Charles XII was kinda like a real life Aragorn, giving patriotic speeches before each battle and rushing towards with his soldiers. He absolutely did not sit back and wait how the battle ends up. The only exception to this was the battle of Poltava (when he was already wounded before the battle), and the results were terrible.
@@MajinVegeto89 lol. Poland is not Russia, my family is mostly polisj. They are my Slavs, not the far east ones, although I am also part Russian as well. But my family fought in the Tsar's army against the Bolsheviks and had to bail when they lost. So I guess Im partially reformed orc.
Holy smoke, Batman! Karl XII (Carolus Rex is the latinized version of his name, bascially "King Charles") was one of the people that actually like war, and didn't like the administrative parts of running a country. To his credit though; he never started a war, they were all declared against him. Also, he wasn't an armchair general. He was wounded in battle and he died in battle.
The best point in his favor is that he was beloved by his army and the common people, but hated by the aristocracy. If the aristocracy hates you, you're probably doing something right.
@@reliantncc1864 yet, there probably were many soldiers that didn't right out love him also. Since they went to war and never saw home for several years. There's a theory that he might have been shot by one of his own soldiers. It's not completely unlikely.
@@SoulSlave92 A groundless theory, yes. What credibility should we assign to a theory that lacks any evidence? No one has a 100% approval rating. So sure, some of the soldiers didn't love him. Most of them did.
I'm not sure if other parts of the translation may be wrong, but "kna om kna" does not mean "on your knees." It means "knee to knee," and was how the Swedish cavalry described their riding style when charging: so close together that riders were touching knees. Karl XII was an incredible tactician and an inspiring leader. He was just also very young, and took on too many foes at once, and tried to do too much too fast.
It COULD also mean the way soldiers in the front firing line would go down on one knee to fire, so the line behind them could fire over their heads. So they are crouching "knee by knee", side by side.
This part is really important. Knä om knä literally means knee on knee, a better translation would be side by side. It's about Carl going into battle side by side with his men.
@@ungrimironfist5740 No i'm pretty sure it had nothing to do with the infantry tactics at all. As most (if not all) used that tactic for their infantry. But riding knee to knee (in a arrowhead shape) was probably not something all armies did, hence why it's highlighted in the lyrics as something special.
@@espadindelnorte2728 Nope it's not, he was known to be in front of his armies (not beside them), leading the charge on several occasions. The "knee to knee" is about cavalry formation :)
00:00 - Presenting the reactions 01:07 - Carolus Rex (English) Reaction 07:24 - Carolus Rex (Swedish) Reaction 13:26 - Sabaton History Reaction 34:34 - Carolus Rex (Live in Stockholm) Reaction 40:31 - Review/Final thoughts No, I'm not gonna tell you whether Touchy tries to sing in Swedish or not. Now you have to watch it all anyway.
I would recommend you'd check out the song Long Live The King as it covered Carolus' death. And yeah, even in the US, people who have heard of Sabaton think the band are nazis sometimes simply because they're history nerds, or because of their songs like Ghost Division (Rommel's tank division), Bismarck (Germany's famous battleship), Hearts of Iron (Evacuation of Berlin), Wolfpack (U-Boats), Panzerkampf (Battle of Kursk) are "pro-nazi" simply because they're not demonizing Germans during WW2. Meanwhile Sabaton only has one, technically two, songs about Nazis; The Rise of Evil (Hitler's rise to power in Germany) and The Final Solution. As Joakim said in an interview once, "If you're offended, you don't have a problem with Sabaton, you have a problem with history."
yes, "long live the king" an then "ruina imperii" to cover the fall of the swedish empire, but all the album carolus rex is like a book who cover the rise and the fall of this empire.
Alot of people like to assume ill intent with Sabaton because of their historical neutrality when it comes to their songs. All I know is that they have a history of being super nice guys, and pretty much all of the bands that tour and play festivals with the guys have overwhelmingly positive things to say about them. Their shows are some of the most fun I have had at concerts and I never regret makiing the trip to see them. The Carolus Rex album was the last album to include the other original members. After this album was made every member except Par and Joakim left. The first Sabaton concert I ever attended was actually a one-off album release show they decided to do in Los Angeles (of all places) for Carolus Rex in 2012. This song was probably the biggest crowd pleaser, for sure. Anyways, loved the reaction as always, Batman! ;P
Oh you'll find Charles, as much as you say you dislike him for being an absolute monarch who believes himself chosen by god, he was in there with the troops, his stay in the warcamps was no more luxurious as the average soldiers. In fact he even got killed while in a frontline trench during a siege. The wars he fought were mostly justified as the list of Sweden's enemies was long and powerful and attack was really its only defence. But where he drove his country into the ground was when he beat everyone back and secured Sweden but refused to leave them alone in order to fulfill his promise about absolutely annihilating them, draining Swedens already small manpower and funds. Sure he was hard to get along if you tried to argue with him about a decision he made but idk man to me he seems like a top bloke. Oh and jesus christ man the drums feel soo huge on this song, especially with Apocalyptica adding some more in the live video. I think the crowd had good energy but with so many instruments going on it drowns them out a bit. As always loved hearing your thoughts on it. Thank you.
22:43 I do completely respect your opinion, and why you have that opinion, but let's not forget that this was a very different time. That being said, love the channel and reactions, can't wait to see what's next. May I suggest Winged Hussars as the next song to be reacted too. Absolute banger.
Quite right. There have been good kings and bad kings just as there have been good presidents and bad presidents. Also disastrously mediocre kings and presidents. The main difference is how the leaders gain power and how they generally lose it.
@@brigidtheirish I disagree, mention a great King that have been "good" If you do find one it will be someone no one have heard of, someone that sat on throne, did nothing and then ended. Take people like Hannibal or Genghis Khan, no one would consider them as good people today, but they were great and are considered great rulers today.........Sure, maybe bangor of country I dont know was a good king that helped his people and had his people love him, but he accomplished nothing and is lost in history
@@Belnick6666 I'm talking about their ability to lead and treatment of their subjects, not their moral conduct in their personal lives.Vespasian stands out as being generally regarded as a nice guy while also pulling Rome out of the economic chaos Nero left.
Carolus Rex/Karl XII/ Charles XII (same dude in Latin/ Swedish/ English) wasn't as bad as people claim. He bekame the king when he was 15 years old and swiftly was attacked by Denmark, Germany, Lituania and Russia simultaneously. He almost fought them of but the weather made the cavalry arive to final last battle one day to late. The Swedish infantry had lost many troops destroying the Russian redoubts (redoubt=small makeshift fortification close to another fortification). When the Swedish cavalry finely arrived, everything was rebuilt and fortified to the level that few Swedish cavalryman made it through (cavalry isn't effective against fortified infantry). Being greatly outnumberd and without the elite, the Swedes retreated under fire. Carolus Rex did start one war but that was several years later and against Norway.
