Poland, 1505-1652 Sweden, 1611-1654




Swedish-Polish War, 1620-1629




A.) The Military Course of Events

Actually, Sweden had been at war with Poland ever since 1600, a war which again and again had been interrupted by periods of truce. Such an armistice expired in November 1620; in 1621, Swedish King Gustavus Adolphus succeeded in taking the city of Riga. After another armistice (Nov. 1622 - March 1625), the Swedes occupied all of Livonia and Courland and then began the invasion of Prussia.
Since 1622 Gustavus Adolphus negotiated with the Empire's protestant principalities. The Emperor, on the other hand, supported the Polish side with a troop contingent 7,000 strong.
The war was terminated by the Treaty of Altmark, according to which Poland ceded the larger part of Livonia with Riga, and, temporarily, the Prussian cities of Pillau, Memel and Elbing.


B.) Peace Conditions, Legacy

As the Vasa Dynasty continued to rule in Poland, Swedish animosity toward Poland continued. The war brought only temporary peace to Poland. Sweden, on the other hand, learnt that waging war on enemy soil was a profitable undertaking, as long as the Swedes were victorious.


EXTERNAL
FILES 		Schwedisch-Polnischer Krieg, 1617-1629 (Swedish-Polish War, 1617-1629) from Kriege der Neuzeit (Wars of the Modern Era), in German
Entry "Second Polish War, 1600-1629" from Svenska Krig by Hans Högman; scroll down
Riga I, Svensk-Polsk Krig, 1621, from Historiske Slag (Historic Battles), in Danish
Gustaf II Adolf, Polish War, the Siege of Riga 1621, from Battles from Swedish History
Gustaf II Adolf, Polish War, the Battle of Wallhof, 1626, from Battles from Swedish History
Gustaf II Adolf, Polish War, the Prussian Campaign, from Battles from Swedish History
Polish Renaissance Warfare, scroll down for "1617-1629 War with Sweden"
DOCUMENTS
REFERENCE



This page is part of World History at KMLA
First posted on May 26th 2003, lst revised onj November 18th 2004

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