The great Swedish Empire has fallen into the hands of a fourteen year old boy king. Sweden looks like an easy target. Key word: LOOKS. Support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/ExtraCredits
Extra Credits just something to be corrected, the duchy of saxony would declare war vs sweden, not the polish - lithuanian commonwealth, Augustus was indeed king of the poles and lithuanians but he only invaded livonia as the duke of saxony, poland-lithuania would not be involved until later
I was watching the ole episodes in the playlist and the second Kemehameha was not there and second history of writing was at the end. Not a big deal, just noticed since I was watching them.
EC, I could kiss you right now, you know that? I'm actually writing a piece of alternate history fiction where the 18th Century and the Great Northern War is interrupted by an alien invasion, the first act of which being part of my Creative Writing dissertation. You cannot imagine how much good this will do for background research. Thank you so much. :)
Extra Credits im happy that you finally made a video about the swedish empire. ;) but i dont know where you got the name from but his name is Karl aka Carl ;)
Imagine attacking an overextended kingdom right when their ruler dies and the teenager king turns out to be a military genius and a prodigy seen only once per a historical age.
postblitz Peter was far from a military genius. At best he was a solid if a bit crude strategist and lacked Charles nerves of steel which made Peter not as good a field commander as well. Peter however did have vision and was definitely a better politician than Charles. Apart from his own insane tendencies he was probably the best ruler Russia ever had.(shortage of systemic oppression and genocide on the side helps too.....at least compared to other Russian leaders)
@@reallyFrogman He is most likely referring to the fact that modern day Russia was technically founded by the Rus-vikings, who originally were Swedish. :)
Young but an inspiring ruler and commander? Check. Fighting against the might of numerically superior and experienced forces? Check. Reigns from the north with soldiers capable of fighting in winter? Check. HE IS THE YOUNG WOLF, THE KING IN THE NORTH
@@thotdestroyer458 Jon ain't a bastard, he isn't even Ned's son, he is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen, his name is Aegon Targaryen and he is the true heir to the iron throne
I was in Istanbul when you did your series on Justinian, in Seoul when you did Yi Sun Shin and now I'm in Stockholm and you do the great northern war. Stop following me!!! :O
Charles (at least in this part) is reminding me very much of the stereotypical RPG/adventure game protagonist. "Dangerous trek to Narva, inhospitable weather, and a numerically superior and entrenched enemy? Of course I'll do it!" And like the stereotypical protagonist, he actually wins, too. Heck, as much as I respect Peter, his decision to underestimate the Swedish forces and leave behind an incompetent subordinate is very much in line with the stereotypical villain in these kinds of stories. It could be argued that Charles defied the stereotype by not following up the victory at Narva with an invasion of Russia, but it could also be argued that the decision to go after Poland-Lithuania instead was the classic "big sidequest before the final battle." Of course, unlike in games, real people tend not to put everything on hold and wait for their enemies to finish up sidequests, as we will see in due time with this series...
Everyone's the hero of their own story, as I often say. The story of Charles's initial victories and later defeats drive home a harsh reality of warfare: even the best soldiers are not invincible. Unless you can absolutely crush the enemy's will to fight very quickly, you lose the war the instant you run out of replacements for the soldiers you will inevitably lose over the course of the campaign.
What stereotypical protagonist is that? Examples? I've never encountered a single RPG or adventure game where you're a brazen young king given the freedom to make (or not) daring assaults on superior enemy forces, winning by sheer audacity alone. RPG protagonists are usually designed to be outsiders to make them relatable to the designers' perceived target audience and/or so that NPCs can dump exposition about the game world on the presumably ignorant player so they can know what they're not affecting in any way with their deep moral choices.
What. WHAT! W H A T!!! I never ever thought in my wildest dreams that you guys ever would make a video about Sweden let alone the Great Northern War. As a proud swede I am sooooo thankful that you guys at extra credits took your time to make this series as I think that Sweden's vibrant and interesting history is all to often forgotten or ignored. Thanks sincerly.
"I was chosen by heaven! Say my name when you pray! To the skies see Carolus rise! With the Lord my protector! Make them bow to my will! To skies see Carolus rise!" Sabaton-Carolus Rex
One for Great Northern War Lies: Showing the majority of Swedish soldiers having bayonets instead of their mix of sword/musket troop and pikemen (bayonets were reserved for grenadiers)
There were regiments in Sweden who had bayonets even before the war, and early on they started to give it to the masses (not in 1709 but sometime around 1703 (after the big change in 1701) the whole army who had muskets were equipt with bayonets).. And all soldiers had swords too, even the pikemen. This is because the Swedish army was to a large degree a "steel-army"; always attacking, shot once (ideal) and then broke into the enemy with steel weapons. The pike has a somewhat other use than it had before when everybody had the weapon. Sweden used the pike also as an offensive weapon to break into infantry ranks, in the attacking momentum right after they shot one time at really close range. Both Sweden and Russia, who also had the pike this late, fought many of their wars in the east (not a surprise) and in the east there were more cavalry, so the pike lived on longer there.
The bayonets in the Swedish army was a progress which started even before the Great Northern War, by 1704 most of the regiments were equiped with bayonets. What's quite uniqe is that the Swedes attacked with the Sword in one hand and the musket with bayonet in the other. I'm not sure if that had ever been done before (or after) in a larger scale.
Pewdiepie influences many of the things that happen on this site. Especially when he says something stupid. One of his videos is what started the advertisers getting upset and boycotting RUclips.
Ugh! It makes me so angry that Charles XII never accapted the peace treaty. Scandinavia could've been one big nation if it wasn't for his hopeless ambitions.
Happyfunrun it was his hopeless ambitions and unrelenting energy that got him so far, if he was more reserved the entire northern war would have turned out differently.
Always Charles XII getting all the mention when his father Charles XI was responsible for much of the military and economic reforms that made his sons victories possible in the first place. And then there is his grandfather Charles X that invaded denmark by marching an army across a frozen sea.
"Always Charles XII getting all the mention when his father Charles XI was responsible for much of the military and economic reforms that made his sons victories possible in the first place." Just like how Alexander the Great gets all the mention when it was his father Philip II who both made Macedon a powerful nation and upgraded the military, which made Alexander's victories and conquest possible. All men build on what their predecessors have left them.
Ah yes the acclaimed developer of games such as Battlefield and... uh one sec... (googles other games Dice has made (oh they made mirror's edge!? huh.)) Mirror's edge! Maybe if you're not a part of the PCMR you'd say they have Paradox beat, but Paradox has a slew of grand strategy games (Crusader Kings, EU, HOI, Vic, Stellaris) several excellent rpgs (PoE, Tyrrany, M&B) and an excellent city builder as well (cities:skylines). I gotta say though BF1 was way better than Hardline or Battlefield:star wars, although I guess that wasn't high bar to reach. xD
Carolus Rex (Charles XII) was no joke. He routinely won battle after battle despite being outnumbered. Confidence was not something he lacked. Check out the song of him by the band Sabaton. "Gendemen, I have resolved never to make an unjust war, but to end a just one only with the utter ruin of my enemies. I will attack the first to take the field, conquer him, and then deal with the others.” - Charles XII
and brought end to his empire by his warmongering even when russia wanted peace..which caused finnish people genocide with great wrath time which made finally finnish people to understand sweden just used em and want to break free...
@@hydraliskin yup lots of blood was spilled, of both finns and swedes. I'm not sure why you're angry at this? Russia is looking as ruthless as ever, even assassinating and imprisoning political enemies, while Sweden has been stable for a long time and historically Finland has looked at Sweden to emulate anything good they do. Finland is probably beyond us now, they learned from the good and they rejected the bad. Sweden is in a downward spiral, but would you rather have been ruled by Russia?