Kind of late to the party but alas! Carolus, or rather Karl XII of Sweden was the reigning monarch of Sweden from 1697 to his death in 1718. He is commonly known as 'the warrior king' since most of his time as a monarch was spent on the battlefield. Karl was a brilliant strategist and general and yet he had the kind of moral that he never ordered men to fight his battles for him but WITH him. That being said, the common people saw him as something of a tyrant because of all the expensive wars that drained Sweden's coffers and left the population starving
Karl in Swedish, Carolus in Latin, Charles in English..... Great song, thanks for doing a reaction video to it..... i own "copies" to all of their albums they have out so far... i cant wait to get a copy to their next one due in march of 2022.... i just hope the rest of it will be just as good, or close enough to it as The Christmas Truce, which is also on it
Carolus Rex is the Latin way of saying King Charles. In Swedish you say Kung Karl XII (Den Tolfte/The Twelfth). He was probably one of the greatest military leaders in history. He's up there with Napoleon, Gustav II Adolf/Gustavus Adolphus (Also Swedish and also known as the Father of Modern Warfare and also the only Swedish king to be dubbed "The Great"), Alexander the Great, Ghenghis Kahn, Julius Caesar, Yi Sun-sin, etc.
i know why horror movie makers went for the eyes of such old paintings, i mean, if you have any sort of peripheral vision. you'll always see those eyes.
Just want to add the historical trivia that out of the 48 Monarchs Sweden has had under its more than 1000 years history only 4 can be considered Absolute rulers, furthermore until 1544 the crown of Sweden was elected and not inherited.
It's the same for Denmark and the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, it was still rare for the crown to ever pass from one family to another. That doesn't mean they were absolute rulers, though. Germanic peoples believed that all nobles had the right to vote on their king at the "thing". That's the true basis for our democracy, it has a Germanic origin rather than a Greek one. Absolute power was rare for any European monarch up until the modern era, and the only nobles to survive the monarch blasting down their castles was the UK. Hence to House of Lords.
@@musicointempero2256 Yes, but voting by blood is still traditional. The nobility voting on a monarch is basically an acceptance of said Monarch who's very likely to get the throne anyway.
I'd love to think, that during the entire interview with the sh*tty journalist, that Joakim was pounding his knee the entire time he let them have it, menacingly.
I recommend the song the Caroleans prayer great part in the middle when they Say Ahead facing the lead it’s a great part just gives me chills every time
I love that live version as I know exactly where I am sitting out there in the crowd. I had a couple a few rows in front of me that most have been 60+ and the woman was knitting. It was a great show opening with Amaranthe and Apocalyptica. Apocalyptica is on stage performing with Sabaton during this song.
Karl was not the aggressor in the wars he fought. Holstein-Gottorp was first attacked by Denmark, in march 1700, when the Danes laid siege to the fortress of Tönning. Holstein-Gottorp was an ally of the Swedish Empire. Simultaneously Polan-Lithuania also attacked Swedish Livonia,captured Dünamünde and laid siege to Riga. In July a combined fleet of English, Dutch and Swedish ships executed a bombardment on Copenhagen. On the 4th of August, 1700, a Swedish army of 2500 men, led by Carl Gustav Rehskiöld, Arvid Horn and Karl XII landed at Humlebæck, north of Copenhagen. 2 weeks later, Denmark surrendered and all territory gained by Denmark in Holstein-Gottorp was returned to the Duke, at the Peace of Travendal. In October, Tsar Peter and his army of 40 000 laid siege to Narva. Karl made his way there, personally led a landing which faced strong defenses and bombardment, marched 150km with his 10 000 men, arrived at Narva and on teh 30th of November absolutely smashed the entrenched Russian army. Dispite being outnumbered 4-1, the Swedish Caroleans only suffered around 1900 losses (dead and wounded combined). The Russians suffered a total of around 18 000 (yes 18 000), most either drowned in the nearby river when the bridge collapsed during the rout or by freezing to death after deserting. 6 years later Poland-Lithuania were also defeated. However, 3 years after that, the Swedish army lost the Battle of Poltava and it only went downhill from there. Karl died in 1718 during the Siege of Halden, by a shot through the head and Sweden lost the war in 1721.
Sweden still is a monarchy and our next person on the throne will be Princess Victoria. :) I think he was a bad ruler but not a bad person and I’ve studied him quite a lot. Basically I disagree with your opinions of him but I don’t think I can change a persons view of him if that person first of all is heavily against monarchy. He was suited to be a general not the King of a nation because he was only good at war and fighting which was useful during the war but he lacked diplomacy talents and refused to negotiate a peace treaty until he had completely won. All I can say while he was responsible for Sweden’s fall from greatness he also was extremely talented and proved Swedish might on the battlefield over and over again leading the Carolean army. And btw he fought alongside his men during many of the battles and was extremely loved by the troops. He was no more evil than many other European monarchs were. Btw he wasn’t inbred our family didn’t do that mostly Spain just did with the Habsburg family. This is personally one of my fav songs especially specifically the Swedish version but then again I’m also Swedish.
Maybe you could explain the (/concept of the) monarchy? Most Americans don't know anything about how it works and especially not what it means to be a modern constitutional monarchy like Sweden is today. And one probably SHOULD be against the monarchy of back in the day. Today's monarchy, however, isn't much different from being born a Kennedy, a Bush or other social and/or political "royalty" in the US - the key difference being that the Royal Family actually devote their lives to serve the people, not like political public servants do, but for real, as they sacrifice any chance of a normal life to support a nation in times of joy as well as sorrow, may it be to comfort a grief stricken nation after a catastrophe or giving guidance and hope during a crisis like that of the pandemic. No bias, no ulterior motives, nothing to gain - only service to the people. A very beautiful thing, in my opinion. EDIT: Saw your edit now, hahaha.
@@FamousGirlfriend Well just to make it clear I am ofc for constitutional monarchy and not absolute. In Sweden we have a constitutional monarchy meaning the king or queen have no real power over our country but they represent Sweden abroad and have a symbolic and cultural reason for staying. They have no power over our democracy and are meant to be neutral in politics.
One of the redeeming qulities of Charles XII was that he never asked his soldiers to do something that he would not do him self. He ate what the soldiers ate, he slept as the soldiers did and didn't expect to be treated better than the soldiers. He said that he cold not know how much his soldiers could take if he didn't live as them. And the only way to lead was by example. He had "novel" ideas for the time and was influenced by people like Voltaire. He also wanted to be portrayed in paintings as "He was" no scars covered up. And he didn't see the point of wigs. If you were bald you were bald. So yes. A controversial guy. Maybe more so at the specific time in history when he lived.
He was not influenced by Voltaire as Voltaire hadn't done much of anything by 1718 when Charles XII died. Voltaire did write a book about Charles XII though.
@@johandahlgren4919 Ok. Did they know each other? I thought Charles had studied in Paris and got to know him from there. Maybe I mixed that up with something else...
