The purpose of this project was to explore how the image of Gustav Vasa is conveyed in schoolbooks for secondary school and upper-secondary school from 1978 to 2016 where I have used qualitative text analysis. My hypothesis is that the image of Gustav Vasa is embellished in schoolbooks for secondary school. The research was based on two questions: How is the image of Gustav Vasa conveyed in schoolbooks for secondary- and upper secondary school from the year 1978 to 2016? What kind of differences are there between the newer and the older books? The earlier books indicate an explicit political-educational use due to the differences and similarities between the past and present, but on the other hand, it shows minimal scientific practice because there is no critical interpretation of the past. The later schoolbooks, however, demonstrate a clear and distinguishable political-and educational use where there is an interpretation of the past and the present. The conclusion is that the image of Gustav Vasa differs between the schoolbooks for secondary school and middle school. In the upper-secondary school, Vasa is power hungry and a dictator. In the textbooks for a secondary school, there is a milder tone. He is a family guy and cares for the country, the earlier books romanticized him clearly.