All embrace me It’s my time to rule at last Fifteen years have I been waiting To sit upon my throne No allegiance I will swear no oath Crowned by God, not by the Church As my power is divine They thought I was too young to rule the land Just as they failed to understand Born to rule My time has come! I was chosen by heaven Say my name when you pray To the skies See Carolus rise With the lord my protector Make them bow to my will To the skies See Carolus rise
"Jag har beslutat att aldrig starta ett orättvist krig och aldrig avsluta ett rättvist krig utan att besegra mina fiender" - Kung Karl XII av Sverige (1682 - 1718)
“Charles was a great military leader that beat out three great powers in europe. By the way, he was only 18, so maybe it’s time you moved out of your mom’s basement.”
This was a tragic time in Estonian history. Swedish rule had been relatively good to the Estonians, as far as foreign rule gets, but the Northern War was devastating for the Estonians and the following Russian overlordship perhaps even more so. Until this point Estonia had been more populous than Finland, but this turning point continued a trend that would leave Finland more than 3 times more people than Estonia even though Estonia started with around 2 times more than Finland.
The entire population? Come on.. Never happened in any war ever. There are no exact numbers for the war of course, and Sweden's first census being in 1749 leaves some to wish for. Estimations are however that Sweden (original borders from 1521) had 1,1 million inhabitants in 1720, and an estimated 200 000 men were lost in the war. It is a lot though, since it is 1/3rd of all men in that "instant". Consider the war went on for so long that there's en entire new generation for it, basically one and a half, and you come down to maybe 1/7th - 1/8th of the male population. Still pretty darn many though!
Nerd Punk-Fu That's because the population of Finland grew a lot, rather than because the Estonian one declined. Also what exactly did Russian Empire's ownership of Estonia do that impacted it negatively? I have never heard of any sort of discrimination or forced economic hardships being placed on them.
"I have resolved never to start an unjust war, but never to finish one except by the defeat of my enemies" - Carolus Rex Brave words, ill fated, but brave
Thank you for posting this!!! I have been studying Peter the Great ever since I was in the 5th grade and have always been fascinated with Russian history. We share the same name, and I have been studying him for a while. I love these videos and how in depth the information is and how well it's told!!! :)
All embrace me, it's my time to rule at last Fifteen years have I been waiting to sit upon my throne No allegiance I will swear no oath Crowned by God not by the church as my power is divine They thought I was too young to rule the land Just as they failed to understand Born to rule My time has come I was chosen by heaven Say my name when you pray To the skies, see Carolus rise With the Lord my protector Make them bow to my will To the skies, see Carolus rise To the skies, see Carolus rise Proved in battle, led my men to victory No man alive or dead commands me, I answer to the Lord Hear my orders, question me and die What I say was said in heaven, and so it shall be done I know I was destined to rule alone All for myself I have claimed the throne Born to rule My time is now I was chosen by heaven Say my name when you pray To the skies, see Carolus rise With the Lord my protector Make them bow to my will To the skies, see Carolus rise To the skies, see Carolus rise All that's thine shall be mine there's no stopping me All over Europe my rule shall be questioned by none All I see, give to me, that is my decree My will be done They thought I was too young to rule the land Just as they failed to understand Born to rule My time is now I was chosen by heaven Say my name when you pray To the skies, see Carolus rise To the skies With the Lord my protector Make them bow to my will To the skies, see Carolus rise With the Lord my protector Make them bow to my will To the skies, see Carolus rise To the skies, see Carolus rise
Time has worn the soldiers down Marched for many miles In the eastern lands so cursed Time to make a stand Tsar has scorched his nation's land Nothing to be found Hunger grasp the soliders heart 20 000 men strong Listen, excuse for a king Trust me, this fight you can't win Poltava Rode to certain death and pain Poltava Swedish soldiers met their bane Poltava Sacrificed their lives in vain Poltava In the shade of morning mist Advancing on their foe Bullets break the silent air Wasted battleplan Swedish forces stand alone King has left command Rule is left to lesser men Waiting for their chance Listen, obey my command Hear me, or die by my hand Russian armies blocked their way 20 000 lost that day They bled the ground Peace they found There's no sign of victory King Carolus had to flee And leave the land Leave command Madness, curse your feeble horde Fear me, you'll die by my sword
Carolus Rex is how I came to know about Charles XII in the first place. Happy to get another opportunity to learn about the man, and what actually happened.
I am Swedish and my great great great grandfather commanded cavalry in the Swedish army during this war. Thanks for shedding some light on this part of history.
Yes! Finally this story! As a swede it feels awesome to have one of my favourite swedish stories retold in your incredebly immersive format! Keep up the good work guys!!!
I just want to say that I absolutely love your extra history episodes. I love to have them playing while i game or go somewhere, they're just wonderful!
I remember 1697. Morocco was a colonial powerhouse, and had begun its conquest of Africa, creating a Muslim empire rivaling that of the Ottomans, Sweden had conquered Scandinavia, uniting the former lands of the Norse, the Holy Roman Empire was falling, and Spain nearly had Italy under their control. Or was this a game of Europa IV?
Spain surviving and not being eaten by Portugal, Morocco, Aragon and sometimes France? Hell I've even seen Leon being the major power in Iberia once. You must be playing an older version.
One time, i played as Byzantium, and released Armenia. by 1675 it had conquered the entire Caucasus region, and was pushing north, into Russia. I am very scared of Armenia.
Yaldabaoth Well I was Morocco, and I kinda griefed the hell out of Portugal, causing them to seek an alliance with Spain, and France didn't pay attention to them, instead was caught in an endless war with the HRE. The HRE was holding, and then the Ottomans decided to fuck them after fucking the Mamluks. Don't worry. Once my empire was big enough, I avenged the Mamluks.
Thank you, Extra History! This was my first video of your channel 2 years ago when I stumbled upon this video while I was searching about the history of Sweden. You have educated me a lot and I would like to thank you for teaching me a lot of knowledge. All the best!
Now we are happy and peaceful and friendly and the only mayor problem we have is a racist political party (and of course the ever present threat of -soviet- Russia), i think we're better off without all the wars and casualties.
*"Now we are happy and peaceful and friendly and the only mayor problem we have is a racist political party (and of course the ever present threat of soviet Russia), i think we're better off without all the wars and casualties."* Boy, you are one of the tiny nails being hammered into your country's coffin.
A third thing is that the goal wasn't merely expansion, it was forming a Maere Nostrum in the roman fashion, controlling every port in the Baltic Sea and dominating the trade in the east. They were pretty darn close even before the war started.
Can you imagine how much history would change if Charles wasn't so cocky and did actually attack Russia after crushing their army? Who knows, maybe he could even turn Sweden into THE new empire of the following century instead of Russia. Maybe Russia would be so crippled by the war that they would still be a backwater regional power mostly occupied with fighting Poles, Turks and random tribes to their east and south. Someone please summon AlternateHistoryHub and tell him of the endless possibilities.
It is interesting. But often attacking without proper planning can turn to disaster so I don't know how much I say he did wrong. He was not planning a Russian invasion and if he had done it and it would have turned out terribly people would say he was cocky there too.
The only thing I hate about Extra History is how they abruptly end it on a cliff hanger, I want mooooore. Will someone die? Will the war end or will it claim more lives? Will that country get conquered? Will the idea spread? Will justice be served? And not just this episode but in general whenever they post any episode on any historic event or person or idea. This is awesome and I love listening to them talk about it as well as watching the video for the art style and visual effect.