@@secularnevrosis It's rather the other way around, Karl influenced Voltaire to some degree. Voltaire wrote a book about Karl to try to show how a king should be, in some way as a critique to the french king(s).
The “Divine Right of Kings” was a concept used by monarchs to justify their rule over peasants. The basis of this concept is that kings are given their position by God and therefore serve as His representative on Earth. What this song does so well is highlight that hubris and point out how this “right” was manipulated to give one man absolute power over the lives of hundreds of thousands of others.
The soldiers loved him , he allways led from the frontline, he ate and drank with his soldiers slept on the ground with just a blanket exactly as they did som from that perpspective he was now coward leading the army way back.
@@TouchyReactions I agree even though it was "necessary" for time. No better system for those days and before was there. There were some "republics", but that times lack of reliable system to run it wouldn't have worked in any large scale. And to be fair a *good* absolute ruler is best even to this day. The problem is that it too easily leaves doors open for corruption, usurpers and other ways for the bad people to take power. That is why democracy works, it sucks for quick decisions, it sucks for many cases and the bureacracy sucks, but is necessary for a democracy to work. Democracys best thing is that it makes hard for a lunatic to gain absolute power, and represantion of peoples will is good ofc. That is why democratic republic is the way of today. Before as an example Sweden during this time people wouldn't have had time for democracy because too busy to feed themselves. And they would most likely been too poorly educated and thus manipulated for votes and power. But today...democracy all the way.
Okej this will be a bit longer since this is my favorite topic. So Karl XII (Carl the 12) (Carolus in Latin) comes to rain on the pinnacle of the Swedish Empire. He will fight wars with Denmark, the northern part of Germany that is not a unified state but still very powerful, and the Russian Empire. And not just that, he beat them all over and over. He is the defender of the nation that stands against basically all its neighbors at once. This makes him famous around Europe at the time. But the problem with fighting Russia is that there is always MORE Russia and Sweden has a limited manpower. But since Tsar Peter refuses to bend the knee even as Sweden repel and drive his forces back over and over . So Carolus aims for Moscow! But guess what... Russia burns its own land and leaves the Swedish armys in a logistical nightmare! This is the scorch earth tactic that will serve Russia well against both Napoleon and the Germans. Carolus detects this and starts to advance south with the hope to grab the Ukrainian food production. But the winter ends up being both early and hard. At Poltava (Another great track from Sabaton) the Swedish Empire suffers a massive defet that it can't bounce back from. Now all the enemies that formally had been defeted return and Carolus is forced to try to convince the Turkish Ottoman Empire to attack Russia. This fails in the end and the last effort save Swedens ends up being the death of Carolus Rex. He is shoot trying to invade Norway and size it from Danmark. It could have been his army that shoot him or the Danish. This is unknown. My ancestor did fight in Norway and later returned to Sweden where he died fight of the Russians as they attacked and tried to burn Norrköping. Was he a villian? Was he a hero? Sweden has never fully made up its mind. He is the King that ruled when the house of cards fell but he is also the king that kept it alive against the worst odds possible for decades. He was often on the frontline fighting next to his soldiers and I respect that. But he also got hubris and did not end the war when he had the opper hand. In the end he is a intresting guy that stirrs up many emotions and its a killer song!
Sabaton toured with another band Apocalyptica when they did their 'Great Tour' the cellists and the guy with the single drum are from Apocalyptica. They came on for some of the Sabaton songs after finishing their own set. It was a great tour, we saw them in London.
I also was very confused at first whether he was a tyrant or a good king. I'm still not really sure, I guess it's a matter of perspective on what a good king is.
As other have said. We can't judge them, our ancestor, by the today standards. For eg the first example that comes to mind, is Vlad the Impaler(Draculas inspiration).His name came from what he did, but that "practice" was normal by those days, the Ottomans used it quite a bit. What he did was horrendous by today standards, but he did what he had to do at the time to keep his people alive, being pretty much a buffer zone, in a divided today's Romania. So yea, as I said we can't apply the today standards pretty much to events that took place even back in WWII or Vietnam time.
Karl XII's character was pretty much on course with the rest of the monarchs of history. He wasn't really any better or worse than any other king/queen before and after him. Absolute monarchy has been in human history in more or less cultures and parts o the world. From the Chinese Empire to Egypt. The pharaoh's of Egypt all claimed to be sent by the gods, so they were above everyone except for the gods. Europe during Karl's reign and earlier was also very religious. The Pope was one of the most powerful men of the continent. At this time Sweden were protestants, so the Pope and Catholic church had very little influence over the country. Claiming that only God was above you while also making the coronation into a mockery show was also a power-move against the church itself. Karl XII, as was said in the video, was very religious and so was his dad. His dad founded the Carolean soldier doctrines that were completely based on faith and giving your life to the king and God. Was it right? Wouldn't say so, but the others at the time thought nothing of it as they were more or less thinking the same things.
In many ways, Karl XII was what an absolute monarch, particularly in times of war, *should* be. Generous to his people, willing to brave the battlefield with his men, and taking absolutely *zero* shit from those hungry for power.
@@TouchyReactions As you might guessed the man who got the nickname The Lion From The North was another Swedish king. Gustav Adolf (latin Gustavus Adolphus) was born December 9, 1594 in Stockholm, Sweden, and died November 6, 1632, Lützen, Saxony [now in Germany]), king of Sweden (1611-32). During his reign, Sweden became one of the primary military forces in Europe during the 30 Years War, helping to determine the political and religious balance of power in Europe. Gustav Adolf is often regarded as one of the greatest military commanders in modern history, despite he came to the throne at the age of 16 and heritated 3 ongoing wars from his father. With his flowing blond hair and unfailing courage, he won the title “Lion of the North” among his countrymen, his allies and his enemies. 🦁 So, now you know alittle before listening to The Lion From The North. 🤘👍
Could you imagine being such a BOSS at 15? Tell the church he does not obey them, they obey him because he is doing the will of the lord.... he put the crown on his own head in the church :P I and friends was sneaking a peek in female locker rooms(or trying to lol) in schools when I was that age lol
Don't know if it's been said yet. The Swedish and English version are the same songs. But only in name. Lyrics and meaning are different. In Swedish. It's the everyday soldier's point of view. In English, it's the grand scheme of things point of view.
