The Rise And Fall Of The Swedish Empire

Between the years 1560 and 1721, the Swedes endeavored to turn the Baltic Sea into a Swedish lake. Generations of young men perished in a seemingly endless series of wars. How was it possible for an insignificant country on the outskirts of Europe, with small cities and a scant population, to develop into a great power? Convinced that God was on their side, the army marched across the ice of a frozen sea to take the enemy by surprise. They challenged continental Europe’s greatest generals on the battlefield. In the end, the enemy’s superior numbers proved too great, and over one hundred years of empire building culminated in a long, desperate final battle.

This book examines the meteoric rise of Sweden as the pre-eminent military power in Europe during the Thirty Years War during the 1600s, and then follows its line of warrior kings into the next century until the Swedes finally meet their demise, in an overreach into the vastness of Russia. A small Scandinavian nation, with at most one and a half million people and scant internal resources of its own, there was small logic to how Sweden could become the dominant power on the Continent. That Sweden achieved this was due to its leadership—a case-study in history when pure military skill, and that alone, could override the demographic and economic factors which have in modern times been termed so pre-eminent. Once Protestantism emerged, via Martin Luther, the most devastating war in European history ensued, as the Holy Roman Empire sought to resassert its authority by force. Into this bloody maelstrom stepped Gustav Adolf of Sweden, a brilliant tactician and strategist, who with his finely honed Swedish legions proceeded to establish a new authority in northern Europe. Gustav, as brave as he was brilliant, was finally killed while leading a cavalry charge at the Battle of Lützen. He had innovated, however, tactics and weaponry that put his successors in good stead, as Sweden remained a great power, rivaled only by France and Spain in terms of territory in Europe. And then one of his successors, Karl XII, turned out to be just as great a military genius as Gustav himself, and as the year 1700 arrived, Swedish armies once more burst out in all directions. Karl, like Gustav, assumed the throne while still a teenager, but immediately displayed so much acumen, daring and skill that chroniclers could only compare him, like Gustav, to Alexander the Great. This book examines thoroughly, yet in highly readable fashion, the century during which Swedish military power set an example for all Europe. While the Continent was most visibly divided along religious lines—Catholic versus Protestant—geopolitical motives always underlied the conflicts. Sweden’s reliance on its military skill was especially noteworthy, as it veritably founded the modern concept of making wars pay through conquest. Karl XII finally let his ambitions lead him too far, as did Napoleon and Hitler in following centuries, into the vastness of the nascent Russian Empire, where he was finally defeated, at Poltava in Ukraine. Thus the period of Swedish supremacy in Europe came to a close, albeit not without leaving important lessons behind. In this work, by renowned author Henrik O. Lunde, these are clearly to be seen.

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1895 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER XII. SWEDEN AND EUROPE, FROM THE BATTLE OF GADEBUSCH TO THE FALL OF STRALSUND. 1712-1715. Necessity for Sweden to surrender something--Obstinacy of Charles --Rejects the mediation of England--And the offer of the alliance of Prussia--Movements of Stenbock after Gadebusch-- The burning of Altona--Surrender of the Swedes at Tonning-- Last sufferings and death of Stenbock--Desperate position of Sweden--Finland lost--Stettin occupied--Charles refuses the mediation of Louis XIV.--Despair of the Swedish Senate--A Riksdag summoned--Condition of the finances--Dissatisfaction of the Estates--Their revolutionary projects--Ambiguous conduct of the Princess Ulrica--Energetic intervention of Chancellor Horn--Return of Charles XII.--Enthusiasm in Sweden-- Fresh complications--Prussia and Hanover declare war against Charles--The siege of Stralsund--Engagement of Stresow-- Fruitless heroism of the King--Fall of Stralsund. I[IE battle of Gadebusch materially improved the position of Sweden, at least for a time, and indeed during the whole course of 1712 she had several opportunities of coming to terms with her numerous foes on relatively favourable conditions, considering her really desperate position. But by this time it had become evident to her wisest and most patriotic statesmen that something must be sacrificed. After a century of almost unbroken triumphs and conquests, Sweden found herself face to face with the painful necessity of surrendering part of her dominions in order to save the rest. She had to choose between an indispensable peace that could only be purchased by a cession of territory, and a ruinous war with the prospect of still greater losses. It was manifestly impossible that she could stand much longer against a European...

Charles XII and the Collapse of the Swedish Empire is a history of the famous Swedish monarch and the Great Northern War.

For a hundred years, Sweden was the international military power of Northern Europe, in control of the entire Baltic region and among the first to colonize in Africa and America. But the history of Sweden, Finland, the Baltic States, Poland, and Prussia is largely neglected in American classrooms and scholarship. This book fills a large void in European history as it is generally presented to the American student and reader. This narrative covers Sweden's Age of Greatness (1632-1718) and the warrior-kings who governed that age. It chronologically describes the political and religious events of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and reveals how these events produced the climate for European global expansion, including the exploration and colonization of the New World. The story traces history through the reigns of Sweden's ambitious rulers, beginning with the presumably Swedish Goths who ravaged the Roman Empire in the 2nd century CE and continuing through the end of the empire in the early eighteenth century. A thorough epilogue documents the cultural flowering in the arts and sciences that commenced in the Age of Greatness and continued to blossom in the centuries that followed. This final section of the book pays special attention to the personalities that drove Sweden's far-reaching cultural progress.

The history of Sweden in the seventeenth century is perhaps one of the most remarkable political success stories of early modern Europe. Little more than a century after achieving independence from Denmark, Sweden - an impoverished and sparsely-populated state - had defeated all of its most fearsome enemies and was ranked amongst the great powers of Europe. In this book, which incorporates the latest research on the subject, Paul Douglas Lockhart: - Surveys the political, diplomatic, economic, social and cultural history of the country, from the beginnings of its career as an empire to its decline at the end of the seventeenth century - Examines the mechanisms that helped Sweden to achieve the status of a great power, and the reasons for its eventual downfall - Emphasises the interplay between social structure, constitutional development, and military necessity Clear and well-written, Lockhart's text is essential reading for all those with an interest in the fascinating history of early modern Sweden.