Queen Christina

Kristina Augusta was born on December 18, 1626, in Tre Kronor castle, Stockholm, the only surviving child of King Gustavus Adolphus. Reared and educated as a prince in statecraft, classical languages, and philosophy, she assumed sovereign rule in 1644.

An intellectual prodigy, Christina turned Stockholm into the 'Athens of the North', attracting European scholars including René Descartes. Defying societal expectations, she refused to marry, brokered the end of the Thirty Years' War, and on June 6, 1654, dramatically abdicated the Swedish throne in Uppsala Castle. Converting to Catholicism, she settled in Rome, where she founded the Accademia dell'Arcadia, patronized Bernini and Scarlatti, and was honored with burial in St. Peter's Basilica—one of only three women so interred.