Gunilla Bielke; Swedish: Gunilla Johansdotter Bielke af Åkerö was Queen of Sweden as the second wife of King John III. Queen Gunilla is acknowledged to have acted as the political adviser to John III and to have influenced his religious policies in favour of Protestantism.
Gunilla Bielke
Queen Gunilla (about 1588)
John III was King of Sweden from 1569 until his death. He was the son of King Gustav I of Sweden and his second wife Margaret Leijonhufvud. He was also, quite autonomously, the Duke of Finland from 1556 to 1563. In 1581 he assumed the title Grand Prince of Finland. He attained the Swedish throne after a rebellion against his half-brother Eric XIV. He is mainly remembered for his attempts to close the gap between the newly established Lutheran Church of Sweden and the Catholic Church, as well as his conflict with and murder of his brother.
Portrait by Johan Baptista van Uther, 1582
Gold coin of King John III
Image of King John on a wall of Stockholm Palace
Catherine Jagellonica