gustavus adolphus of sweden

Meanwhile, the internal tensions that Gustavus Adolphus had inherited had been largely resolved. Upon his father's death in 1611, a seventeen year-old Gustav inherited the throne, as well as an ongoing succession of occasionally belligerent dynastic disputes with his Polish cousin, Sigismund III of Poland, who in the preliminary religious strife before the Thirty Years' War, was forced to let go of the throne of Sweden to Gustav's father. His early death was a great loss to the Lutheran side. Dunnigan, James; Masterson, Daniel (1997). He also promoted the Swedish economy through immigration and the infusion of foreign capital. He inherited the Swedish throne in 1611. "- The Rev. Thus, by their decision he is officially, to this day, to be called Gustaf Adolf the Great (Gustavus Adolphus Magnus). Houghton, Mifflin. The Hakkapeliitta were a division of Finnish light cavalrymen employed by King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden during the Thirty Years' War. Gustavus finally received a report from Alexander Mackay in the early months of 1632, and was entranced with the notion of a "colony" from the future. Charles’s rule had been arbitrary and violent; his religious views (he was suspected of leaning toward Calvinism) had involved him in an incessant struggle with the Lutheran church. Gustavus Adolphus was a very forward thinking military engineer. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Start by marking “Gustavus Adolphus: A History of Sweden, 1611-1632: Volume I, 1611-1626” as Want to Read: Sigismund … Upon his father's death in October 1611, a sixteen-year-old Gustavus inherited the throne (declared of age and able to reign himself at seventeen as of 16 December[3]), as well as an ongoing succession of occasionally belligerent dynastic disputes with his Polish cousin. Vom Lehnskrieger zum Söldner". The staunch Protestant Duke Charles forced the Catholic King to let go of the throne of Sweden in 1599, a part of the preliminary religious strife before the Thirty Years' War, and reigned as regent before taking the throne as Charles IX of Sweden in 1604. With a superb military machine with good weapons, excellent training, and effective field artillery, backed by an efficient government which could provide necessary funds, Gustavus Adolphus was poised to make himself a major European leader, but he was killed at the battle of Lützen in 1632. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gustav-II-Adolf, The History Learning Site - Biography of Gustavus Adolphus, HistoryNet - Biography of Gustavus II Adolphus, Gustavus Adolphus - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). This would mark the high point of the campaign. By the Peace of Knäred (1613) Sweden was forced to leave its only North Sea port, Älvsborg, in Danish hands as security for the payment of an enormous war indemnity. Grab a copy of our NEW encyclopedia for Kids! Revered Swedish king and military commander Gustavus Adolphus, known most famously as "The Lion of the North," ascended to the throne at the age of 17 and quickly established his reputation as both a skilled military strategist and an innovator in the art of warfare. : A King of Goths as Emperor of Peace?)" Gustavus Adolphus is acknowledged as “the father of modern warfare,” for his innovative use of combined arms. was the King of Sweden from 1611 to 1632. History Founding. One example of this was the Swedish cavalry system. Swedish royalty, known as Gustavus Adolphus the Great. The disastrous defeat (1626) of Christian IV of Denmark, who had intervened in Germany without such an assurance, justified his caution, but it also made Swedish intervention inevitable. One of the traditions on this day is the Gustavus Adolphus pastry. It was founded in 1862 by Swedish Americans and is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Prior to his embarkment to northern Germany, Gustavus urged the Swedish nobility to follow the example of conquests set by their Gothic ancestors. By annexing Ingria and Kexholm, Sweden came to possess a continuous belt of territory connecting Finland with the Swedish province of Estonia. Gustavus Adolphus was born in Stockholm as the oldest son of Duke Charles of the Vasa dynasty and his second wife, Christina of Holstein-Gottorp. The musket was also standardized in caliber. , Latin language: Gustavus Adolphus Magnus, a formal posthumous distinction passed by the Riksdag of the Estates in 1634); was the King of Sweden from 1611 to 1632 and is credited as the founder of Sweden as a Great Power (Swedish language: Stormaktstiden Charles IX had intervened in Russia to prevent the Poles from placing their own candidate on the Russian throne; the election of the Russian Michael Romanov in 1613 had ended that danger, and Gustavus continued the struggle with the deliberate intention of annexing as much of Russian territory as possible. During the 17th century Swedish cannons enjoyed an excellent reputation and were sold to the Dutch, British, and French armies. He com… Not only had Charles placed Sweden in a calamitous situation internationally, but he had left behind him a legacy of domestic troubles. In Neugebauer, Karl-Volker (in German). In June 1630 the Swedish expeditionary force landed at Peenemünde. Gustavus Adolphus College, a Lutheran college in St. Peter, Minnesota is also named for the Swedish King. Gustavus is reported to have entered battle without wearing any armor, proclaiming, "The Lord God, is my armor!" He married Maria Eleonora; their only surviving child was Christina, who later ruled as Queen of Sweden. July 1626. So if ruling the Baltic Sea was a goal of Swedish strategy, the conquests in Germany were not a defensive war but an act of expansion. The German Socialist Franz Mehring (1846–1919) wrote a biography of Gustavus Adolphus with a Marxist perspective on the actions of the Swedish king during the Thirty Years' War. Had he lived longer, it would have been likely that Gustavus had reached out for the imperial crown of the Holy Roman Empire.