A girlhood of uncontrolled power, such as hers, could lead but to
one result. Self-gratification is the worst form of selfishness,
and never can work good to any one. Although she was a girl of
wonderful capabilities, of the blood of famous kings and
conquerors, giving such promises of greatness that scholars and
statesmen alike prophesied for her a splendid future, Christina,
Queen of Sweden, made only a failure of her life.
At eighteen she had herself formally crowned as KING of Sweden.
But at twenty-five she declared herself sick and tired of her
duties as queen, and at twenty-eight, at the height of her power
and fame, she actually did resign her throne in favor of her
cousin, Prince Karl,--publicly abdicated, and at once left her
native land to lead the life of a disappointed wanderer.
The story of this remarkable woman is one that holds a lesson for
all. Eccentric, careless, and fearless; handsome, witty, and
learned; ambitious, shrewd, and visionary,--she was one of the
strangest compounds of "unlikes" to be met with in history.
She deliberately threw away a crown, wasted a life that might
have been helpful to her subjects, regarded only her own selfish
and personal desires, and died a prematurely old woman at
sixty-five, unloved and unhonored.
Pages:
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203