Ebba Brahe
| Ebba Brahe | |
|---|---|
Ebba Brahe
|
|
| Born | 16 March 1596 |
| Died | 5 January 1674 (aged 77) |
| Other names | Ebba Magnusdotter Brahe |
| Spouse(s) |
Jacob De la Gardie (m. 1618–52; his death) |
| Partner(s) | Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden |
| Children | 14, including: Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie Maria Sofia De la Gardie Axel Julius De la Gardie |
| Parent(s) |
Magnus Brahe Britta Stensdotter Leijonhuvud |
| Relatives |
Margareta Brahe (paternal cousin) Per Brahe the Younger (paternal cousin) |
Ebba Magnusdotter Brahe (16 March 1596 – 5 January 1674) was a Swedish countess, landowner, and courtier. She is foremost known for being the love object of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, and because he wished to marry her prior to his marriage, plans which were however never realized. Their love affair has been famous in the Swedish romantic history and the subject of fiction, and are documented in their preserved correspondence.
Ebba Brahe was born to Magnus Brahe and Britta Stensdotter Leijonhuvud. She was the cousin of Margareta Brahe and Per Brahe the Younger. After the death of her mother, she was sent to the royal court to finish her upbringing. She served as maid of honor to Queen Dowager Christina of Holstein-Gottorp, who had been a personal friend to her mother, in 1611-1614, and to the elder queen dowager, Catherine Stenbock, in 1614-1618. She was described as a beauty, and John, Duke of Östergötland, was among her admirers.
At the royal court, she met King Gustavus Adolphus, who was her second cousin, once removed and they fell in love and wished to marry each other. It is not known exactly when their love affair started. By the letters exchanged between them, it seems that they were both equally in love with each other. Their first preserved love letter are from 6 March 1613, when their relationship was apparently already long established. In this letter, the king asked her to inform her father of his wish to marry her and give them their blessing. The marriage plans were however opposed by the queen dowager, who was the de facto ruler during her son's first years. She wished for her son to enter an arranged dynastic marriage of political convenience, and she regarded a marriage to a member of the national nobility politically risky and regarded the late queen Gunilla Bielke, who had been criticized for using her position to benefit her family, as a bad example of such a marriage. The dispute between the dowager queen, the king and Ebba Brahe about the marriage continued until 1615, and has been the subject of romantic plays, stories and poems for centuries. The queen dowager harassed her maid of honor Brahe and told her not to trust the promises of the king, which made the father of Brahe unwilling to give his blessing. The king tried to convince his mother with his half-sister Princess Catherine, Duke Henry Julius of Saxony, and chancellor Nils Chesnecopherus with messengers.
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Wikipedia