She was the daughter and successor of Gustavus II (Adolphus). During her minority, the kingdom was governed mainly by Chancellor Axel Oxenstierna. When she assumed power in 1644, she showed herself to be clever, restless, and headstrong. She attracted many foreign artists and scholars (including Descartes) to her court, but after a serious constitutional crisis in 1650, she abdicated in favour of her cousin, Charles X.