The Children of Adam and Eve

During his minority the government was entrusted to a regency, and
although the kingdom was kept free from foreign wars, it was misgoverned.
The education of the Young king was so neglected that he was nearly
illiterate. In 1672 he assumed the reins of government. Under terms of an
agreement made by the regency, Charles in 1674 entered the Dutch Wars as
an ally of Louis XIV, king of France. The Swedish army and navy were
unprepared for war, and Sweden lost territory, although much of it was
restored by the Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in 1679. Charles, angered
by the military failure, and supported by the burghers and peasants,
instituted reforms that strengthened the armed forces and considerably
reduced the power of the former regents and nobles. In 1682 the Riksdag,
the Swedish legislature, granted the king absolute authority. By a
judicious administration of revenues, he wiped out the public debt,
reorganized the army and navy, and by 1693 was able to dispense with
extraordinary subsidies. Although he had absolute power, he never imposed
a tax without consent; and he published an annual account of revenues and
expenditures. He was succeeded by his son Charles XII.