Read some history of you want to know before the next episode. I learned this history in Swedish 6th grade (when you're 12 years old). SPOLIER: Charles XII was one of the first. Yep before Napolean and Hitler's to try to rush Moscow. I think that tells the rest of the story... how well it gonna work for Sweden. I'll be commenting here to correct your history telling!!! Love that you bring up Sweden +Extra Credits /A History loving Swede
Say what you want, in the context of the military, he was a military genius, though due to his young age he got too cocky and didn't make a victorious peace when he should have.
Actually no one can really say which was the first army in history to invade Russia or the Kievian-Rus during the winter, although the Mongols were the first to do so and actually win whilst simultaneously subjugating the region for 3 centuries.
Inspired by the sabaton album, I am currently playing a paladin based on Carolus Rex in D&D 5e. Nice to see that you guys are covering Charles at the same time. If I may suggest a future topic, you could talk about the time the portuguese crown fled from napoleon and settled in Brazil. It's got all the elements of a great story.
As a Swede I spend 50% of these episodes in a prideful glow and 50% standing up in my chair yelling "CONSOLIDATE, KARL! CON-SO-LI-DATE! Nooooo... whyyyyy!".
Ah, Charles XII, what a guy... Great to see some swedish history! And yeah, we had the Carolean army, organised by Charles XI (XII's father) originally, which was an actual proffesional/standing army at a time when not everyone did. Also, I appreciate the accurate ensign on the ship, good work!
there are forests and there are plains. Cavalry remained dominant in the east far longer than west for a reason. And it wasn't just technology difference
I'd say it was the Deluge (which was similar to the war covered in this video) Or you could go further back and point to the complete decentralization and liberum veto as causes of the downfall.
Deluge was disastrous as well as Golden Liberty for nobles. Problems with collecting taxes and passing any changes because of liberum veto, but Northern War was the probably the one war too much for Commonwelth.
There might be years but I think the events can summed up pretty quicly in this shows format that does not go much into detail if its not very dramatic. But it kind of depends how many episodes this series has overall. I though originally they would do 6 but these events went by quite fast so they might do 5. 4 seems too little still.
Ehh...Gustavus Augustus was probably more like Robb. He was litterally called "The lion of the North", was a genius commander and he died similarly to Robb. By marching south.
You're not alone. It's just such a shame that Empire's map pulls so many historical regions into single massive ones; you can't play as Denmark and reconquer Skane, because the only thing you can do is conquer all of Sweden in one go...
Robert Faber Yes I hate it when I play as the dutch and I cant just grab some land from france I have to take all of france, which just kinda breaks immersion.
True, which is why I never played a campaign with the United Provinces, despite being Dutch. Beyond taking Flanders & Wallonia, there isn't a single region you can take while remaining within the bounds of historical plausibility, and while it would be fun to just amass massive wealth from trade theatres without actually conquering a large empire, I think that would tire pretty quickly.
I'm now very tempted to just start a Dutch campaign, not conquer any new regions, but just fill all the trade nodes in the East Indies with ships, and use the profits to fund a massive navy... That seems like fun, although I imagine the Pirates could become a nuisance if they keep raiding my trade route where it goes past Madagascar...
Firstly, very good video. But I want to mention one little mistake creators of this nice video made. During the Siege of Riga (1700) Augustus II used Saxony army not Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth army.
Aidas Slavinskas very specifically used the Saxon Army (I don't think the Sejm gave him permission to use the P-L army), but Carolus Rex saw them as one in the same
Unfortunately, when coupled with messed up chronology, video bungles up more than this. Causality Failure #1: Swedes didn't chase Peter after Narva - but not "because Carolus didn't beat Augustus "personally" yet" (or some other doubtful angst). How about "because he still had enemy troops besieging Riga"... (-> why chronology is important) Causality Failure #2: Swedes invaded PLC shortly after, seeing how a country *neither participating in that war nor prepared for it* was the obvious short - term choice. The army had to be fed and it had better "plunder opportunities" than in Russian heartland. @James A Clouder There was a number of Polish nobles accompanying Carolus during his invasion. He knew perfectly well what was going on. There was no "mistake" or "misunderstanding" about this:)
Great video as always, but i have to point out how none of the swedish possesions on the north-germany coast are shown on the map. These will play a pretty significant role later (spoilers) because they are the main reason for german states like prussia joining the war against sweden.
From the frozen north they came Fought for founding father's claim It was then, their tale began Trace their roots from sixteen strong By their King where they belong En tid Av Krig Wherever he goes Near or far, they are close For the King of Sweden they lay down their lives For the Swedish crown they stand By their King at his command Five hundred years for the fatherland Marching across the belt Crushing blow at Narva dеalt Livgardet, our royal guard Sworn protectors of the thronе Royal doctrine set in stone For the crown you shall give your life By traditions from the past Swedish soldiers stand steadfast I frid Och i strid And if one shall fall Yet another heeds the call For King and for country they lay down their lives For the Swedish crown they stand By their King at his command Five hundred years for the fatherland Marching across the belt Crushing blow at Narva dealt Livgardet, our royal guard För Sverige i tiden Dit konungen går De gör vad som synes omöjligt Vad än framtiden spår Wherever he goes Near or far, they are close For the King of Sweden they lay down their lives Still for the crown they stand By their King at his command Five hundred years for the fatherland Marching across the belt Crushing blow at Narva dealt Livgardet, our royal guard
Define "weaker" At this point we had already kicked pretty much every meaningful arse in northern europe except England(we don't do teamkills). Flukes may happen once or twice, but when they become routine, you should check your data.
I’m almost 50/50 Danish and Swedish, so I may even have ancestors that fought against each others at some point in our bloody history. That is so sad to even think about.. Rest in peace my ancestors 🇩🇰❤️🇸🇪
It's interesting remembering how my grandmother would name drop a lot of these countries while talking about family history. No idea how much was actually true.
Jeez almost 2 years, like many people I rewatch these episodes and I love extra history. I remember waiting for this and khosro. Thanks to extra credits for making history even more interesting and entertaining
Fun fact. The soldiers of his army was soldiers by trade, not a mercenaries or farmers, that was forced into doing it. The system that made the large parts of any other army. Hes father created a system that put a house on a farmers land with one or more soldiers. The farmer fed them and doing so did not have to go to war himself. They were trained for a long time and was extremely loyal. The army was built upon attacking with speed, they would march up in very tight ranks focusing on the enemies center rank and would not open fire when the enemy did. They were close enough to fire when they saw "The white of the eye" then they unloaded everything and fixed bayonets. This made the center rank break, it was more of a psychological warfare technique, you felt alone against an oncoming mass. Made them turn, then the cavalry came in. Charles was a genius, that made his enemies look incompetent. Pity he fell on his on pride. Its still an expression in Sweden as of today "I saw death in the white of the eye" - "I was very close to death".
First thing for the lies episode. It wasn't polish soldiers who invaded livonia. Invasion was done by the forces of the electorate of saxony, which was in personal union with commonwealth which at the begining of the war was nautral.
The great Swedish Empire has fallen into the hands of a fourteen year old boy king. Sweden looks like an easy target. Key word: LOOKS.
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Extra Credits Hey, any chance of you guys covering the Kalmar Union?
Extra Credits just something to be corrected, the duchy of saxony would declare war vs sweden, not the polish - lithuanian commonwealth, Augustus was indeed king of the poles and lithuanians but he only invaded livonia as the duke of saxony, poland-lithuania would not be involved until later
I was watching the ole episodes in the playlist and the second Kemehameha was not there and second history of writing was at the end. Not a big deal, just noticed since I was watching them.
EC, I could kiss you right now, you know that? I'm actually writing a piece of alternate history fiction where the 18th Century and the Great Northern War is interrupted by an alien invasion, the first act of which being part of my Creative Writing dissertation. You cannot imagine how much good this will do for background research. Thank you so much. :)
Extra Credits im happy that you finally made a video about the swedish empire. ;) but i dont know where you got the name from but his name is Karl aka Carl ;)
Imagine attacking an overextended kingdom right when their ruler dies and the teenager king turns out to be a military genius and a prodigy seen only once per a historical age.
"Ah yes, I too am also a military genius/prodigy seen only once per a historical age." - Peter the Not Just Okay
ja det är som att vi är rädda för vår historia
@@postblitz Peter didn't exactly earn his title through military means, he was a decent enough general, but he was a brilliant ruler.
@Gr8Sc0tt but not my boy Subotai, the truest of military geniuses!
postblitz Peter was far from a military genius. At best he was a solid if a bit crude strategist and lacked Charles nerves of steel which made Peter not as good a field commander as well.
Peter however did have vision and was definitely a better politician than Charles. Apart from his own insane tendencies he was probably the best ruler Russia ever had.(shortage of systemic oppression and genocide on the side helps too.....at least compared to other Russian leaders)
EU4: Young people can't be king or lead armies until they have 18 years.
Charles: Observe
I WAS CHOSEN BY HEAVEN
SAY MY NAME WHEN YOU PRAY
TO THE SKIES
SEE CAROLUS RISE
HolyPastrami What the hell
@@aayushpatel2788 s a b a t o n
why do the swed soldiers look like women ?
i agree
15 years have I been waiting, to SIT UPON MY THRONE!
HerpEbolasRetardAids 420 Blaze It Luise ..... really.... you took that from Sabaton. Lol
Zachary Pinto no shit mate
Zachary Pinto it's a reference, I assume.
Cervan Dante I know it's a reference, it's obvious when I mentioned he got from the band. I was just implying that was a good comment.
no alegience I will sware no oath
Typical Russian strategy;
1. Have more people than the enemy
2. Make sure the enemy has less people.
3. If all else fails wait till winter.
They can't out number them, but winter still counts
Joshua Bowen seems to work quite well
The House of Romanov should have had 'winter is coming' as their motto.
Sure, but Swedes are no stranger to winter as shown here.
Orion Lord. Well, there's still the winter.
"What we lack in numbers we make up for by not being Russians"
- Ancient Swedish Proverb
sums up the whole series pretty much
"what we lack in russians we make up in winter"
-ancient russian proverb
@Cian Doyle most ass backwards thing I've ever heard
@@reallyFrogman
He is most likely referring to the fact that modern day Russia was technically founded by the Rus-vikings, who originally were Swedish. :)
CoverDay Bay quite ironic since they lost because of the winter
When it said a 14 year old boy had become king, wasn't expecting that kid to become a Swedish Alexander The Great
Isn't he the one who dies in battle? Correct me if I'm wrong
@@syedferoz2188 Swedish kings tended to die in battles, compared to other European kings they usually joined thr battles.
@@syedferoz2188 He died during a seige. His grandfathers mothers brother was Gustavus Adolphus, who died in battle, at the battle of Lützen 1632.
@@VG_164 polish kings who were constitutionaly requaired to be generals: you dare oppose me mortals
@@syedferoz2188 Yes he dies in the siege of fredriksten shot while inspecting his trenches no one knows if it was by friend or foe.
This guy is 18 and he's leading armies, here I am, almost 19 just fucking around and playing video games lol
A predecessor of his, Gustavus Adolphus, began smashing the Holy Roman Empire and creating the Swedish Empire at age 17.
No pressure, right?
You can lead armies in video games. ^^
Gustavus is also credited as the father of modern warfare.
I mean i conquered all of Europe in Rome 2 so who's the real winner here?
Are you a king in a pre-NATO era
Young but an inspiring ruler and commander? Check.
Fighting against the might of numerically superior and experienced forces? Check.
Reigns from the north with soldiers capable of fighting in winter? Check.
HE IS THE YOUNG WOLF, THE KING IN THE NORTH
WhiteHorizon 22
Bastard? No, we must work on that
I think he meant Robb Stark. Which is fitting cause they both died before the war was over.
@@thotdestroyer458
Jon ain't a bastard, he isn't even Ned's son, he is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen, his name is Aegon Targaryen and he is the true heir to the iron throne
@@thotdestroyer458
Also the young wolf is Robb stark not Jon
Jon is "The lone wolf"
Just don't let him go to any weddings.
I’m a Swede and this is more informative than actual school.
Ja, svenska historielektioner är ett skämt
Hm vi går i genom detta så ja och nej dena har mer information så ja
@@Notactive7162 det är ändå nice, i min skola rörde vi inte vikingatiden över huvudtaget
Ja jag vet
Same about Russian school
I am SO stoked. This is my favorite historical war with some of my absolute favorite historical players.
Charles the Twelfth, Carolus Rex, is one of the coolest monarchs in world history and one that gets so little attention.
*Begins to scream-sing Carolus Rex in swedish*
Sweden: *I used to rule the world*
I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing,...
South east asia : "huh? Swede? Who's that?"
??????: Ha noob
Sweden: what did you say
??????: I said
United kingdom: noob
Sweden: uhhh...
Roman Empire, Mongolian Empire, and British Empire: *We feel ya*
@@friedlemons5201 Don't Forget tha Ottoman empire
I was in Istanbul when you did your series on Justinian, in Seoul when you did Yi Sun Shin and now I'm in Stockholm and you do the great northern war. Stop following me!!! :O
Actually, when in istanbul, you should've watched the series on Suleiman the Magnificient.
Chaos 3DS Suleiman’s series was put out well after Justinian’s.
Stop going to from country to country then.
And, you will be on earth when they do Genghis Khan episode :)
our prophet!
who feels like loading eu4 after this.
Vicky2 is hard af tho
More like Svea Rike II
I'm terrible at EU4, but I'll try, for glory of the Swedish empire. May the sun never set in the Empire of the Midnight Sun!
Fredrik Dunge The UK is absolutely useless. If AI France can decisively beat them so can any player.
Fredrik Dunge England not that hard really. I feel like they fall to France too much.
Having my roots booth in Sweden and in Russia, and having family currently living in Estonia, I have to say that this was very well explained!
Lol
Estonia cannot into nordi-
Jk
Charles (at least in this part) is reminding me very much of the stereotypical RPG/adventure game protagonist. "Dangerous trek to Narva, inhospitable weather, and a numerically superior and entrenched enemy? Of course I'll do it!" And like the stereotypical protagonist, he actually wins, too. Heck, as much as I respect Peter, his decision to underestimate the Swedish forces and leave behind an incompetent subordinate is very much in line with the stereotypical villain in these kinds of stories. It could be argued that Charles defied the stereotype by not following up the victory at Narva with an invasion of Russia, but it could also be argued that the decision to go after Poland-Lithuania instead was the classic "big sidequest before the final battle."
Of course, unlike in games, real people tend not to put everything on hold and wait for their enemies to finish up sidequests, as we will see in due time with this series...
Everyone's the hero of their own story, as I often say. The story of Charles's initial victories and later defeats drive home a harsh reality of warfare: even the best soldiers are not invincible. Unless you can absolutely crush the enemy's will to fight very quickly, you lose the war the instant you run out of replacements for the soldiers you will inevitably lose over the course of the campaign.
Delightful comparison. ^_^
What stereotypical protagonist is that? Examples? I've never encountered a single RPG or adventure game where you're a brazen young king given the freedom to make (or not) daring assaults on superior enemy forces, winning by sheer audacity alone. RPG protagonists are usually designed to be outsiders to make them relatable to the designers' perceived target audience and/or so that NPCs can dump exposition about the game world on the presumably ignorant player so they can know what they're not affecting in any way with their deep moral choices.
General Luigi I don't know, he sounds more like a shonen anime protagonist, to me.
My knowledge of shonen anime is almost nonexistent, so I'll take your word for it, AW2C.
I can't even remember what I was doing when I was 14 and this kid is leading an army. Am out of here
Russia, Denmark and Poland: *Launch invasion of Swedish land*
Charles XII: So it's destruction you've chosen.
*clears throat*..... I WAS CHOSEN BY HEAVEN!!! SAY MY NAME WHEN YOU PRAY!!!! TO THE SKYYYYYYYY! SEE CAROLUS RISE!
WITH THE LORD MY PROTECTOR!
MAKE THEM BOW TO MY WILL!
@@wintermanthenforcer *TO THE SKYYYYYY!!!! SEE CAROLUS RISE!!*
What. WHAT! W H A T!!! I never ever thought in my wildest dreams that you guys ever would make a video about Sweden let alone the Great Northern War. As a proud swede I am sooooo thankful that you guys at extra credits took your time to make this series as I think that Sweden's vibrant and interesting history is all to often forgotten or ignored.
Thanks sincerly.
people: time to take sweden
14 year old: *no*
@Misha Lieskakov Dead.
nö
*nej*
"I was chosen by heaven!
Say my name when you pray!
To the skies see Carolus rise!
With the Lord my protector!
Make them bow to my will!
To skies see Carolus rise!"
Sabaton-Carolus Rex
One for Great Northern War Lies: Showing the majority of Swedish soldiers having bayonets instead of their mix of sword/musket troop and pikemen (bayonets were reserved for grenadiers)
YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO ACCESS SUCH KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE 1ST MILLENIUM IMPERIAL CITIZEN. GO BACK TO YOUR WORK OR THE ARBITRATORS WILL DISPATCH YOU.
Wait, the Swedish had PIKMIN?!
There were regiments in Sweden who had bayonets even before the war, and early on they started to give it to the masses (not in 1709 but sometime around 1703 (after the big change in 1701) the whole army who had muskets were equipt with bayonets).. And all soldiers had swords too, even the pikemen. This is because the Swedish army was to a large degree a "steel-army"; always attacking, shot once (ideal) and then broke into the enemy with steel weapons. The pike has a somewhat other use than it had before when everybody had the weapon. Sweden used the pike also as an offensive weapon to break into infantry ranks, in the attacking momentum right after they shot one time at really close range. Both Sweden and Russia, who also had the pike this late, fought many of their wars in the east (not a surprise) and in the east there were more cavalry, so the pike lived on longer there.
FOR THE EMPORER
The bayonets in the Swedish army was a progress which started even before the Great Northern War, by 1704 most of the regiments were equiped with bayonets. What's quite uniqe is that the Swedes attacked with the Sword in one hand and the musket with bayonet in the other. I'm not sure if that had ever been done before (or after) in a larger scale.
It used to own the world...
Now it owns RUclips
RUclips is not swedish and if your talking about pewdiepie please leave
IKEA and a great weapons creator: Bofors that was founded by Alfred Nobel, we actually invented the wrench and the seat belt in the same town even.
Pewdiepie influences many of the things that happen on this site. Especially when he says something stupid. One of his videos is what started the advertisers getting upset and boycotting RUclips.
I thought Minecraft died down. I don’t see nearly as much as I used to see.
Nobody Important I
Ugh! It makes me so angry that Charles XII never accapted the peace treaty. Scandinavia could've been one big nation if it wasn't for his hopeless ambitions.
Happyfunrun it was his hopeless ambitions and unrelenting energy that got him so far, if he was more reserved the entire northern war would have turned out differently.
It also helps that Peter refused to surrender unless he got Ingria, which of course Charles XII wouldn't accept
If scandinavia was unified it would be SO POWERFUL!!!
Scandinavia being one nation sounds like a fucking terrible idea.
Count of Liljenborg why?
Always Charles XII getting all the mention when his father Charles XI was responsible for much of the military and economic reforms that made his sons victories possible in the first place.
And then there is his grandfather Charles X that invaded denmark by marching an army across a frozen sea.
"Always Charles XII getting all the mention when his father Charles XI was responsible for much of the military and economic reforms that made his sons victories possible in the first place."
Just like how Alexander the Great gets all the mention when it was his father Philip II who both made Macedon a powerful nation and upgraded the military, which made Alexander's victories and conquest possible.
All men build on what their predecessors have left them.
Well, Sweden ruled the gaming world about half a decade ago with a block placing simulator.
we still do, just different titles ;)
TheRacoonGhost *Roblox death sound*
*oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooof*
TheDatadestroyer and paradox games
Ah yes the acclaimed developer of games such as Battlefield and... uh one sec... (googles other games Dice has made (oh they made mirror's edge!? huh.)) Mirror's edge! Maybe if you're not a part of the PCMR you'd say they have Paradox beat, but Paradox has a slew of grand strategy games (Crusader Kings, EU, HOI, Vic, Stellaris) several excellent rpgs (PoE, Tyrrany, M&B) and an excellent city builder as well (cities:skylines).
I gotta say though BF1 was way better than Hardline or Battlefield:star wars, although I guess that wasn't high bar to reach. xD
Carolus Rex (Charles XII) was no joke. He routinely won battle after battle despite being outnumbered. Confidence was not something he lacked. Check out the song of him by the band Sabaton.
"Gendemen, I have resolved never to make an unjust war, but to end a just one only with the utter ruin of my enemies. I will attack the first to take the field, conquer him, and then deal with the others.”
- Charles XII
and brought end to his empire by his warmongering even when russia wanted peace..which caused finnish people genocide with great wrath time which made finally finnish people to understand sweden just used em and want to break free...
@@hydraliskin yup lots of blood was spilled, of both finns and swedes. I'm not sure why you're angry at this? Russia is looking as ruthless as ever, even assassinating and imprisoning political enemies, while Sweden has been stable for a long time and historically Finland has looked at Sweden to emulate anything good they do. Finland is probably beyond us now, they learned from the good and they rejected the bad. Sweden is in a downward spiral, but would you rather have been ruled by Russia?
Finally been waiting for this series for months! Well done, I very much liked it, was not disappointed :D
haha didnt expect to see you here
Oh
All embrace me
It’s my time to rule at last
Fifteen years have I been waiting
To sit upon my throne
No allegiance
I will swear no oath
Crowned by God, not by the Church
As my power is divine
They thought I was too young to rule the land
Just as they failed to understand
Born to rule
My time has come!
I was chosen by heaven
Say my name when you pray
To the skies
See Carolus rise
With the lord my protector
Make them bow to my will
To the skies
See Carolus rise
Gary M what is this songs? U don’t understand. Tell please
Anna Michel Carolus Rex, by Sabaton.
Someone else did this!!!
*starts a war against Sweden in the 1700's*
Charles: I'm about to end this man's whole career
"Jag har beslutat att aldrig starta ett orättvist krig och aldrig avsluta ett rättvist krig utan att besegra mina fiender" - Kung Karl XII av Sverige (1682 - 1718)
Hälsningar från finland 😃🇸🇪🇫🇮
Kung?
@@corvo6842 means king in Swedish, since you know.
“Charles was a great military leader that beat out three great powers in europe. By the way, he was only 18, so maybe it’s time you moved out of your mom’s basement.”
I see you're a man of culture
dude ... uncool
EPIC, CROSS, OVERRRRR
Are you making an Oversimplified reference?
There's a tax for that.
What’s the quote from?
This was a tragic time in Estonian history. Swedish rule had been relatively good to the Estonians, as far as foreign rule gets, but the Northern War was devastating for the Estonians and the following Russian overlordship perhaps even more so. Until this point Estonia had been more populous than Finland, but this turning point continued a trend that would leave Finland more than 3 times more people than Estonia even though Estonia started with around 2 times more than Finland.
It was devastating for sweden too, i think 1/3 or 2/3 of the male population died or was it the entire population i dont remember.
The entire population? Come on.. Never happened in any war ever.
There are no exact numbers for the war of course, and Sweden's first census being in 1749 leaves some to wish for. Estimations are however that Sweden (original borders from 1521) had 1,1 million inhabitants in 1720, and an estimated 200 000 men were lost in the war. It is a lot though, since it is 1/3rd of all men in that "instant". Consider the war went on for so long that there's en entire new generation for it, basically one and a half, and you come down to maybe 1/7th - 1/8th of the male population. Still pretty darn many though!
🙁
Nerd Punk-Fu That's because the population of Finland grew a lot, rather than because the Estonian one declined.
Also what exactly did Russian Empire's ownership of Estonia do that impacted it negatively? I have never heard of any sort of discrimination or forced economic hardships being placed on them.
Estonia, we miss you. Can we combine ourself together again?
"I have resolved never to start an unjust war, but never to finish one except by the defeat of my enemies" - Carolus Rex
Brave words, ill fated, but brave
Thank you for posting this!!! I have been studying Peter the Great ever since I was in the 5th grade and have always been fascinated with Russian history. We share the same name, and I have been studying him for a while. I love these videos and how in depth the information is and how well it's told!!! :)
My mame is Pedro(The equivalent of Peter in portuguese) :)
All embrace me, it's my time to rule at last
Fifteen years have I been waiting to sit upon my throne
No allegiance I will swear no oath
Crowned by God not by the church as my power is divine
They thought I was too young to rule the land
Just as they failed to understand
Born to rule
My time has come
I was chosen by heaven
Say my name when you pray
To the skies, see Carolus rise
With the Lord my protector
Make them bow to my will
To the skies, see Carolus rise
To the skies, see Carolus rise
Proved in battle, led my men to victory
No man alive or dead commands me, I answer to the Lord
Hear my orders, question me and die
What I say was said in heaven, and so it shall be done
I know I was destined to rule alone
All for myself I have claimed the throne
Born to rule
My time is now
I was chosen by heaven
Say my name when you pray
To the skies, see Carolus rise
With the Lord my protector
Make them bow to my will
To the skies, see Carolus rise
To the skies, see Carolus rise
All that's thine shall be mine there's no stopping me
All over Europe my rule shall be questioned by none
All I see, give to me, that is my decree
My will be done
They thought I was too young to rule the land
Just as they failed to understand
Born to rule
My time is now
I was chosen by heaven
Say my name when you pray
To the skies, see Carolus rise
To the skies
With the Lord my protector
Make them bow to my will
To the skies, see Carolus rise
With the Lord my protector
Make them bow to my will
To the skies, see Carolus rise
To the skies, see Carolus rise
Time has worn the soldiers down
Marched for many miles
In the eastern lands so cursed
Time to make a stand
Tsar has scorched his nation's land
Nothing to be found
Hunger grasp the soliders heart
20 000 men strong
Listen, excuse for a king
Trust me, this fight you can't win
Poltava
Rode to certain death and pain
Poltava
Swedish soldiers met their bane
Poltava
Sacrificed their lives in vain
Poltava
In the shade of morning mist
Advancing on their foe
Bullets break the silent air
Wasted battleplan
Swedish forces stand alone
King has left command
Rule is left to lesser men
Waiting for their chance
Listen, obey my command
Hear me, or die by my hand
Russian armies blocked their way
20 000 lost that day
They bled the ground
Peace they found
There's no sign of victory
King Carolus had to flee
And leave the land
Leave command
Madness, curse your feeble horde
Fear me, you'll die by my sword
And where was your God when you got wiped off the map? God takes no sides in violence. You can turn the other cheek, or is that the wrong God?
Way to make it religious. I'm Atheist, but I found a chance to find someone else who likes Sabaton.
Hirocheeto And you found one :D
R Jonboy it's a song mate
Wow... i just listened to Carolux Rex by Sabaton before watching this...
Sogrim the moment i read the title i thought anout that
Carolus Rex is how I came to know about Charles XII in the first place. Happy to get another opportunity to learn about the man, and what actually happened.
Listen to the piano version of A lifetime of war with this extra history episode in the background.
its awesome.
I've listened Poltava before the video. Russian double headed eagle will fly high.
Talking about Poltava when talking about the Great Northern War is like mentioning Hitler in an argument.
You can do it but everybody just loses.
I am Swedish and my great great great grandfather commanded cavalry in the Swedish army during this war. Thanks for shedding some light on this part of history.
How did you find out about that?
very easy. we have churchrecords and militaryrecords. everything is very accessable
I for example have a forefather who died at poltava. I even know his hight
*Carolus Rex intensifies*
I WAS CHOSEN BY HEAVEN, SAY MY NAME WHEN YOU PRAY TO THE SKIES
@@baldkevindurant See carolus fries!
Yes! Finally this story! As a swede it feels awesome to have one of my favourite swedish stories retold in your incredebly immersive format! Keep up the good work guys!!!
I just want to say that I absolutely love your extra history episodes. I love to have them playing while i game or go somewhere, they're just wonderful!
You missed Swedish Pomerania, Bremen-Verdun and Wismar on the map at the beginning.
Prins van Oranje nice flag boy!
Imagine being a so called "Prins" over absolutely nothing.
@John Doe what
+20 infantry combat ability
General Abilities, +8 attack, +6 defense, +78% morale boost
0:13
* *sabaton stars playing* *
Thank you guys for bringing up the Swedish empire. Jag är Svensk och jag uppskattar att ni tar upp detta ämne.❤️
Felix Exenberger 30th February 1712, vi älskar dett
Felix Exenberger Du är inte den enda svensken här!
I remember 1697. Morocco was a colonial powerhouse, and had begun its conquest of Africa, creating a Muslim empire rivaling that of the Ottomans, Sweden had conquered Scandinavia, uniting the former lands of the Norse, the Holy Roman Empire was falling, and Spain nearly had Italy under their control. Or was this a game of Europa IV?
Fredrik Dunge I did say the HRE was falling didn't I?
Spain surviving and not being eaten by Portugal, Morocco, Aragon and sometimes France? Hell I've even seen Leon being the major power in Iberia once. You must be playing an older version.
One time, i played as Byzantium, and released Armenia. by 1675 it had conquered the entire Caucasus region, and was pushing north, into Russia. I am very scared of Armenia.
Yaldabaoth Well I was Morocco, and I kinda griefed the hell out of Portugal, causing them to seek an alliance with Spain, and France didn't pay attention to them, instead was caught in an endless war with the HRE. The HRE was holding, and then the Ottomans decided to fuck them after fucking the Mamluks. Don't worry. Once my empire was big enough, I avenged the Mamluks.
Nah, it's your Immortal heritage giving your massive PTSD-style flashbacks again.
Thank you, Extra History! This was my first video of your channel 2 years ago when I stumbled upon this video while I was searching about the history of Sweden. You have educated me a lot and I would like to thank you for teaching me a lot of knowledge. All the best!
Peter the Great: History's most powerful westaboo.
Valter Östberg Emperor Meji?
Russia has always been like that. They don’t want to be Western, but they don’t like being thought of as a backwards place.
I miss old Sweden , they were badass
But now they are just the happy smiling pure bois
Now we are happy and peaceful and friendly and the only mayor problem we have is a racist political party (and of course the ever present threat of -soviet- Russia), i think we're better off without all the wars and casualties.
No seriously we have a political party that is openly racist
*"Now we are happy and peaceful and friendly and the only mayor problem we have is a racist political party (and of course the ever present threat of soviet Russia), i think we're better off without all the wars and casualties."*
Boy, you are one of the tiny nails being hammered into your country's coffin.
Fiskmaster The thing is its not rasist its called Saving Sweden from Being Islamic
0:25 - Dude, no wonder, the Yeerks have been looking for that cube for, like, fifty books.
I'm so freaking excited for this series!
Sabaton fans:
*heavy breathing*
Swedish forces: outnumbered 4-1
Charles: " I like those odds "
*SABATON INTENSIFIES*
Finns were 50% of Swedish military...
@@sammya7745 Nope. More like 25%
My years of playing EU4 are finally paying off, I recognize that map. Though that border gore is slightly unsettling.
And Bremen-Verden
*I WAS CHOSEN BY HEAVEN; SAY MY NAME WHEN YOU , TO THE SKIIIIIIIES; SEE CAROLUS RISE!!!*
*WITH THE LORD MY PROTECTOR, MAKE THEM BOW TO MY WILL, TO THE SKIES SEE CAROLUS RISE*
I'm honestly getting sick of seeing dumbass sabaton songs everywhere
A third thing is that the goal wasn't merely expansion, it was forming a Maere Nostrum in the roman fashion, controlling every port in the Baltic Sea and dominating the trade in the east. They were pretty darn close even before the war started.
Can you imagine how much history would change if Charles wasn't so cocky and did actually attack Russia after crushing their army? Who knows, maybe he could even turn Sweden into THE new empire of the following century instead of Russia. Maybe Russia would be so crippled by the war that they would still be a backwater regional power mostly occupied with fighting Poles, Turks and random tribes to their east and south. Someone please summon AlternateHistoryHub and tell him of the endless possibilities.
It is interesting. But often attacking without proper planning can turn to disaster so I don't know how much I say he did wrong. He was not planning a Russian invasion and if he had done it and it would have turned out terribly people would say he was cocky there too.
Sara Samaletdin exactly
Hahahaha, we all know what happens if you march into Russia during the winter. Charles wasn't cocky, just really smart
Somebody call Cody of the Alternate History Hub!
Ya...even with Sweden winning, odds are Charles knew that the Russian winter was even worse than the Baltic one, and it wouldn't end too well...
The only thing I hate about Extra History is how they abruptly end it on a cliff hanger, I want mooooore. Will someone die? Will the war end or will it claim more lives? Will that country get conquered? Will the idea spread? Will justice be served? And not just this episode but in general whenever they post any episode on any historic event or person or idea. This is awesome and I love listening to them talk about it as well as watching the video for the art style and visual effect.
You know you can read it all in a book, or at the very least in the biggest enciclopedia in the Internet, right?
Yeah but this is more fun.
Learning isn't about fun, but whatever.
Read some history of you want to know before the next episode. I learned this history in Swedish 6th grade (when you're 12 years old).
SPOLIER:
Charles XII was one of the first. Yep before Napolean and Hitler's to try to rush Moscow. I think that tells the rest of the story... how well it gonna work for Sweden.
I'll be commenting here to correct your history telling!!! Love that you bring up Sweden +Extra Credits
/A History loving Swede
I'm pretty sure most Extra History characters are dead by now.
"I have resolved never to start an unjust war, but never to end a legitimate one except by defeating my enemies." Carlous rex
Charles sounds awesome from the way you guys depict him. Can't wait for the next episode!
Say what you want, in the context of the military, he was a military genius, though due to his young age he got too cocky and didn't make a victorious peace when he should have.
Fredrik Dunge Flawed kings are the most interesting to learn about, though
The original "let's invade Russia in the winter"
Karl XII did it before it was cool
Don't forget about Jacob De La Gardie. One of the few people who managed to march on Moscow, the secret is to use skis.
Actually no one can really say which was the first army in history to invade Russia or the Kievian-Rus during the winter, although the Mongols were the first to do so and actually win whilst simultaneously subjugating the region for 3 centuries.
Jon Baxter and actually win a battle
I know Poland has invaded and won against Russia many times, but I'm not sure if that was in winter or not.
15 Years I've been waiting to sit on this throne.
Carolus Rex!
Shut it Sweden lost.
Long Live Carolus Rex
SAY MY NAME WHEN YOU PRAY TO THE STARS, SEE CAROLUS REX
His name will appear next to nepolean Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler for obvious reasons
Traven Bussell TO THE SKIES SEE CAROLUS RISE!!!
Inspired by the sabaton album, I am currently playing a paladin based on Carolus Rex in D&D 5e. Nice to see that you guys are covering Charles at the same time. If I may suggest a future topic, you could talk about the time the portuguese crown fled from napoleon and settled in Brazil. It's got all the elements of a great story.
As a Swede I spend 50% of these episodes in a prideful glow and 50% standing up in my chair yelling "CONSOLIDATE, KARL! CON-SO-LI-DATE! Nooooo... whyyyyy!".
Ah, Charles XII, what a guy...
Great to see some swedish history!
And yeah, we had the Carolean army, organised by Charles XI (XII's father) originally, which was an actual proffesional/standing army at a time when not everyone did.
Also, I appreciate the accurate ensign on the ship, good work!
When it comes to battles in the east of Europe, it always comes down to weather.
Weather and the landscape. There are some very thick and big forests in Eastern Europe
there are forests and there are plains. Cavalry remained dominant in the east far longer than west for a reason.
And it wasn't just technology difference
craby man Almost all of the battles took place in the Northern Europe, hence the Great Northern War.
cathulion etharn not really, cavalry was only really effectively abolished in WWI in the west.
Not for the Mongols
So that king from Fallen Kingdom is Charles XII?
Will you please do the winter war?:)
Coop Dawg If you mean the winter war of WWII then they already covered a part of it in their Battle of Kursk series.
Winter War was fought November 1939 - March 1940.
Before the Operation Barbarossa or the Battle of Kursk
Coop Dawg The Winter War is a pretty short war. It could be told in 1 video. Or at most 2.
The war that seals the fate of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Same for the Swedish Empire as well as solidifying Russia as a major power.
The whole web of large and small wars in the Great Northern War is surprisingly huge.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Northern_War
To think the Commonwealth could be an absolute monarchy again.
I'd say it was the Deluge (which was similar to the war covered in this video)
Or you could go further back and point to the complete decentralization and liberum veto as causes of the downfall.
Deluge was disastrous as well as Golden Liberty for nobles. Problems with collecting taxes and passing any changes because of liberum veto, but Northern War was the probably the one war too much for Commonwelth.
The best video of Extra History
"The Danes capitulated", that does seem to be our contribution to most history books....
Hope you talk about Charles XII's mysterious death in 1718 at some point.
Probably at the end...
Well, maybe not as the Great Northern War continued after Charles' death.
Well I meant the last episode.
I'd wager second-to-last, as there was a few years between the two events.
There might be years but I think the events can summed up pretty quicly in this shows format that does not go much into detail if its not very dramatic. But it kind of depends how many episodes this series has overall. I though originally they would do 6 but these events went by quite fast so they might do 5. 4 seems too little still.
ALL EMBRACE ME!
IT'S MY TURN TO RULE AT LAST
15 YEARS HAVE I BEEN WAITING
TO SIT UPON MY THRONE
Oh hey, it's Robb Stark!
