Descartes at the Court of Christina of Sweden. In 1646, the 19-year old Swedish queen Kristina, ever curious for knowledge, began to correspondence with Descartes, that focused on the issue of hate and love. Eventually she invited Descartes to come to Sweden. René Descartes arrived in Stockholm on October 1649, and resided with the French ambassador Chanut. However he had to wait until December 18 before starting private lessons with the young queen, lessons that gave her an insight into Catholicism, the religion to which she later on converted. Kristina’s schedule was rigid, and their private lessons in philosophy and religion were scheduled for 5 in the morning in the freezing castle library. Perhaps that was too much for the aging Frenchman, who was used to sleeping in. On February 1650, Descartes fell ill with pneumonia, and he died ten days later. Oil on canvas painted by Pierre Louis Dumesnil (1698-1781), French painter. Collection: Musée National des Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon, France. (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0). Source: flickr.com.
Forside 1596 Descartes at the Court of Christina of Sweden. In 1646, the 19-year old Swedish queen Kristina, ever curious for knowledge, began to correspondence with Descartes, that focused on the issue of hate and love. Eventually she invited Descartes to come to Sweden. René Descartes arrived in Stockholm on October 1649, and resided with the French ambassador Chanut. However he had to wait until December 18 before starting private lessons with the young queen, lessons that gave her an insight into Catholicism, the religion to which she later on converted. Kristina’s schedule was rigid, and their private lessons in philosophy and religion were scheduled for 5 in the morning in the freezing castle library. Perhaps that was too much for the aging Frenchman, who was used to sleeping in. On February 1650, Descartes fell ill with pneumonia, and he died ten days later. Oil on canvas painted by Pierre Louis Dumesnil (1698-1781), French painter. Collection: Musée National des Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon, France. (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
Descartes at the Court of Christina of Sweden. In 1646, the 19-year old Swedish queen Kristina, ever curious for knowledge, began to correspondence with Descartes, that focused on the issue of hate and love. Eventually she invited Descartes to come to Sweden. René Descartes arrived in Stockholm on October 1649, and resided with the French ambassador Chanut. However he had to wait until December 18 before starting private lessons with the young queen, lessons that gave her an insight into Catholicism, the religion to which she later on converted. Kristina’s schedule was rigid, and their private lessons in philosophy and religion were scheduled for 5 in the morning in the freezing castle library. Perhaps that was too much for the aging Frenchman, who was used to sleeping in. On February 1650, Descartes fell ill with pneumonia, and he died ten days later. Oil on canvas painted by Pierre Louis Dumesnil (1698-1781), French painter. Collection: Musée National des Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon, France. (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