If they made the song where your thoughts were "wow this guy is really cool and he never did anything wrong" then the critics to Sabaton would actually have some weight to their claims! I think any modern human who doesn't have very skewed nationalist views will view Carolus Rex with cautious respect, the guy certainly was a megalomaniac fanatic in several regards even though he had many great and awe-inspiring qualities. I think the band paint a great picture of him where you can both be awed and unnerved by him, with the song being epic and his deeds being really cool in the context but still showing his delusions and weaknesses. This whole album is full of songs like this where the lyrics show the glory of the swedish empire but also being truthful with how many atrocities and needless deaths the empire caused.
are not all great rules a bit "#"¤" in the head? the greatest conquers? the genghis khan was not a nice person lol, there is a reason a lot of people still have his DNA...Hannibal the GREAT? You dont think he did bad things? Julius Ceasar was a great military leader and tacticians and for his time a civilized person, but he did really bad things as well, some which was legal back then and some which was not Can you name a great historical figure who was the ruler of a country that did not do bad things? Maybe you can, but I cant think of one right now. carl xii must have been pure testo :p
@@Belnick6666 Yup, thats pretty much the point. I can think of a few historical rulers who didn't do a lot of bad things (in comparison to most), but most of them werent involved in massive wars. Carl XII inherited several wars so of course it's impossible for him to be noncontroversial. Pericles of Athens is one example of a "good" ruler, as is Marcus Aurelius, but yes these are exceptions from the norm. Most "good" rulers are probably obscure and not really brought up.
Almost christmas so it´s time for some Majestica - Ghost Of Christmas Past or Ghost Of Marley. Majestica is Tommy from Sabaton´s own band. Happy Holiday´s
i think the song's controversial subject doesn't make the crowd cheer like when for example Sabaton sings a lifetime of war which is about the common soldier that the people feel closer and most of them are related to than a king who made the country pretty bad and which is an ambiguous symbol in modern Sweden. That's not to say it's a bad song. I think it is important that people dare to talk about who Charles the Twelfth really was and neither glorify nor demonize him. I like the song. But like lifetime at war much more. Love the album Carolus Rex as there are few musicians who dare to bring up the great power era as a theme. You don't want to talk about Sweden's warlike past when you are trying to act as a peacekeeper and in solidarity, etc. But our history is marked by wars and conquests as well as losses and we are the product of both the bad and the good of history. As a descendant of soldiers in several generations during Sweden's history, I feel pain and pride at the same time as shame over the abuses committed by the Swedes on the continent and in the Baltic Sea area, when I listen to Sabaton's Swedish songs. They touch deeply and often make me cry. Thanks for a great reaction!
It would be awesome to see you react to "Caroleans prayer"/"Karolinens bön" its a highly religious song and almost like a second national anthem :). Basically the creed the caroleans fought under.
First, Batman. I had no idea about this guy before hearing the album, either. Then again, most of the history I've gone out of my way to study is American Civil War and later, or the Bronze age Mediterranean civilizations
I like your content with, the lyric video (and/or music video), live and history episode. (In wich order, doesn't matter to me). Since Sabaton give a history lesson with every song, this is a good way to understand it better. The other band on stage was Apocalyptica. They were opening band on that tour, along with Amaranthe. They've also made an awesome cover of an old Sabaton song, together with Sabaton. It's a real masterpiece, I highly recommend it. "Angels Calling" feat. Apocalyptica. Official music video and live from Vienna, 2020. This was my favourite moment when I saw them live in Oslo. I also recommend "Lion from the North" from the "Carolus Rex" album. The official music video with footage from the Great Tour, is awesome! (If you watch that one, make sure you watch it to the very end. Some hilarious stuff there.. 😉). And of course, the lyric video and history episode!🤘 Great reaction, btw!
the Swedish Kings that MOST people in Sweden have heard or remember from school etc are often Gustav Vasa, Carl XII(carolus rex), Gustavus Adolphus(lion of the north) and ofc the first royal line, Björn Ironside(The House of Munsö)...Ignore the "history" in the tv show Vikings, it is a cool show, but lots of lies to make the show exiting and dramatic
@@TouchyReactions Im german, and i liked your reaction on "Ghost Divison" cause in the end, you said something like, you were told the germans are bad, but this is about the soldiers, fighting for their country... Thanks for it! if Sabaton is a first step to understand were all people, its a huge leap for mankind (dont mention Apollo 11 ;) )
Carolus rex = Charles XII of Sweden. And only right you do not know since your country has a 300 years of history , while the rest of us, has more than 2000 years, Dude i have traced my Family back to 1227
Holy Batman. I know monarchies can be scary to republics. I know the Swedish King does have a fair deal of political powers. Being the highest official in the military etc etc. But in these days most of the things are delegated to the political government. But monarchies are also more stable than republic governments. Just take a look at the British Queen Elizabeth. If you want a good scare on how much power the Queen really has I recommend watching a video explaining just this topic. I personally found this very interesting. ruclips.net/video/wiDCwqpupj8/видео.html
@@detroitpolak9904 Resist and bite to me is just as epic as the 40:1 song "forced to tell the truth, We'll tell it with a smile, we surprise them with a laugh, WE ARE ALL!" You need to have a strong mix of having massive balls and being touched in the head to be able to do that to ROMMEL of all people.
Karl XII was a wild child. Rode his horses inside the Stockholm castle and created havoc within the court. Once, he even let a bear loose inside the castle. But as his father died, he had to quickly become an adult, and also take over the monarcy, only as 16 years old. He did it all with honors! How many young men today have to shoulder an entire country, that also threatened by many enemies? He did it! He was loved by his men, he lived among them, shared their meals and was just one of the comrades. After he died by a bullet in Norway, his men carried his body all around Sweden on the way to Stockholm. Many of them died on the way back in the middle of the cold winter. Noone today can even imagine the hardships in those days.
@@TouchyReactions Well it was a defensive war for the Swedish empire (wasn’t actually called the Swedish empire just called that now) in Sweden we call it stormaktstiden basically translated to great power time/era. When Denmark first declared war on Sweden ahead of its allies Poland and Russia Charles quickly took the fight to Denmark and successfully landed near Copenhagen and managed to make Denmark leave the war then he sailed to Estonia (then part of Sweden) and crushed a Russian army besieging Narva with his army of approximately 10 thousand Swedish soldiers against approximately 40 thousand Russia soldiers and crushed their army. I make it sound like it happened immediately and in quick succession but the truth is this war (great northern war)lasted for a bit over 20 years.
With Sabaton being accused of being neo-Nazis and the like, that's unfortunately something they'd face regardless of the subject material they cover. They're a Swedish heavy metal band. That *alone* would have people assuming they're neo-Nazis. Edit: I suspect the energy level of the crowd is a combination of the controversial subject matter and these being *Swedes.*
True its sad that the current culture war is making it controversial to study certain topics it makes you a suspected Nazi to a certain part of the left, its ridicules considering Karl XII lived at the start of the modern era. He simply lacked our concepts of race and nations. The world was a very different place in the year 1700, modern people would have a very difficult time trying to understand the thinking of a person from that time. its true that the Swedish mentality wont allow the audience to rely let go to this song hehe it's just a Scandinavian thing. We think were to good to celebrate past military victories or any achivements in general. If you want to make a Swede uncomfortable praise him and watch him stutter.
Hey, about the you not knowing what the song’s about, you had a quote of his with name and role all over the screen for a while, before the song started haha.
