Queen Christina of Sweden was raised as a prince, ruled one of Europe’s most powerful kingdoms, then stunned the continent by abdicating her throne, converting to Catholicism, and moving to Rome. She became the most talked-about woman in seventeenth-century Europe, and her name became synonymous with intellectual independence and royal scandal.

This episode traces Christina from her unconventional upbringing through her brilliant court, her shocking abdication, and her reinvention as a cultural patron in Rome.

• She was raised as a boy by her father’s orders and educated alongside male princes
• She abdicated the Swedish throne in 1654 to convert to Catholicism
• She moved to Rome and became one of the most significant cultural patrons in Europe
• She attempted twice to reclaim thrones in Naples and Poland after her abdication