Historical period in the history of Sweden (1611–1721)
For Sweden's colonial empire, see Swedish overseas colonies.
The development of Sweden and its empire from 1560 to 1815Sweden's coat of arms (with erroneous tinctures) on a wall of City Hall at Lützen in Germany.
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The Swedish Empire (Swedish: stormaktstiden, "the Era of Great Power")[1] was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries during which Sweden became a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic region. The beginning of the period is usually taken as the reign of Gustavus Adolphus, who ascended the throne in 1611, and its end as the loss of territories in 1721 following the Great Northern War.[1]
After the death of Gustavus Adolphus in 1632, the empire was controlled for lengthy periods by part of the high nobility, such as the Oxenstierna family, acting as regents for minor monarchs. The interests of the high nobility contrasted with the uniformity policy (i.e., upholding the traditional equality in status of the Swedish estates favoured by the kings and peasantry). In territories acquired during the periods of de facto noble rule, serfdom was not abolished, and there was also a trend to set up respective estates in Sweden proper. The Great Reduction of 1680 put an end to these efforts of the nobility and required them to return estates once gained from the crown to the king. Serfdom, however, remained in force in the dominions acquired in the Holy Roman Empire and in Swedish Estonia, where a consequent application of the uniformity policy was hindered by the treaties by which they were gained.
After its victories in the Thirty Years' War and the subsequent Peace of Westphalia Sweden was granted territories in northern Germany. Sweden reached the height of its power during the Second Northern War, when its primary adversary, Denmark–Norway, was neutralized by the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658. Denmark–Norway was forced to give up a third of its territory to save the rest.[2] Although the reign of Charles XII would see initial Swedish victories in the Peace of Travendal (1700) and the Treaty of Altranstädt (1706), he would go on to lead a campaign in Russia that would end in a staggering defeat for the Swedes. The Russian victory at the Battle of Poltava put an end to Sweden's eastbound expansion, and by the time of Charles XII's death in 1718 the Empire had been severely diminished both territorially and militarily. The last traces of occupied continental territory vanished during the Napoleonic Wars, and Finland went to Russia in 1809, marking the end of Sweden’s period as a great power.
^ abFrost, Robert I. (2000). The Northern Wars. War, State and Society in Northeastern Europe 1558-1721. Longman. pp. 133–134. ISBN 978-0-582-06429-4.
^Nicklas, Thomas (2002). Macht oder Recht. Frühneuzeitliche Politik im obersächsischen Reichskreis [Power or Right: Early modern politics in the Upper Saxon Circle] (in German). Stuttgart. p. 282. Finanziell völlig von französischen Subsidien abhängig, wollte sich die Großmacht auf tönernen Füßen [...]{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
The SwedishEmpire (Swedish: stormaktstiden, "the Era of Great Power") was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries...
power. During this period, known as Stormaktstiden (Swedish: "The Great Power Era"), the SwedishEmpire held a territory more than twice the size of its...
Swedish overseas colonies (Swedish: Svenska utomeuropeiska kolonier) consisted of the overseas colonies controlled by Sweden. Sweden possessed overseas...
began, forming the SwedishEmpire, which remained one of the great powers of Europe until the early 18th century. During this era Sweden controlled much...
as Sweden was ruled by the young Charles XII, declared war on the SwedishEmpire and launched a threefold attack on Swedish Holstein-Gottorp, Swedish Livonia...
Swedish Livonia (Swedish: Svenska Livland) was a dominion of the SwedishEmpire from 1629 until 1721. The territory, which constituted the southern part...
diversity. The rise of the Russian Empire coincided with the decline of neighbouring rival powers: the SwedishEmpire, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth...
attack on the Swedish protectorate of Holstein-Gottorp and provinces of Livonia and Ingria, aiming to draw advantage as the SwedishEmpire was unaligned...
Netherlands (1556–1713) SwedishEmpire (1638–1663, 1733, 1784–1878) Swedish colonies in the Americas New Sweden (1638–1655) Swedish colony of Saint Barthélemy...
The SwedishEmpire expanded enormously into the modern Estonia and Latvia, northern Germany, and several regions that to this day are part of Sweden. Before...
Swedes (Swedish: svenskar) are a ethnic group native to Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and...
OCLC 1113941754. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 July 2020. In 1700, the SwedishEmpire covered a land area of 990,000 square kilometers and had 2,500,000 inhabitants...
Swedish Ingria (Swedish: Svenska Ingermanland, ‘land of Ingrians’) was a dominion of the SwedishEmpire from 1583 to 1595 and then again from 1617 to...
Swedish Lithuania, officially known as the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Swedish: Storfurstendömet Litauen, Latin: Magnus Ducatus Lituaniæ), was a dominium...
Realm of Sweden Dominions of Sweden List of Swedish monarchs List of Swedish military commanders List of Swedish field marshals List of Swedish regiments...
The peace treaties were negotiated while the Swedish queen Christina was a minor, and the SwedishEmpire was governed by members of the high aristocracy...
The Swedish Armed Forces (Swedish: Försvarsmakten , lit. 'the Defence Force') are the armed forces of the Kingdom of Sweden, tasked with the defence of...
73667°N 75.53861°W / 39.73667; -75.53861 New Sweden (Swedish: Nya Sverige) was a colony of the SwedishEmpire along the lower reaches of the Delaware River...
Swedish cuisine (Swedish: Svenska köket) is the traditional food of Sweden. Due to Sweden's large north-to-south expanse, there are regional differences...
Dominions of Sweden or Svenska besittningar ("Swedish possessions") were territories that historically came under control of the Swedish Crown, but never...
family of Sweden in the hope of regaining the Swedish throne. Ivan III sent Princes Daniil Shchenya and Vasily Shuisky to lay siege to the Swedish castle...
Swedish immigration, and laid the foundations of a population of Swedish-Argentines. Swedish overseas colonies Possessions of SwedenSwedishEmpire Colonial...
death, in a period of Swedish history known as the SwedishEmpire (1611–1721). He was the only son of King Charles X Gustav of Sweden and Hedwig Eleonora...
This is a navigational list of empires. Contents: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z See also References External links List of former...
Peter I defeated a Swedish army, under the command of Carl Gustaf Rehnskiöld. The battle put an end to the status of the SwedishEmpire as a European great...
Yiddish — and Swedish Sign Language. For most of its history, Sweden was a larger country than today. At its height in 1658, the SwedishEmpire spread across...
integral part of Sweden. The starting point of Swedish rule is uncertain and controversial. Historical evidence of the establishment of Swedish rule in Finland...
of Bremen. Sweden launched the Swedish-Bremen wars in 1653/54 in a failed attempt to take the city. The treaty did not decide the Swedish-Brandenburgian...
Sweden among the Swedish-controlled German states was damaged, and several of the provinces refused further Swedish military support, leaving Sweden with...
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