Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden

first time in his adult life, Axel Oxenstierna, Chancellor of Sweden, suffered through a sleepless night. On November 6, 1632, Gustav II Adolf (also known as Gustavus Adolphus, the Latinized version of his name), the king of Sweden, fell during the Battle of Lutzen, part of the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) being fought by Sweden, France, and their allies against the Holy Roman Empire, and its allies. While Gustav had an heir in his daughter Christina, she was only 6 years old at the time of her father’s death, and could not take power to the throne until her 18th birthday, per the Swedish laws of primogeniture. She was, however, officially crowned while yet a girl of 6, due to Sweden’s rule of law requiring a vote of the estates for…

By the actions of Albrecht von Wallenstein alone had this powerful alliance between Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden and Stralsund been forged. Furthermore, Albrecht von Wallenstein in a roundabout way was the architect of Sweden’s easy passage way into Germany. This gave Sweden an enormous boost in moral and greatly extended the 30 year war by allowing Sweden onto German territory. After his retreat Albrecht von Wallenstein returned to business as usual, and the princes of the land would continue to…

Scandinavian Folklore Magical superstitious stories and whimsical creatures define Scandinavian folklore. Tales of great woe and triumph spread a sense of awe to its readers and envelop them with cultural significances. Scandinavian folklore has been passed down for generations with regional customs and superstitions filled with tales of magical and horrendous creatures. Various themes can be found through folklore. It’s themes range from magic, evil creatures, spirits, mischief, lessons, and…

non-Catholics/Lutherans from attending sermons and religious services, Ferdinand II effectively struck panic for the Protestants, who now felt hopeless in their efforts after such a defeat. The Swedish Period (1630-1635) began when Gustavus Adolphus II of Sweden became the leader of Protestant forces in an attempt to compete with Habsburg Catholicism. Backing Gustavus was French minister Cardinal Richelieu, who wished to protect france from the expansion of the Habsburg’s power, and the Dutch,…

fought for the Catholic cause. After numerous Protestant defeats made by Wallenstein, the war ended between the two countries with the Edict of Restitution. This edict returned all of the Roman Catholic lands that had been converted to Protestantism after 1555. This edict crippled the Protestant movement considerably. The Swedish phase of the war began in 1630, when Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, arrived in Germany. He was a devoted Lutheran who hoped to stem the Catholic tide. He received…

and Sweden which was led by Gustavus Adolphus who entered the war in 1630. The Danish and Sweden Interventions together lasted from 1625-1635 with the Edict of Restitution that occurred in between the interventions. At the start of the Danish intervention Christian IV was given the title of Director of Lower Saxon District and a bitter defeat in a battle at sea was the outcome. As well , “It had been Christian’s original hope and expectation that he would be strongly supported by the various…

An example of this is Gustavus Adolphus’ raid of Magdeburg “three-fourths of the 40,000 inhabitants of the town were slaughtered” (443). Many crops were destroyed, which cultivated a spread of disease and ultimately led to the downfall of the economy. To make matters worse, many new taxes were imposed in every country due to the need to fund for the expensive war. Expensive armies took around “half of the wealth produced by the land” (452). Combined with the decline of agricultural production,…

First, it was Gustavus Adolphus, the king of Sweden, who developed the first standing army of conscripts, notable for the flexibility of its tactics. Gustavus also used the cavalry in a more mobile fashion. After a shooting they charged the enemy with their swords. When they would go to battle they obtained the ability to move easily during battle by using the artillery pieces. By using this it required coordination, special training and discipline. In this Century warfare continued to change.…

formed against the Holy Roman Empire and Spain’s Catholic Philip III. Additionally, Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden entered the conflict because he thought that to protect Swedish interests he had to defend the Protestant states of northern Germany. However, France, who had only originally secretly aided anti-Habsburg forces, viewed Spain as accumulating too much power and declared war on it not for religious reasons but political. This represented a change from the Catholic against Protestant war…

country would have continued to prosper without the turmoil of war. The exhausting war gave both Calvinists and Protestants freedom of the present and would also leave a mark for the rest of European History. During the closing of the war, the Holy Roman Empire led by Ferdinand II continued to be constantly defeated by Germanic and Protestant states forcing the Empire to weaken its hold on the country in the Treaty of Westphalia. Led by Gustavus Adolphus king of Sweden, the Protestant forces…