C H A P . IV.
'Palace o f Gripjholm— Strcegnetz— Tombs o f Steno Sture, and Charles
the Ninth— Trolhcetta— Bohus— Gotheborg— Herring Fijhery— •
Marjlrand— Uddevalla.
BOOK f | <HE palace of Griplholm was a monaftery of Carthufians,
L. — .1 given to that order by Steno Sture; but as the friars refufed
an afylum to Guftavus Vafa in his diftrefs, the latter claimed it
as the patrimony of his family, and made it the favourite place of
his reiidence. The prefent king, being enamoured of a place
which was honoured with the prefence of his great ancellor, has
lately improved and furnilhed it, and ufually paiTes here fome
months in the year.
The palace is a Gothic building, and ftands on a fmall ifland of
the Maeler, overlooking or rather impending over the water.
Its antient battlements, and four irregular round towers covered
with copper, convey an idea of thofe antient caftles mentioned in
romances; and the recollettion, that it was the favourite reiidence
o f Guftavus Vafa, imprefled us with additional awe and reverence.
This palace contains a curious colleftion of portraits: Amongft
cithers I particularly noticed Chriftopher the Third; Margaret, the
Semirami6
Semiramis of the North : and Eric of Pomerania; Steno Sture, CHAP.
IV .
junior, adminiftrator of Sweden; feveral portraits of Guftavus 1 — _
Vafa, particularly one painted by his fon, the unfortunate and ac-
complilhed Eric the Fourteenth ; the treacherous Arnold Pe-
terfon, who received and endeavoured to betray Guftavus Vafa,
and his wife, who preferved him ; Catharine, the beloved confort
of Eric the Fourteenth, pale and delicate; Guftavus, fon of
Eric the Fourteenth, who died in Ruflia; he is reprefented in
chains, and his countenance conveys a fine exprellion of melancholy
; John the Third; Charles the Ninth ; and Oxenftiern, the
celebrated chancellor.
A large hall contains thirty-four whole length portraits of
the European ibvereigns contemporary with Guftavus Vafa.
Among the moft confpicuous I remarked the emperor Maximilian
the Firft; Sigifmond the Firft, king of Poland; the
emperor Charles the Fifth, and his brother Ferdinand; Louis,
king of Hungary; our Elizabeth, in the bloom of her youth,
and much prettier than ihe is ufually reprefented; and Eric the
Fourteenth, painted by himfelf-
The new faloon is hung with portraits of the prelent ibvereigns
of Europe.
We were ihewn a ftnall apartment, in which John the Third
was confined ten years by his brother Eric, and in which Eric
alfo was afterwards imprifoned by order o f John.
The king has built an elegant theatre, in which plays are-oc-
cafionally reprefented during his refidence in this fpot.
Stragnetz,