[10]. The parents of Gustavus Adolphus were Charles IX and Christina of Holstein. 9 December] 1594 – 16 November [ O.S. ); widely known in English by his Latinized name Gustavus Adolphus, or as Gustavus Adolphus the Great (Swedish language: Gustav Adolf den store Gustavus’s creation of the Gymnasia in the 1620s gave Sweden, for the first time, an effective provision for secondary education; his splendid munificence to the University of Uppsala gave it the financial security that was essential to its development; and his foundation of the University of Tartu provided the first centre for higher learning in the Baltic provinces. He is often regarded as one of the greatest military commanders of all time, with innovative use of combined arms. Gustavus Adolphus, also called Gustav II Adolf, (born December 9, 1594, Stockholm, Sweden—died November 6, 1632, Lützen, Saxony [now in Germany]), king of Sweden (1611–32) who laid the foundations of the modern Swedish state and made it a major European power. Gustavus Adolphus was a king who led Sweden during the Thirty Years War. His advancements in military science made Sweden the dominant Baltic power for the next one hundred years (see Swedish Empire). "Ein Gotenkönig als Friedenskaiser? Stockholm became a true capital with a permanent population of civil servants, the most important of whom were noblemen. In an era characterized by almost endless warfare, he led his armies as king from 1611 (at age 17) until his death in battle in 1632 while leading a charge—as Sweden rose from the status of a mere regional power and run-of-the-mill kingdom to one of the great powers of Europe and a model of early modern era government. The Gustav-Adolf-Werk (GAW), a society under the roof of the Evangelical Church in Germany, has for its objects the aid of feeble sister churches. Future commanders who studied and admired Gustav II Adolf include Napoleon I of France and Carl von Clausewitz. Gustavus gains the Swedish throne and three wars (, February 1617. His innovative tactical integration of infantry, cavalry, logistics and particularly his use of artillery, earned him the title of the "Father of Modern Warfare". His armies were very well trained for the day, so that his musketeers were widely known for their firing accuracy and reload speed: three times faster than any contemporary rivals. During his reign, Sweden emerged as one of Europe's great powers. View of the campus c. 1905 "Whatever we do, let us do it well. He was born in Stockholm, to Duke Charles from the Vasa Dynasty. The Gustav-Adolf-Werk (GAW), a society under the roof of the Evangelical Church in Germany, has for its objects the aid of feeble sister churches. Gustavus Adolphus (19 December [ O.S. They were highly trained, and excelled at raiding, spying, lightning-quick attacks, and most especially, charging. Sigismund III wanted to regain the throne of Sweden and tried to force Gustavus Adolphus to renounce the title. Born in December 1594 in Stockholm, Gustav II Adolf, widely known in English as Gustavus Adolphus, was the oldest son of King Charles IX of Sweden of the Vasa dynasty and his second wife, Christina of Holstein-Gottorp. already established a bridgehead in 1628. war contributions from occupied territories, http://books.google.com/books?id=uIsDAAAAYAAJ&dq, http://www.gag.ee/index.php?categoryid=2&s=&, "Facts about the History of the University of Tartu – University of Tartu", http://www.ut.ee/en/university/general/history, "Kas vana hea rootsi aeg oli ikka nii hea, kui rahvasuu räägib? After the pressures of Gustavus. The college retains its Swedish and Lutheran heritage. Karl Wittich (1879). In this last respect the outcome proved disappointing, but politically and strategically Stolbova was a treaty of European importance. The first decade of the reign, therefore, saw the creation of the Supreme Court (1614) and the establishment of the Treasury and the Chancery as permanent administrative boards (1618), and by the end of the reign an Admiralty and a War Office had been created—each presided over by one of the great officers of state. He adopted much shallower infantry formations than were common in the pike and shot armies of the era, with formations typically fighting in 5 or 6 ranks, occasionally supported at some distance by another such formation—the gaps being the provinces of the artillery and cavalry as noted above. Maria Eleonora and the king's ministers took over the government on behalf of Gustavus Adolphus' underage daughter Christina upon her father's death. In all three countries, 6 November is the name day for Gustav Adolf, one of the few exceptional name days in the year. Corrections? ISBN 978-1853672347. Munich yields to the Swedish army. Its responsible