If you like something it is not a problem at all to watch it to the end - you just watch it with pleasure :-) Honest reaction, thanks! This album received a certification of the golden record in Poland and the platinium in Sweden. I like the dramatic tone of the music in that song! And, yeah, Batman!
I have to agree with the people commenting on the translation of "knä om knä" to "on your knees" - As what he's saying (well, singing) here is that Karl XII (Carolus/Charles twelfth) went to war, shoulder to shoulder with his soldiers (to signify how close their formations were). I.E. at 10:38 a better translation (IMO) would be Side by side to battle. With Caroleans, I go to war (or I go to war with the Caroleans). Knee to knee (or shoulder to shoulder). Edit: Batman! ;)
Off course monarchy is an obsolete form of state today, you have to keep in mind that this was in the late 1600's. Different times and he was impressive as hell, no matter what you think of the times as such
Its a masterpiece but the translation "on your knees" is from "knä om knä" the Caroleans faught knee by knee. close to each other so on your jnees is an unfortunate translation
I think you should know that at last ! The shooting death of Charles XII during the siege of Fredriksten's fortress in Norway on 30 November 1718 has been a national trauma for over 300 years. Countless theories about the death have been put forward. However, the question of who shot the legendary Hero King - whether it was the enemy or one of his own - has never really been answered. But now researchers at the University of Oulu in Finland claim to have solved the riddle. The researchers have tested different types of ammunition and concluded that Charles XII must have been killed by an iron ball with a diameter of over 20 millimeters. Considering the bullet hole, the bullet should have had a velocity of about 200 meters per second. According to the researchers, this proves that the killing bullet was fired from 200 meters away, from the enemy's fortress - and thus not by one of his own soldiers. Karl XII's grave in the Riddarholm church in Stockholm was opened in 1917, and then the corpse was X-rayed. 25 november 2022.
Diffident time diffident standards. and in a time when democracy was only seen in Elective Monarchies and free cities in and around Europe. And in many cases kings like Carolus felt more at home on the front than in the rear. In the buildup to the end of America's Independence war, democracies started to make a reappearance and drowned away until the end of the first world war.
![Jack Harlow - Hello Miss Johnson [Official Music Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Q86_nlRoIGw/mqdefault.jpg)
Charles XII was kinda like a real life Aragorn, giving patriotic speeches before each battle and rushing towards with his soldiers. He absolutely did not sit back and wait how the battle ends up. The only exception to this was the battle of Poltava (when he was already wounded before the battle), and the results were terrible.
And then us Slavs showed him good.
Are you calling us orcs?
@@musicointempero2256 Yeah you kinda are. Russia = Mordor.
@@MajinVegeto89 lol. Poland is not Russia, my family is mostly polisj. They are my Slavs, not the far east ones, although I am also part Russian as well. But my family fought in the Tsar's army against the Bolsheviks and had to bail when they lost.
So I guess Im partially reformed orc.
Im also a slav. So NO is the answer.
Correct.
Knä om knä is misstranslated. In the lyric video its translated to: On your knees. But it should be: knee by knee. As in moving in a formation.
Yup, english equivalent would be "shoulder to shoulder"
Knee to knee would be more fitting.
Thanks for the clarification
Det var kavalleriet som red knä om knä, tätt som en snöplog med dragna värjor!
@@2121gul Även infanteriet var känt för att hålla extremt täta led.
Holy smoke, Batman!
Karl XII (Carolus Rex is the latinized version of his name, bascially "King Charles") was one of the people that actually like war, and didn't like the administrative parts of running a country.
To his credit though; he never started a war, they were all declared against him. Also, he wasn't an armchair general. He was wounded in battle and he died in battle.
I respect that about him.
@Keynes Liu Being in a trench at the very front during a war getting shot in the head should count as having died in battle.
The best point in his favor is that he was beloved by his army and the common people, but hated by the aristocracy. If the aristocracy hates you, you're probably doing something right.
@@reliantncc1864 yet, there probably were many soldiers that didn't right out love him also. Since they went to war and never saw home for several years. There's a theory that he might have been shot by one of his own soldiers. It's not completely unlikely.
@@SoulSlave92 A groundless theory, yes. What credibility should we assign to a theory that lacks any evidence? No one has a 100% approval rating. So sure, some of the soldiers didn't love him. Most of them did.
I'm not sure if other parts of the translation may be wrong, but "kna om kna" does not mean "on your knees." It means "knee to knee," and was how the Swedish cavalry described their riding style when charging: so close together that riders were touching knees. Karl XII was an incredible tactician and an inspiring leader. He was just also very young, and took on too many foes at once, and tried to do too much too fast.
It COULD also mean the way soldiers in the front firing line would go down on one knee to fire, so the line behind them could fire over their heads. So they are crouching "knee by knee", side by side.
This part is really important. Knä om knä literally means knee on knee, a better translation would be side by side. It's about Carl going into battle side by side with his men.
@@espadindelnorte2728 Its a battle tactic, not Karl going going to war with his men (even if he did)
@@ungrimironfist5740 No i'm pretty sure it had nothing to do with the infantry tactics at all. As most (if not all) used that tactic for their infantry. But riding knee to knee (in a arrowhead shape) was probably not something all armies did, hence why it's highlighted in the lyrics as something special.
@@espadindelnorte2728 Nope it's not, he was known to be in front of his armies (not beside them), leading the charge on several occasions. The "knee to knee" is about cavalry formation :)
00:00 - Presenting the reactions
01:07 - Carolus Rex (English) Reaction
07:24 - Carolus Rex (Swedish) Reaction
13:26 - Sabaton History Reaction
34:34 - Carolus Rex (Live in Stockholm) Reaction
40:31 - Review/Final thoughts
No, I'm not gonna tell you whether Touchy tries to sing in Swedish or not. Now you have to watch it all anyway.
LOL...
I would recommend you'd check out the song Long Live The King as it covered Carolus' death.
And yeah, even in the US, people who have heard of Sabaton think the band are nazis sometimes simply because they're history nerds, or because of their songs like Ghost Division (Rommel's tank division), Bismarck (Germany's famous battleship), Hearts of Iron (Evacuation of Berlin), Wolfpack (U-Boats), Panzerkampf (Battle of Kursk) are "pro-nazi" simply because they're not demonizing Germans during WW2. Meanwhile Sabaton only has one, technically two, songs about Nazis; The Rise of Evil (Hitler's rise to power in Germany) and The Final Solution.
As Joakim said in an interview once, "If you're offended, you don't have a problem with Sabaton, you have a problem with history."
Well said
yes, "long live the king" an then "ruina imperii" to cover the fall of the swedish empire, but all the album carolus rex is like a book who cover the rise and the fall of this empire.
Alot of people like to assume ill intent with Sabaton because of their historical neutrality when it comes to their songs. All I know is that they have a history of being super nice guys, and pretty much all of the bands that tour and play festivals with the guys have overwhelmingly positive things to say about them. Their shows are some of the most fun I have had at concerts and I never regret makiing the trip to see them.
The Carolus Rex album was the last album to include the other original members. After this album was made every member except Par and Joakim left. The first Sabaton concert I ever attended was actually a one-off album release show they decided to do in Los Angeles (of all places) for Carolus Rex in 2012. This song was probably the biggest crowd pleaser, for sure.
Anyways, loved the reaction as always, Batman! ;P
Thanks for all the extra information. And Thanks for watching all the way till the end.
Well well well if it isnt every older Sabaton fans favourite Sabaton song. Nothing better to wind down and relax after a hard day at work.
Oh you'll find Charles, as much as you say you dislike him for being an absolute monarch who believes himself chosen by god, he was in there with the troops, his stay in the warcamps was no more luxurious as the average soldiers. In fact he even got killed while in a frontline trench during a siege. The wars he fought were mostly justified as the list of Sweden's enemies was long and powerful and attack was really its only defence. But where he drove his country into the ground was when he beat everyone back and secured Sweden but refused to leave them alone in order to fulfill his promise about absolutely annihilating them, draining Swedens already small manpower and funds.
Sure he was hard to get along if you tried to argue with him about a decision he made but idk man to me he seems like a top bloke.
Oh and jesus christ man the drums feel soo huge on this song, especially with Apocalyptica adding some more in the live video. I think the crowd had good energy but with so many instruments going on it drowns them out a bit.
As always loved hearing your thoughts on it. Thank you.
Great description of him.
Thanks
22:43 I do completely respect your opinion, and why you have that opinion, but let's not forget that this was a very different time. That being said, love the channel and reactions, can't wait to see what's next. May I suggest Winged Hussars as the next song to be reacted too. Absolute banger.
Quite right. There have been good kings and bad kings just as there have been good presidents and bad presidents. Also disastrously mediocre kings and presidents. The main difference is how the leaders gain power and how they generally lose it.
@@brigidtheirish perfectly put. There have been both good and bad kings and queens.
@@brigidtheirish I disagree, mention a great King that have been "good" If you do find one it will be someone no one have heard of, someone that sat on throne, did nothing and then ended. Take people like Hannibal or Genghis Khan, no one would consider them as good people today, but they were great and are considered great rulers today.........Sure, maybe bangor of country I dont know was a good king that helped his people and had his people love him, but he accomplished nothing and is lost in history
@@Belnick6666 I'm talking about their ability to lead and treatment of their subjects, not their moral conduct in their personal lives.Vespasian stands out as being generally regarded as a nice guy while also pulling Rome out of the economic chaos Nero left.
Carolus Rex/Karl XII/ Charles XII (same dude in Latin/ Swedish/ English) wasn't as bad as people claim.
He bekame the king when he was 15 years old and swiftly was attacked by Denmark, Germany, Lituania and Russia simultaneously. He almost fought them of but the weather made the cavalry arive to final last battle one day to late.
The Swedish infantry had lost many troops destroying the Russian redoubts (redoubt=small makeshift fortification close to another fortification). When the Swedish cavalry finely arrived, everything was rebuilt and fortified to the level that few Swedish cavalryman made it through (cavalry isn't effective against fortified infantry). Being greatly outnumberd and without the elite, the Swedes retreated under fire.
Carolus Rex did start one war but that was several years later and against Norway.
Kind of late to the party but alas! Carolus, or rather Karl XII of Sweden was the reigning monarch of Sweden from 1697 to his death in 1718. He is commonly known as 'the warrior king' since most of his time as a monarch was spent on the battlefield. Karl was a brilliant strategist and general and yet he had the kind of moral that he never ordered men to fight his battles for him but WITH him. That being said, the common people saw him as something of a tyrant because of all the expensive wars that drained Sweden's coffers and left the population starving
Karl in Swedish, Carolus in Latin, Charles in English..... Great song, thanks for doing a reaction video to it..... i own "copies" to all of their albums they have out so far... i cant wait to get a copy to their next one due in march of 2022.... i just hope the rest of it will be just as good, or close enough to it as The Christmas Truce, which is also on it
Carolus Rex is the Latin way of saying King Charles. In Swedish you say Kung Karl XII (Den Tolfte/The Twelfth). He was probably one of the greatest military leaders in history. He's up there with Napoleon, Gustav II Adolf/Gustavus Adolphus (Also Swedish and also known as the Father of Modern Warfare and also the only Swedish king to be dubbed "The Great"), Alexander the Great, Ghenghis Kahn, Julius Caesar, Yi Sun-sin, etc.
i know why horror movie makers went for the eyes of such old paintings, i mean, if you have any sort of peripheral vision. you'll always see those eyes.
Just want to add the historical trivia that out of the 48 Monarchs Sweden has had under its more than 1000 years history only 4 can be considered Absolute rulers, furthermore until 1544 the crown of Sweden was elected and not inherited.
It's the same for Denmark and the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, it was still rare for the crown to ever pass from one family to another. That doesn't mean they were absolute rulers, though. Germanic peoples believed that all nobles had the right to vote on their king at the "thing". That's the true basis for our democracy, it has a Germanic origin rather than a Greek one.
Absolute power was rare for any European monarch up until the modern era, and the only nobles to survive the monarch blasting down their castles was the UK. Hence to House of Lords.
Poland also had a similar system with nobel Lord's being able to vote for a ruler, rather than by blood.
@@musicointempero2256 Yes, but voting by blood is still traditional. The nobility voting on a monarch is basically an acceptance of said Monarch who's very likely to get the throne anyway.
"Knä mot knä" is not on your knees its a term for side by side. As they did back then in the line infantery
"Karl den tolfte" is the correkt way to say the kings name in swedish. Carolus is latin. Charles is english.
I'd love to think, that during the entire interview with the sh*tty journalist, that
Joakim was pounding his knee the entire time he let them have it, menacingly.
I wish there was a video of it. I'd *pay* to see it.
I recommend the song the Caroleans prayer great part in the middle when they Say Ahead facing the lead it’s a great part just gives me chills every time
I love that live version as I know exactly where I am sitting out there in the crowd. I had a couple a few rows in front of me that most have been 60+ and the woman was knitting. It was a great show opening with Amaranthe and Apocalyptica. Apocalyptica is on stage performing with Sabaton during this song.
Karl was not the aggressor in the wars he fought. Holstein-Gottorp was first attacked by Denmark, in march 1700, when the Danes laid siege to the fortress of Tönning. Holstein-Gottorp was an ally of the Swedish Empire. Simultaneously Polan-Lithuania also attacked Swedish Livonia,captured Dünamünde and laid siege to Riga. In July a combined fleet of English, Dutch and Swedish ships executed a bombardment on Copenhagen. On the 4th of August, 1700, a Swedish army of 2500 men, led by Carl Gustav Rehskiöld, Arvid Horn and Karl XII landed at Humlebæck, north of Copenhagen. 2 weeks later, Denmark surrendered and all territory gained by Denmark in Holstein-Gottorp was returned to the Duke, at the Peace of Travendal. In October, Tsar Peter and his army of 40 000 laid siege to Narva. Karl made his way there, personally led a landing which faced strong defenses and bombardment, marched 150km with his 10 000 men, arrived at Narva and on teh 30th of November absolutely smashed the entrenched Russian army. Dispite being outnumbered 4-1, the Swedish Caroleans only suffered around 1900 losses (dead and wounded combined). The Russians suffered a total of around 18 000 (yes 18 000), most either drowned in the nearby river when the bridge collapsed during the rout or by freezing to death after deserting. 6 years later Poland-Lithuania were also defeated. However, 3 years after that, the Swedish army lost the Battle of Poltava and it only went downhill from there. Karl died in 1718 during the Siege of Halden, by a shot through the head and Sweden lost the war in 1721.
Thanks for all the extra Trivia
Sweden still is a monarchy and our next person on the throne will be Princess Victoria. :)
I think he was a bad ruler but not a bad person and I’ve studied him quite a lot. Basically I disagree with your opinions of him but I don’t think I can change a persons view of him if that person first of all is heavily against monarchy.
He was suited to be a general not the King of a nation because he was only good at war and fighting which was useful during the war but he lacked diplomacy talents and refused to negotiate a peace treaty until he had completely won.
All I can say while he was responsible for Sweden’s fall from greatness he also was extremely talented and proved Swedish might on the battlefield over and over again leading the Carolean army.
And btw he fought alongside his men during many of the battles and was extremely loved by the troops. He was no more evil than many other European monarchs were.
Btw he wasn’t inbred our family didn’t do that mostly Spain just did with the Habsburg family.
This is personally one of my fav songs especially specifically the Swedish version but then again I’m also Swedish.
Maybe you could explain the (/concept of the) monarchy? Most Americans don't know anything about how it works and especially not what it means to be a modern constitutional monarchy like Sweden is today.
And one probably SHOULD be against the monarchy of back in the day. Today's monarchy, however, isn't much different from being born a Kennedy, a Bush or other social and/or political "royalty" in the US - the key difference being that the Royal Family actually devote their lives to serve the people, not like political public servants do, but for real, as they sacrifice any chance of a normal life to support a nation in times of joy as well as sorrow, may it be to comfort a grief stricken nation after a catastrophe or giving guidance and hope during a crisis like that of the pandemic. No bias, no ulterior motives, nothing to gain - only service to the people. A very beautiful thing, in my opinion.
EDIT: Saw your edit now, hahaha.
I love when the comment section is just as interesting as the video. Thanks, you two.
@@FamousGirlfriend Well just to make it clear I am ofc for constitutional monarchy and not absolute.
In Sweden we have a constitutional monarchy meaning the king or queen have no real power over our country but they represent Sweden abroad and have a symbolic and cultural reason for staying. They have no power over our democracy and are meant to be neutral in politics.
Thanks for sharing. It's always hard to judge those in the past from our modern perspectives.
Kind of like England's arrangement right?
One of the redeeming qulities of Charles XII was that he never asked his soldiers to do something that he would not do him self. He ate what the soldiers ate, he slept as the soldiers did and didn't expect to be treated better than the soldiers. He said that he cold not know how much his soldiers could take if he didn't live as them. And the only way to lead was by example.
He had "novel" ideas for the time and was influenced by people like Voltaire.
He also wanted to be portrayed in paintings as "He was" no scars covered up. And he didn't see the point of wigs. If you were bald you were bald.
So yes. A controversial guy. Maybe more so at the specific time in history when he lived.
He was not influenced by Voltaire as Voltaire hadn't done much of anything by 1718 when Charles XII died. Voltaire did write a book about Charles XII though.
He was the ultimate "screw this bs, Im doing it my way" guy.
@@johandahlgren4919 Ok. Did they know each other? I thought Charles had studied in Paris and got to know him from there. Maybe I mixed that up with something else...
@@secularnevrosis It's rather the other way around, Karl influenced Voltaire to some degree. Voltaire wrote a book about Karl to try to show how a king should be, in some way as a critique to the french king(s).
@@aprioriaposteriori3676 Yes. That's right. Thnx
This is actually my first time hearing this song, surprisingly. Good stuff Batman!
So many people requested it. Thanks for going all the way.
The “Divine Right of Kings” was a concept used by monarchs to justify their rule over peasants. The basis of this concept is that kings are given their position by God and therefore serve as His representative on Earth. What this song does so well is highlight that hubris and point out how this “right” was manipulated to give one man absolute power over the lives of hundreds of thousands of others.
It's also a holdover from pagan beliefs that rulers are either representatives of the gods or incarnations of a particular god.
Let's hope mankind can evolve out of this tradition.
@@TouchyReactions We're getting there.
The soldiers loved him , he allways led from the frontline, he ate and drank with his soldiers slept on the ground with just a blanket exactly as they did som from that perpspective he was now coward leading the army way back.
@@TouchyReactions I agree even though it was "necessary" for time. No better system for those days and before was there. There were some "republics", but that times lack of reliable system to run it wouldn't have worked in any large scale.
And to be fair a *good* absolute ruler is best even to this day. The problem is that it too easily leaves doors open for corruption, usurpers and other ways for the bad people to take power.
That is why democracy works, it sucks for quick decisions, it sucks for many cases and the bureacracy sucks, but is necessary for a democracy to work. Democracys best thing is that it makes hard for a lunatic to gain absolute power, and represantion of peoples will is good ofc. That is why democratic republic is the way of today.
Before as an example Sweden during this time people wouldn't have had time for democracy because too busy to feed themselves. And they would most likely been too poorly educated and thus manipulated for votes and power.
But today...democracy all the way.
Okej this will be a bit longer since this is my favorite topic.
So Karl XII (Carl the 12) (Carolus in Latin) comes to rain on the pinnacle of the Swedish Empire. He will fight wars with Denmark, the northern part of Germany that is not a unified state but still very powerful, and the Russian Empire. And not just that, he beat them all over and over. He is the defender of the nation that stands against basically all its neighbors at once. This makes him famous around Europe at the time.
But the problem with fighting Russia is that there is always MORE Russia and Sweden has a limited manpower. But since Tsar Peter refuses to bend the knee even as Sweden repel and drive his forces back over and over . So Carolus aims for Moscow! But guess what... Russia burns its own land and leaves the Swedish armys in a logistical nightmare! This is the scorch earth tactic that will serve Russia well against both Napoleon and the Germans. Carolus detects this and starts to advance south with the hope to grab the Ukrainian food production. But the winter ends up being both early and hard. At Poltava (Another great track from Sabaton) the Swedish Empire suffers a massive defet that it can't bounce back from. Now all the enemies that formally had been defeted return and Carolus is forced to try to convince the Turkish Ottoman Empire to attack Russia. This fails in the end and the last effort save Swedens ends up being the death of Carolus Rex. He is shoot trying to invade Norway and size it from Danmark. It could have been his army that shoot him or the Danish. This is unknown. My ancestor did fight in Norway and later returned to Sweden where he died fight of the Russians as they attacked and tried to burn Norrköping. Was he a villian? Was he a hero? Sweden has never fully made up its mind. He is the King that ruled when the house of cards fell but he is also the king that kept it alive against the worst odds possible for decades. He was often on the frontline fighting next to his soldiers and I respect that. But he also got hubris and did not end the war when he had the opper hand. In the end he is a intresting guy that stirrs up many emotions and its a killer song!
