Swedish King Charles 12: biography, history, photos, years of life and government

One of the most controversial monarchs of Scandinavia was Swedish King Charles 12. In his reign, the conquests of this Scandinavian country reached their maximum limits, but with him, as a result of the defeat in the war, the end of the Swedish great power came to an end. One of the greatest heroes of the nation or a loser was Charles 12 - the Swedish king? The biography of this monarch will allow us to understand this issue.

Childhood

What kind of person was he - Swedish King Charles 12? A brief biography of this monarch, as it should be, begins with the birth of a crowned person. It is this that will become the starting point of our narrative.

So, the future Swedish King Charles 12 was born in June 1682 in the capital city of Stockholm. His father was the monarch of Sweden, Charles 11 of the Palatinate-Zweibrucken dynasty, and his mother - Ulrika Eleonora, daughter of King Frederik of Denmark.

Charles 12 received a very good education at the time, as evidenced by the fact that this man owned several languages.

Ascension to the throne

Charles 11 died quite early, at the age of 41, when his son turned 14 years old. Since then, Charles 12 is the Swedish king. He was crowned immediately after the death of his parent in March 1697.

Despite his father's wishes and immature age, Charles 12 insisted on recognizing him as of age and refused to introduce regency.

The first military campaign

From the first years of his reign, Karl 12, the Swedish king, was involved in various military campaigns. The biography of this ruler almost entirely consists of descriptions of his campaigns. In this turbulent activity, youthful maximalism played an important role.

Charles 12 knew that he would have to confront the coalition of Russia, Denmark and Poland, but, nevertheless, he was not afraid to enter into confrontation with these countries. The first blow he sent against Denmark in 1700. Thus began the Great Northern War.

The pretext for fighting was the attack of cousin Charles 12, King of Denmark Frederick, on the ally of the Swedish monarch Friedrich Holstein-Gottorp. Taking with him a relatively small military contingent, Charles 12 made a lightning-fast landing in the capital of his rival - the city of Copenhagen. Decisiveness and speed of action of the Swedish king forced to ask the world of the Danish monarch, who did not expect such a quickness from young Karl.

The fact of the surrender of Denmark caused an acute displeasure in her allies - the Polish King Augustus 2, who was also the elector of Saxony, and the Russian Tsar Peter 1, later nicknamed the Great.

The war in the Baltics

Already in February 1700 the Saxon troops of Augustus 2 besieged the Swedish cities in the Baltic states. Soon, the strongest of the representatives of the anti-Swedish coalition - Peter 1 - joined the battlefield.

Russian troops besieged the Baltic cities of Narva and Ivangorod, which belonged to Sweden. In this situation, Charles 12 again demonstrated his determination and quick thinking. At the head of the expeditionary corps, which earlier triumphed over Denmark, he landed in the Baltics. Despite the fact that the forces of the Russian army under the command of Field Marshal de Croix were three times larger than the army of the Swedes, Charles was not afraid to give a decisive battle. His audacity was rewarded, as Sweden triumphed in complete victory. The Russian army suffered considerable numerical and material losses, in particular, lost all artillery.

Control over the Baltic Republic by Charles 12 was restored.

War with Poland

The next rival of Charles 12, with whom it was necessary to understand, was the Polish king and at the same time the Saxon Elector August 2.

It must be said that Augustus 2 could rely entirely only on his Saxon army. In Poland, he was a stranger, invited to the throne. In addition, the political system of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth itself provided for a lack of strict centralized administration, considerable freedoms of the nobility, which made the royal power rather weak. Not to mention the fact that there was opposition in Poland against Augustus 2, ready to support Charles 12. The leading role in it was played by tycoon Stanislav Leschinsky.

Swedish King Charles 12 in 1702 invaded Poland. In the battle of Klishov, he defeated Augustus, 2 despite the fact that his army was twice as large as the army of the enemy. The Swedes captured all the enemy artillery.

In 1704, representatives of the Polish gentry, who supported Charles 12, deposed Augustus 2 and proclaimed King Stanislaus Leshchinsky. Actual control over the territory of Rzeczpospolita, King Stanislaw could be established with the support of the Swedish monarch in 1706. This happened after Charles 12 finally defeated Augustus 2 and forced the latter to conclude the Altransted peace, according to which he renounced the Polish throne, but kept the electorate of Saxony.

Trek to Russia

Thus, by the end of 1706, only Russia remained in the ranks of the coalition of countries opposing Sweden. But her fate, it seemed, was sealed. The army of Karl won victories over the Russians, while also opposing other states. Now, when Peter 1 lost allies, only a miracle could save the Russian kingdom from complete surrender.

Nevertheless, while Swedish King Charles 12 was busy with Polish affairs, Peter 1 succeeded in repulsing a number of Baltic cities from him and even establishing in his locality a new capital - St. Petersburg. Naturally, this state of affairs aroused the displeasure of the Scandinavian monarch. He decided to end the enemy with one blow, capturing Moscow.

