Swedish Monarch. Called Gustav Adolph the Great, or in Latin, Gustavus Adolphus Magnus. Born the eldest son of Carl IX and his second wife, Queen Christina, he was tutored in statecraft from an early age. He studied classics, law, history, theology, government, warfare, and engineering, he spoke Latin, German, Dutch, French, and Italian fluently, and understood Spanish and English. From the age of 10, he attended council meetings. At 15 he administered his Duchy of Westmania (Västmanland), and opened the Riksdag. He took the throne upon his father's death in 1611, after having served as co-regent following the king's debilitating stroke. His country was at war with Russia, Poland, and Denmark. He concluded a peace with Denmark in January 1613, and in February 1617, a favorable peace with Russia, after which, he allowed himself a coronation. He overhauled the government, establishing in 1634, a central office for each of the chief administrative departments. Over each was an official with a seat on the Council, which sat permanently in Stockholm instead of meeting at the command of the King. The country was then divided into provinces with a crown official residing in each province. Militarily, he developed a school of generals, and improved his navy because of the Catholic offensive in Europe that had been underway since the outbreak of the Thirty Years War in 1618. In 1621, he captured Livonia. From 1626 to 1629 he continued military operations against Poland. The Swedes were finally defeated at Struhm on June 29, 1629, leading to the Peace of Altmark which left only a dispute with Catholic German states of the Empire facing the king. He led his troops in a defeat of Mecklenburg and Pomerania, and in the spring of 1631, was strengthened by an alliance with France. In 1632, he began a successful invasion of Bavaria and then moved to take Saxony. In November 1632, at the Battle of Lützen, the king allegedly became detached from his troops and was killed - or was assassinated - in the battle. He has since been credited with lifting Sweden from a weak Baltic state to the dominant power in the region. He is the only Swedish monarch to have an American university named for him, Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota.