Author Archive

Christina of Sweden

Christina of Sweden (1626–1689), the abdicated queen known for her patronage of learning and unorthodox views, left no major philosophical or literary works but profoundly shaped early modern intellectual culture through her correspondence and court. A fierce advocate for Cartesian rationalism, she hosted René Descartes in Stockholm (who died there in 1650), and her extensive library and epistolary exchanges engaged with thinkers like Pierre Gassendi and Blaise Pascal, exploring toleration, Stoic ethics, and the independence of reason from dogma. Her posthumously published collection of maxims and reflections—including Sentiments and Maximes —reveals a skeptical, libertine mind that defied gender and religious norms, cementing her legacy as a philosophical muse and icon of intellectual nonconformity.

11 summaries in the archive

History Maxims of a Queen – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

Christina of Sweden’s sharp, unsentimental maxims on human nature and ambition, paired with essays on her life, reveal…

16 min read

Autobiography Apologies – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

Christina of Sweden writes not as a queen defending her reign but as a private person answering accusations…

5 sec read

Ethics Noble and Bold Feelings (Ädla & djärva känslor) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

The volume gathered here is a comprehensive reference account of Sweden: its land, its people, its institutions, and…

54 min read

History In Leisure Moments (Pa lediga stunder) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

Christina of Sweden presents a collection of private thoughts written during her leisure moments, reflecting on the emptiness…

6 sec read

Autobiography The Latin Letter of the Queen of Sweden (La lettre latine de la reyne de Svede) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

The volume under consideration gathers into a single continuous survey the language, literature, and intellectual life of Sweden.

27 min read

Autobiography Thoughts of Christina, Queen of Sweden (Pensées de Christine, reine de Suède) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

Pensées de Christine, reine de Suède is a collection of reflections, maxims, and short meditations written by Christina…

4 min read

Drama L’Argia – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

L'Argia is an opera composed by Antonio Cesti to a libretto by Giovanni Filippo Apolloni, first performed on…

6 min read

Christian Studies The Five Stones of David’s Sling (Las cinco piedras de la honda de David en cinco discursos morales) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

Christina of Sweden opens her moral discourses by interpreting David's five stones as allegorical weapons for spiritual warfare…

10 sec read

History Response to the Elector of Bavaria (Antwoordt van Hare Coninglicke Maiesteyt van Sweeden, aen Sijne Cheur-vorstelijcke Doorluchticheydt van Beyeren, noopende des selfs ongefondeerde rupture van ne) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

The Response to the Elector of Bavaria is a written reply by Christina of Sweden to Maximilian II…

3 min read

History Reflections on the Alliance (Consept alliantie defencijf, en van redemtie tusschen den coninghlijcken Denemarcschen ambassadeur en de comissarisen van desen staet) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

Reflections on the Revolution in France is a long political letter, written in English, addressed to a young…

62 min read

Autobiography Confession of Faith (Professio Fidei) – Christina of Sweden Christina of Sweden

The book presents itself as a life of Christina, Queen of Sweden, and opens with a frontispiece note…

28 min read