led her to relinquish her throne and move to Rome.
Christina is remembered as one of the most erudite women of the 17th century, wanting Stockholm to become the "Athens of the North" and was given the special right to establish a university at will by the Peace of Westphalia. She is also remembered for her unconventional lifestyle and occasional adoption of masculine attire, which have been depicted frequently in media; gender and cultural identity are pivotal themes in many of her biographies.
Quotes
[edit]Maxims (wr. 1660–80)
[edit]- Il y a une étoile, qui unit les âmes du premier ordre malgré les lieux et les siècles qui les séparent.
- There is a star which unites souls of the first rank, notwithstanding the distance of place and ages which separates them.
- Cent. 2, no. 86 (tr. Anonymous, 1753)
- Les religieuses et les femmes mariées sont malheureuses de différente manière.
- Nuns and married women are unhappy after different manners.
- Cent. 7, no. 51 (tr. Anonymous, 1753)
External links
[edit]
- The Works of Christina Queen of Sweden (London: D. Wilson and T. Durham, 1753)
- Pensées de Christine, reine de Suède (Paris: Chez Ant.-Aug. Renouard, 1825)
- Una Birch (ed.) Maxims of a Queen (London and New York: John Lane, 1907)