|
|
|
|
Caroleans
|
| |
|
| |
Caroleans were the soldiers of the Swedish kings Charles XI and Charles XII.
ompensate for the lack of manpower and resources Sweden always strived for innovative ways to make an effective army. The successful path of innovative military ideas was in fact the only way Sweden managed to achieve a great power status from the beginning, however, having to rely on this to maintain a great power status is very unsafe.
Discussion
Ask a question about 'Caroleans' Start a new discussion about 'Caroleans' Answer questions from other users |
Encyclopedia
Caroleans were the soldiers of the Swedish kings Charles XI and Charles XII.
The Carolean army
To compensate for the lack of manpower and resources Sweden always strived for innovative ways to make an effective army. The successful path of innovative military ideas was in fact the only way Sweden managed to achieve a great power status from the beginning, however, having to rely on this to maintain a great power status is very unsafe. The Carolean soldier might have been the most effective soldier achieved from this strive to innovative ways, they proved this through their great achievements in the Great Northern War, with the battle of Narva, Jekabpils, Malatitze, Fraustadt and Holowczyn as good examples of that. Thanks to their achievements during this war, they are regarded to have been maybe the most effective military troop of that day. The Carolean army was small, but effective, because of the sparse amount of soldiers in the Swedish army it needed a continuance of victories, but a heavy defeat could mean the end. It met its end after a long and fateful march into the Russian inlands, were they were exposed for scorched earth tactics, small frequent raids and the cold Russian climate. As efficient as they were, the Russians were aware of that this was the only way to be able to lay a heavy defeat on them, and the tactics had its success, since finally at the battle of Poltava the Swedish soldiers that reached there were exhausted and out hungered. In fact, during this long march an estimated 35,000 Swedes died of famine, disease and exhaustion, 70% of the Swedish main army. The battle ended in a decisive Russian victory which resulted in the decline of the Swedish Empire.
Morale and religion
It was very important to keep discipline in the Carolean army as it was necessary for the very offensive tactics in which you had to receive a lot of enemy fire before being allowed to respond to it in order to get close enough to the enemy so that it was almost impossible to miss a shot. The steadfast courage shown from the Swedish troops would also affect enemy morale, at several occasions this would frighten the enemies into retreat.
The way for steadfast discipline in the army was very strict rules. Even a soldier's private life was strained down by very strict rules and they were supervised in the field as well as at their soldiers cabin. Religion was used very much as a tool for keeping the morale high amongst the troops, if a moment of praying was interrupted this would lead to immediate death penalty. Not only within the army religion was used for military purpose, but also regular priests preached to about how good it was to serve in the crown and to be a soldier in order to have young men to join the army. Within the military, priests often participated in battles to raise morale amongst troops.
In the early 17th century nationalism was not as developed as it later would be, and swedes from different provinces of the kingdom wouldn't feel much belonging with each other and would recognise each other's varieties, so it was made sure that soldiers from the same region or province would stay with each other to create a feeling of belonging. Here the church also came in and helped creating a feeling of solidarity between soldiers from different parts of the kingdom by showing that the soldiers fought for the same beliefs of the Swedish Lutheran church when facing an enemy army. This was also a reminder to the soldiers that God was protective of the Swedes and helped them in battle, as had been said since they fought in the the Thirty Years War as the continental leader of protestantism. The soldiers seemed to believe what was said to them, after the battle of Narva many soldiers believed that God had sent them the snow blaze that helped them to victory, after the battle of Poltava many believed that God had changed sides.
The allotment system
In 1680 Charles XI drove through his political and military reforms in parliament whereby he made himself autocrat. His greatest reform was the building of the Allotment system whereby all the farmers in every land was to provide the crown with a full regiment of 1000 men complete with weapons and uniforms. Every land was divided into "Roots". One to 5 farmers would form a Root and sign a contract with the crown that they would provide and support a soldier. In the contract it was stipulated that a soldier would be provided with a cottage and a garden plot.
The cavalry was built much the same, the difference being that the Root also provided a horse, this being an extra burden the Root was granted a tax reduction by the crown.
