He ignored his generals, who wanted him to conquer St Petersburg. Less well-known is invasion of Russia by the Swedes under their most famous king, Charles XII. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. [2] Its fleet also dominated the Baltic. The Russians decided that it was best not to meet the Swedes on the battle and adopted guerrilla and hit and run tactics. Why did the Battle of the Somme fail to achieve its objectives? The failed invasion of Russia by Hitler and Napoleon are well known. As noted by the encyclopedia Britannica, King Charles XII ascended to the throne of Sweden in 1697 at the age of 15. “Scorched-Earth tactics” wasn’t much of a tactics at the time: it was a necessity dictated by the need to keep a huge marching army warm at night and to provide at least one meal a day every day for everybody. Charles had entered an alliance with them in the hopes of securing a massive army. Read the rest of the article at Dailyhistory.org, Tags: Charles the XII, Cossack, Holowczyn, Peter the Great, Russia, Sweden. This war's culmination was the Swedish monarch’s invasion of Russia and his subsequent defeat by Tsar Peter the Great at Poltava (1709). It demonstrates that the failure of the Swedish army’s invasion was due to Russia's geography, bad luck, and the dogged stubbornness of the Russian people. It demonstrates that the failure of the Swedish army’s invasion was due to the geography of Russia, bad luck and the dogged stubbornness of the Russian people. Lets say that Sweden and Russia make some sort of peace without Sweden actually invading Russia. The Russians then cut off the Swede's supply lines. [14] The Swedish king’s entire strategy of invading Russia was arguably unrealistic. According to Voltaire, he wanted to annihilate Peter the Great. Charles was now reliant on the support of the massive Cossack rebellion led by Mazepa in Ukraine. The Poles and Danes attacked the Swedes in Northern Germany, and the Russians attacked them in the Baltics and thus began the Great Northern War. In the following summer of 1709, in a skirmish with some Russians, Charles was wounded and fell into a coma. In late 1699 Charles sent a minor detachment to reinforce his brother-in-law Duke Frederick IV of Holstein-Gottorp, who was attacked by D… [2] Its fleet also dominated the Baltic. It was Russia’s finest force at the time, and an immediate invasion by Sweden might well have succeeded. Charles planned an invasion of the Russian heartland, allying himself with Ivan Mazepa, Hetman of the Ukrainian Cossacks. However, he made several serious miscalculations. [13] Their patience was rewarded, and the hungry and cold Swedish army was forced to gamble on a battle at Poltava to win the war quickly. By the 1660s the Kingdom of Sweden directly controlled the modern states of Finland and the Baltic States. Until they made the classic mistake of invading Russia. Despite being inferior in numbers, they besieged Poltava. Later, during the Great Northern War (1700 - 1721), the Swedish army invaded the then-Russian territories of Belarus, taking the city of Mogilev. His son became king of Sweden at the age of fifteen. By the 1660s, the Kingdom of Sweden directly controlled Finland's modern states and the Baltic States. Sweden in 1700 was the greatest Northern European power and this provoked the jealousy of its neighbors. By this time, he was popularly known as ‘The Alexander of the West,’ a comparison with Alexander the Great. The sight of a mere boy on the Throne of Sweden alerted the neighbors of the Swedes. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. The Swedish king secured a great victory with only minimal losses. They did so before the Cossacks could rendezvous with the Swedish army. Charles XII, also Carl (Swedish: Karl XII; 17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718), Latinized to Carolus Rex, was the King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718. In total, the Swedish army was composed of 50,000 men, mostly Swedes and Finns. [9] Charles lost many men to the extreme cold and frostbite. However, it must also be noted that bad luck was also a factor, such as the sudden collapse of the Cossack rebellion in Ukraine and Charles XII being unable to lead his men into battle at Poltava. He launched a disastrous invasion of Russia (1707–09), resulting in the complete collapse of … "[6] In 1708, he ordered a general invasion of Russia, and he decided to ally himself with the rebellious Cossacks who had revolted against Peter in Ukraine. The reinforcements were attacked by Peter’s army and suffered many casualties and lost many precious cannons. The young monarch belonged to the Royal German House of Palatinate. Charles XII's loss essentially ensured the end of The Swedish Empire. Why. 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