Like during the war with Poland, before the invasion, Charles 12 found allies. As a result, the Little Russian Hetman Ivan Mazepa and the Cossack sergeant-major, dissatisfied with the restriction of their freedoms by the tsarist regime, appeared. It was Mazepa's support that played a key role in Karl's decision to move to Moscow through Little Russia. Until the last moment Peter 1 did not believe in this conspiracy, as he was quite loyal to the Cossack hetman, although he was not once told about the fact of the agreement between the Swedish king and Mazepa. In addition, the ally of Charles 12 was supposed to perform the Ottoman Empire, which at that time was at war with the Russian state.

In the autumn of 1708 the troops of Charles 12 entered the territory of the Russian kingdom, which was soon to become the Russian empire. The Swedish king went to Little Russia, and General Lievenhaupt moved to the aid of the Baltic. In September 1708, he was defeated by Russian troops near Lesnaya, and not having time to connect with his sovereign.

The Battle of Poltava

Charles 12 (Swedish King) and Peter 1 met in 1709 in the battle of Poltava, which the Scandinavian monarch had besieged for several months. This was in fact the decisive battle not only of a purely Russian campaign, but of the entire Northern War. The battle was cruel, and the scales bent one way or the other. Finally, thanks to the genius of Peter 1, the Swedes were completely defeated. They lost almost 10 thousand people killed and wounded, and more than 2,5 thousand people were captured.

Charles 12 himself was wounded and barely disappeared with loyal people, leaving most of the army to the mercy of fate. After that, the remnants of the Swedish army capitulated at Perevolochny. Thus, the number of captured Swedes increased by 10-15 thousand people.

For Russia, there was a landmark battle in which the Swedish King Charles 12 was crushed. A photo of the church built to commemorate this glorious event on the battlefield is placed above.

Causes of defeat

But why did Charles 12 lose the battle? The years of the reign of this monarch were marked by glorious victories in even more difficult conditions. Is it really the genius of Peter 1?

Of course, the military talent of the Russian sovereign played a significant role in the victory over the Swedes, but there were other significant factors. The Russian army twice, and maybe more, surpassed the Swedish population. Ivan Mazepa, to whose aid Karl hoped so much, could not convince most of the Cossacks to join the Swedish monarch. In addition, the Turks were not in a hurry with help.

A significant role in the defeat of Karl was played by the fact that it was not easy for him to cross the territory of Russia. His army suffered major non-combat losses associated with the severity of the campaign. In addition, she was constantly fluttered by the irregular Russian cavalry, attacking and hiding. Thus, the total losses of the Swedish army at the time of its approach to Poltava amounted to almost a third of the army. After that the Swedes kept Poltava under siege for another three months. The Russian forces were not only twice as large as the Swedes in numbers, but were also relatively fresh, in contrast to the battered army of the enemy.

It should also be remembered that although Charles 12 at the time of the battle was already a famous military commander, but nevertheless he was only 27 years old, and youth is a frequent companion of fatal errors.

Sitting in Bender

The rest of the life of Charles 12 was a series of defeats and failures. The Battle of Poltava became a kind of Rubicon between the years of glory and humiliation. After the terrible defeat of Peter 1 Charles 12 fled to the possession of his ally - the Turkish sultan. The Swedish monarch stopped in the city of Bendery, which is in the territory of modern Transnistria.

Having lost all army, the king of Sweden was compelled to fight against Russia by diplomatic methods. He persuaded the Turkish sultan to start a war with the Russian kingdom. In 1711, his efforts finally came to fruition. Between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, another war began. Its results were disappointing for Peter 1: he almost fell into captivity and lost part of his possessions. But Karl 12 from this victory the Turks did not win anything. Moreover, according to the peace concluded in 1713 between the Ottoman Empire and Russia, the Swedish king was forcibly expelled by the sultan from the Turkish possessions. There was even a skirmish with the janissaries, during which Karl was wounded.

Thus ended the four-year period of the stay of the Swedish king in Bendery. During this time, his empire significantly decreased in size. Territories were lost in Finland, the Baltic states, Germany. In Poland, once again reigned longtime opponent of Charles 12 - August 2.

Homecoming

For twelve days, Charles 12 crossed the whole of Europe and reached the city of Stralsund - the Swedish possession on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea. He was besieged by the Danes. Karl tried to defend the city with a small contingent of troops, but unsuccessfully. After that, he moved to Sweden to keep his possessions, even in Scandinavia.

Karl continued active fighting in Norway, which was part of the Danish crown. At the same time, understanding the complexity of his situation, he tried to conclude a peace treaty with Russia.

Death

According to the official version, Charles 12 was killed in 1718 in Norway by a stray bullet, fighting against the Danes. It happened at the fortress of Fredriksten.

According to another version, his death occurred as a result of a conspiracy of the Swedish aristocracy, which was dissatisfied with the failed foreign policy of the king.

Until now, it remains a mystery the question of whose hand killed Swedish King Charles 12. The years of life of this monarch - from 1682 to 1718. Death overtook Karl at 36 years old.

general characteristics

The glorious, rich, but short life was lived by Swedish King Charles 12. Biography, the history of his campaigns and death were examined by us in this review. Most historians agree that Charles 12 was an excellent commander, able to win battles, having fewer soldiers than the enemy. At the same time, his weakness is noted as a statesman. Charles 12 could not ensure the future prosperity of Sweden. Already during his lifetime the powerful empire began to fall apart.

But, of course, Charles 12 is one of the most prominent personalities in Swedish history.