I mean... You're not wrong. :S
Ehh...Gustavus Augustus was probably more like Robb. He was litterally called "The lion of the North", was a genius commander and he died similarly to Robb. By marching south.
Charles XII even had a trusted direwolf...
Well it was really a hamilton-hound named Pompe, but still XD
Ummm, Robb actually won in the south. It was his political moves that doomed him, militarily he was a genius.
Robb won only two battles, that doesn't make him a genius. He was just underestimated by his more experienced rivals.
"I have resolved never to start an unjust war, but never to end a legitimate one except by defeating my enemies." - Charles XII
'What I say was said in heaven, and so it shall be done' said Sabaton's 'Carolus Rex'. Charle's mindset described perfectly.
i want to play empire total war now.
You're not alone. It's just such a shame that Empire's map pulls so many historical regions into single massive ones; you can't play as Denmark and reconquer Skane, because the only thing you can do is conquer all of Sweden in one go...
Robert Faber Yes I hate it when I play as the dutch and I cant just grab some land from france I have to take all of france, which just kinda breaks immersion.
True, which is why I never played a campaign with the United Provinces, despite being Dutch. Beyond taking Flanders & Wallonia, there isn't a single region you can take while remaining within the bounds of historical plausibility, and while it would be fun to just amass massive wealth from trade theatres without actually conquering a large empire, I think that would tire pretty quickly.
i played as the dutch once, i became a superpower because i took the tiny German states instead of taking flanders. It was glorious.
I'm now very tempted to just start a Dutch campaign, not conquer any new regions, but just fill all the trade nodes in the East Indies with ships, and use the profits to fund a massive navy... That seems like fun, although I imagine the Pirates could become a nuisance if they keep raiding my trade route where it goes past Madagascar...
ALL EMBRACE ME
ITS MY TIME TO RULE AT LAST
15 YEARS HAVE I BEEN WAITING TO SIT UPON MY THRONE
No allegiance
I will swear no oath
Crowned by god not by the church
As my power is divine
Clearly inspired Robb Starks character no? God love GRRM, Thanks for this vid its was utterly brilliant
Firstly, very good video. But I want to mention one little mistake creators of this nice video made. During the Siege of Riga (1700) Augustus II used Saxony army not Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth army.
Aidas Slavinskas very specifically used the Saxon Army (I don't think the Sejm gave him permission to use the P-L army), but Carolus Rex saw them as one in the same
Very good point.
Unfortunately, when coupled with messed up chronology, video bungles up more than this.
Causality Failure #1:
Swedes didn't chase Peter after Narva - but not "because Carolus didn't beat Augustus "personally" yet" (or some other doubtful angst). How about "because he still had enemy troops besieging Riga"... (-> why chronology is important)
Causality Failure #2:
Swedes invaded PLC shortly after, seeing how a country *neither participating in that war nor prepared for it* was the obvious short - term choice. The army had to be fed and it had better "plunder opportunities" than in Russian heartland.
@James A Clouder
There was a number of Polish nobles accompanying Carolus during his invasion. He knew perfectly well what was going on. There was no "mistake" or "misunderstanding" about this:)
Great video as always, but i have to point out how none of the swedish possesions on the north-germany coast are shown on the map. These will play a pretty significant role later (spoilers) because they are the main reason for german states like prussia joining the war against sweden.
7:51 Sounds like a good scenario for an alternate history TL.
People:Starts singing Carolus Rex Me: SEE THE WHITES IN THEIR EYES CAROLEANS ARE MARCHING ON.
PUT THEIR LIVES IN GOD’S HAND FOR THEIR KINGDOM AND FATHERLAND
@@kaden4659 Morale and discipline unites them
A common faith to keep them strong
The enemy: Lmao the king is a unless teenage boy
*New king turns out to be a military prodigy*
Enemy: 🥲
Charles is like any kid that plays total war games. To focused on war; to little focused on diplomacy.
From the frozen north they came
Fought for founding father's claim
It was then, their tale began
Trace their roots from sixteen strong
By their King where they belong
En tid
Av Krig
Wherever he goes
Near or far, they are close
For the King of Sweden they lay down their lives
For the Swedish crown they stand
By their King at his command
Five hundred years for the fatherland
Marching across the belt
Crushing blow at Narva dеalt
Livgardet, our royal guard
Sworn protectors of the thronе
Royal doctrine set in stone
For the crown you shall give your life
By traditions from the past
Swedish soldiers stand steadfast
I frid
Och i strid
And if one shall fall
Yet another heeds the call
For King and for country they lay down their lives
For the Swedish crown they stand
By their King at his command
Five hundred years for the fatherland
Marching across the belt
Crushing blow at Narva dealt
Livgardet, our royal guard
För Sverige i tiden
Dit konungen går
De gör vad som synes omöjligt
Vad än framtiden spår
Wherever he goes
Near or far, they are close
For the King of Sweden they lay down their lives
Still for the crown they stand
By their King at his command
Five hundred years for the fatherland
Marching across the belt
Crushing blow at Narva dealt
Livgardet, our royal guard
Sabaton
Its tragic how ego and arrogance can destroy men and nations.
I mean.. I guess? Sweden were much weaker than their enemies though so it was just a matter of time until you ran out of tactical victories.
Russia sued for peace at one point but this guy was too arrogant and prideful to accept it.
To be fair Russia demanded to keep St. Petersburg in the peace he offered
Define "weaker"
At this point we had already kicked pretty much every meaningful arse in northern europe except England(we don't do teamkills). Flukes may happen once or twice, but when they become routine, you should check your data.
As well as build them.
Your theme tune is often so ironic, and I love that.
I’m almost 50/50 Danish and Swedish, so I may even have ancestors that fought against each others at some point in our bloody history.
That is so sad to even think about.. Rest in peace my ancestors 🇩🇰❤️🇸🇪
Mathias S. that means at least 2 in a wartime laid down arms and started fucking
This is like a sabaton song called : lion from the north,The last stand,From whom the bell tolls. 🇫🇮
That's Gustavus Adolphus.
@jasper426 yes
when i listen to these videos i feel like im really there, you don a great job on these!
The powers of main character!
It's interesting remembering how my grandmother would name drop a lot of these countries while talking about family history. No idea how much was actually true.
Jeez almost 2 years, like many people I rewatch these episodes and I love extra history. I remember waiting for this and khosro. Thanks to extra credits for making history even more interesting and entertaining
I WAS CHOSEN BY HEAVEN.
SAY MY NAME WHEN YOU PRAY.
YES! THE GREAT NORTHERN WAR IS FINALLY HERE!
Fun fact. The soldiers of his army was soldiers by trade, not a mercenaries or farmers, that was forced into doing it. The system that made the large parts of any other army. Hes father created a system that put a house on a farmers land with one or more soldiers. The farmer fed them and doing so did not have to go to war himself. They were trained for a long time and was extremely loyal. The army was built upon attacking with speed, they would march up in very tight ranks focusing on the enemies center rank and would not open fire when the enemy did. They were close enough to fire when they saw "The white of the eye" then they unloaded everything and fixed bayonets. This made the center rank break, it was more of a psychological warfare technique, you felt alone against an oncoming mass. Made them turn, then the cavalry came in. Charles was a genius, that made his enemies look incompetent. Pity he fell on his on pride. Its still an expression in Sweden as of today "I saw death in the white of the eye" - "I was very close to death".
First thing for the lies episode. It wasn't polish soldiers who invaded livonia. Invasion was done by the forces of the electorate of saxony, which was in personal union with commonwealth which at the begining of the war was nautral.
Yep. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was not at war with Sweden back then.