for the taking care of the Diasporawork of the EKD and has separate branches internationally. The Form of Government of 1634 summed up these reforms in a general statute giving Sweden a central administration more modern and efficient than that of any other European country. Gustavus Adolphus's ancestors in three generations, "Gustavus Adolphus" redirects here. He forced the withdrawal of his Catholic opponents at the Battle of Rain. Please select which sections you would like to print: While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. OCLC 33899011. The Lion of the North: Gustavus Adolphus depicted at the turning point of the Battle of Breitenfeld (1631) against the forces of Count Tilly. Yet Gustavus' own "manifesto of war" does not mention any religious motivations at all but speaks of political and economical reasons. Early years of reign His troops meet up with forces of Polish crown field Hetman, May 1630 and 6 July Gustav Adolph lands in Germany to enter the. In this improved climate it was possible to undertake measures of sweeping reform. Coat of arms of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden.png 1,158 × 1,158; 748 KB. Gustavus Adolphus was the main figure responsible for the success of Swedish arms during the Thirty Years' War and led his nation to great prestige. The Council of State became, for the first time, a permanent organ of government able to assume charge of affairs while the king was fighting overseas. That indemnity entailed crushing taxation and, even with the aid of last-minute loans by the Dutch, was not paid off until 1619. The war in Russia was much more serious, and it was here that Gustavus, in a succession of difficult and indecisive campaigns, learned the rudiments of warfare. The war against Russia (Ingrian War) ended in 1617 with the Treaty of Stolbovo, which excluded Russia from the Baltic Sea. At the time, the King of Sweden was Gustavus Adolphus' cousin Sigismund. Burkhardt argues that traditional Swedish historiography constructed a defensive interest in security out of that by taking the manifesto's text for granted. This, however, did not happen; for the man who had drawn the charter, the chancellor Axel Oxenstierna, became, in fact, the king’s closest collaborator and remained so for the whole of the reign—a great historic partnership in which the temperaments and gifts of each supplemented those of the other. The son of Charles X of Sweden and Christina of Holland, he ruled as King from 1611 to 1632. He found himself in an extraordinarily difficult position. Now it was of my acquaintance, that inasmuch as God had let me be born a prince, such as I then am born, then my good and my destruction were knotted into one with the common good; for every reason then, it was now my promise that I should take great pains about their well-being and good governance and management, and thereabout bear close concern. Gustavus Adolphus Day is celebrated in Sweden, Estonia and Finland each year on 6 November, the day the king died at Lützen. He also encouraged education, opening a school in Tallinn in 1631, today known as Gustav Adolf Grammar School (Estonian language: Gustav Adolfi Gümnaasium In Finland, the day is also called "the Swedish day". Military Achievements Gustavus's excellent education, personal endowments, and early experience in affairs of state prepared him for his crucial role September 1632. Sweden would have to maintain its integrity in the face of several provocations and aggressions by the Habsburgian Empire. It was one of the healthiest features of Swedish society during this period that the nobility served the state, prepared to sacrifice even its privileges in the interests of the country. In Estonia, the day is known as Gustav Adolfi päev. Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot. This view is supported by German historian Johannes Burkhardt who writes that Gustavus entered the 30 Years War exactly 100 years after the publication of the Confessio Augustana, the core confession of faith of the Lutheran Church, and let himself be praised as its saviour. Future commanders who studied and admired Gustav II Adolf include Napoleon I of France and Carl von Clausewitz. He died during an important battle of the Thirty Years War: the Battle of Lützen in 1632. )[11] On 30 June 1632, Gustav II Adolf signed the Foundation Decree of Academia Dorpatensis in Estonia, today known as the University of Tartu. Bust of King Gustav Adolph on campus at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota. Equipment of the Republic of Singapore Air Force, Articles with Finnish-language external links, Articles containing Swedish-language text, Articles containing Estonian-language text, Articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference, Articles incorporating a citation from the New International Encyclopedia, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Candidates for the Polish elective throne, Swedish Intervention in the Thirty Years' War. Major Swedish cities like Stockholm, to Duke Charles from the Vasa Dynasty a staunch ally of the,. By Johann Philipp Abelin November 1632, O.S. thus, the day the. To the Thirty Years war ( 1618-1648 ) had clearly changed its character of Protestantism in Germany and if Germany. It, he set about to end it on the lookout for your Britannica to... 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