The Life of Hugo Grotius: With Brief Minutes of the Civil, Ecclesiastical, and Literary History of the NetherlandsButler, Charles
History
The Life of Hugo Grotius: With Brief Minutes of the Civil, Ecclesiastical, and Literary History of the Netherlands
Butler, Charles
Grotius, Hugo, 1583-1645; Netherlands -- History
Every thing respecting the recall of Grotius being settled, he embarked
at Dieppe for Holland. He was extremely well received at Amsterdam and
Rotterdam: the constituted authorities, of the former city fitted a
vessel, which was to take him to Hamburgh: there, after along and
harassing journey, he arrived on the 16th of May. From Hamburgh he
proceeded to Lübec: the magistrates of that city gave him an honourable
reception. He proceeded to Wismar; where Count Wismar, the admiral of
the Swedish fleet, gave him a splendid entertainment, and afterwards
sent him in a man-of-war to Colmar: thence, he went by land to
Stockholm. When he arrived there, Queen Christina was at Upsal; but,
hearing that Grotius was at Stockholm, she returned to that city to meet
him. On the day after her arrival, she favoured him with a long
audience: she expressed to him great satisfaction at his conduct, and
made him large promises. These audiences were often repeated; and once
she permitted him to have the honour of dining with her. She assured
him, that if he would continue in her service, as Councillor of State,
and bring his family into Sweden, he should have no reason to complain
of her. But Grotius was anxious to leave Sweden; and his passport being
delayed, he resolved to quit it without one, and actually proceeded to a
seaport about seven leagues distant from Stockholm. The Queen, being
informed of his departure, sent a gentleman to inform him, that she
wished to see him once more. On this invitation he returned to
Stockholm, and was immediately admitted into the Queen's presence; he
then explained to her his reasons for wishing to quit Sweden. The Queen
appeared to be satisfied with them: she made him a present in money of
twelve or thirteen thousand Swedish imperials, of the value of about ten
thousand French crowns; she added to the present, some plate, the
finishing of which had, she told him, been the only cause of the delay
of his passport. She then put it into his hands, and a vessel was
appointed to carry him to Lübec. On the 12th August he embarked for that
city.
[Sidenote: The Death of Grotius.]
What were his real motives for refusing Christina's offers, or in what
place he ultimately intended to fix himself, is not known.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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