In this way Karl XI was insured a professional army of 18,000 infantry and 8,000 cavalry. There to can be added 7,000 infantry and 3,000 cavalry in Finland. Along the coast and major city ports seamen were taken in under the system thus providing the navy with 6,600 seamen in Sweden and 600 in Finland..
It is said about Charles XII that "he could not retreat, only attack or fall". The same goes for his soldiers. In the Swedish army tactics of that time retreat was never covered. Troops were obligated to attack or fight where they stood; a military doctrine, that with the advantage of hindsight might have proven a bit rash.
The uniforms
The Carolean uniform was among many variants of the Swedish Standard Uniform introduced by Charles XI. The great coats were blue with yellow cuffs. The breeches were white, and the vest yellow. They wore tricorne hats or a special cap called a Karpus. They were equipped with Muskets, rapiers, grenades, et cetera.
Organization
The Carolean army was organized into regiments according to region.
- Cavalry regiments, including the Jämtlands dragoon regiment, and the king's personal guards, the Livdrabanterna regiment
- Infantry regiments, including the Värmlands and Västerbottens regiment
- Grenadier regiments
- Artillery regiments
The army also included a special unit called the Livdrabanterna (Royal Life Guard Corps). This was a special unit made up of some 100 men. It was under the personal command of King Charles XII, for which he was named captain. To become a private in the corps you had to attain the rank of Captain in the regular army. The king's second in command was a Colonel with the title of Kaptenlöjtnant (Lieutenant Captain). This corps fought to the bitter end, and some of its veterans carried Charles XII's coffin on its arrival to the capital for the burial in 1719.
The infantry
Out in field
The rules were very strict for the Carolean soldier. For example, to steal food from another soldier would lead to very harsh punishments. Plundering, as often earlier had been a part of the soldiers' every day was forbidden, however, it occasionally occurred if it was necessary, for example a couple occasions at Narva and Lemberg.
To use gods name was amongst the worst crime a Carolean soldier could do, and the punishment for this was death, since it was very important to keep the morale high amongst the troops, and the Christian religion was a way to do this. To interrupt a moment of praying would as well lead to death penalty. The Carolean soldier was told not to fear, since if God meant him to die, he would die no matter if he dodged the bullets or not. The Carolean offensive tactics needed firm discipline.
A daily ransom of food could consist of 625 grams of dry bread, 850 grams of butter or pork, a 1/3 liters of peas and 2.5 liters of beer. One would rather not drink water since it was often contaminated.
Tactics
The Carolean tactics almost exclusively relied on very aggressive shock tactic as the infantry and cavalry charged the enemy. As the bayonet was introduced, the pike was discarded in all armies except the Swedish and Russian by 1700.
The infantry shock attack operated as follows: The two rear ranks of musketeers were ordered to shoot when "you could see the white in the enemies eye," a range of roughly 50 meters, and then to draw their swords before the battalion resumed their attack. The two foremost ranks then discharged at a range of roughly 20 meters before drawing their swords and the charge began. At this range, the powerful muskets usually felled many enemy troops and was demoralising to them. Directly after the volley the Swedes charged the enemy ranks with pikes, bayonets and sabres. Note that the pikes were used as an offensive weapon: in close combat they had the advantage over their foes' weapons thanks to their range. After the bayonet was introduced in the Carolean army (1700–1706), the final volley was delayed until the soldiers were inside bayonet range.
Every infantry battalion had grenadiers attached. They supported the infantry attack by lobbing grenades from the flanks. They also formed units of their own. They were otherwise equipped like infantry.
Thus, in the latter half of the 17th century, the major difference between the Swedish army and those common on the continent was the relative lack of firepower and the use of pikes and sabres. Sweden and Russia were the only countries at the time using pikes. In contemporary Europe infantry was equipped with a musket while in the Swedish army every third man had a pike. The pikemen where normally deployed 4 men deep with musketeers of equal depth on the sides. The pike was used to repulse cavalry and to break the enemy lines as they charged.
See also
|
| |
|
|