Wow, Thanks for taking the time to share all these facts and opinions. I can tell you love this history.
Karl in Swedish = Carolus in Latin, another good song about Carolus Rex is Sabatons Long live the King
Sabaton toured with another band Apocalyptica when they did their 'Great Tour' the cellists and the guy with the single drum are from Apocalyptica. They came on for some of the Sabaton songs after finishing their own set. It was a great tour, we saw them in London.
That's so cool
Carolus Rex is King Charles in latin. His Swedish name was Kung Karl den XII
I also was very confused at first whether he was a tyrant or a good king. I'm still not really sure, I guess it's a matter of perspective on what a good king is.
think of him as Joffery from Game of Thrones but he actually had balls and did actually dare to fight
As other have said. We can't judge them, our ancestor, by the today standards. For eg the first example that comes to mind, is Vlad the Impaler(Draculas inspiration).His name came from what he did, but that "practice" was normal by those days, the Ottomans used it quite a bit. What he did was horrendous by today standards, but he did what he had to do at the time to keep his people alive, being pretty much a buffer zone, in a divided today's Romania.
So yea, as I said we can't apply the today standards pretty much to events that took place even back in WWII or Vietnam time.
Faces were painted that way back then.
My old swedish/italian soul is on fire with pride listening to this song. great reaction. Hugs from Sweden
Karl XII's character was pretty much on course with the rest of the monarchs of history. He wasn't really any better or worse than any other king/queen before and after him.
Absolute monarchy has been in human history in more or less cultures and parts o the world. From the Chinese Empire to Egypt.
The pharaoh's of Egypt all claimed to be sent by the gods, so they were above everyone except for the gods.
Europe during Karl's reign and earlier was also very religious. The Pope was one of the most powerful men of the continent.
At this time Sweden were protestants, so the Pope and Catholic church had very little influence over the country. Claiming that only God was above you while also making the coronation into a mockery show was also a power-move against the church itself.
Karl XII, as was said in the video, was very religious and so was his dad. His dad founded the Carolean soldier doctrines that were completely based on faith and giving your life to the king and God.
Was it right? Wouldn't say so, but the others at the time thought nothing of it as they were more or less thinking the same things.
He was among the last king to lead the army up front and to die in battle. The rest was nothing special I agree
In many ways, Karl XII was what an absolute monarch, particularly in times of war, *should* be. Generous to his people, willing to brave the battlefield with his men, and taking absolutely *zero* shit from those hungry for power.
Thanks for the extra Trivia.
@@TouchyReactions You're welcome.
Loving these Sabaton reactions.
Can you react to Gustavus Adolphus lion from the north next?
Yeah!!
Great song! 🤘🤘🤘
I'm seem to remember it's already on the list, but the more request it, the higher the priority.
This video alone has pushed it to the top.
@@TouchyReactions
As you might guessed the man who got the nickname The Lion From The North was another Swedish king.
Gustav Adolf (latin Gustavus Adolphus) was born December 9, 1594 in Stockholm, Sweden, and died November 6, 1632, Lützen, Saxony [now in Germany]), king of Sweden (1611-32).
During his reign, Sweden became one of the primary military forces in Europe during the 30 Years War, helping to determine the political and religious balance of power in Europe. Gustav Adolf is often regarded as one of the greatest military commanders in modern history, despite
he came to the throne at the age of 16 and heritated 3 ongoing wars from his father. With his flowing blond hair and unfailing courage, he won the title “Lion of the North” among his countrymen, his allies and his enemies. 🦁
So, now you know alittle before listening to The Lion From The North. 🤘👍
Thanks for increasing the volume on the Swedish version so i did not have to!
Could you imagine being such a BOSS at 15?
Tell the church he does not obey them, they obey him because he is doing the will of the lord....
he put the crown on his own head in the church :P
I and friends was sneaking a peek in female locker rooms(or trying to lol) in schools when I was that age lol
Checkout The Swedish Empire Tour version in Gothenburg.🤘
I was there, it was my first time seeing them live and it was Epic...
Batman.
Thanks for the long watch.
care-OH-lus with a slight roll to the "R" Not sure anyone else said anything.
Charles XII of Sweden 17 June 1682 - 30 November 1718 O.S.
Thanks
@@TouchyReactions You're most welcome. I'm always willing to go digging for history. It's a passion of mine.
Isn’t that the coolest drum platform, ever! ❤️🤘🎸🇦🇺
Karl XII was known for not say GO ti his soldiers, but rather saying, men, FOLLOW me, in battle
Sabaton - the last Stand
Don't know if it's been said yet.
The Swedish and English version are the same songs. But only in name. Lyrics and meaning are different.
In Swedish. It's the everyday soldier's point of view.
In English, it's the grand scheme of things point of view.
That is cool that Sabaton took the time to cover both perspectives.
If they made the song where your thoughts were "wow this guy is really cool and he never did anything wrong" then the critics to Sabaton would actually have some weight to their claims! I think any modern human who doesn't have very skewed nationalist views will view Carolus Rex with cautious respect, the guy certainly was a megalomaniac fanatic in several regards even though he had many great and awe-inspiring qualities. I think the band paint a great picture of him where you can both be awed and unnerved by him, with the song being epic and his deeds being really cool in the context but still showing his delusions and weaknesses. This whole album is full of songs like this where the lyrics show the glory of the swedish empire but also being truthful with how many atrocities and needless deaths the empire caused.
That is what we love about Sabaton.
are not all great rules a bit "#"¤" in the head?
the greatest conquers? the genghis khan was not a nice person lol, there is a reason a lot of people still have his DNA...Hannibal the GREAT? You dont think he did bad things? Julius Ceasar was a great military leader and tacticians and for his time a civilized person, but he did really bad things as well, some which was legal back then and some which was not
Can you name a great historical figure who was the ruler of a country that did not do bad things? Maybe you can, but I cant think of one right now. carl xii must have been pure testo :p
@@Belnick6666 Yup, thats pretty much the point. I can think of a few historical rulers who didn't do a lot of bad things (in comparison to most), but most of them werent involved in massive wars. Carl XII inherited several wars so of course it's impossible for him to be noncontroversial. Pericles of Athens is one example of a "good" ruler, as is Marcus Aurelius, but yes these are exceptions from the norm. Most "good" rulers are probably obscure and not really brought up.
just got home from tiring day at work then saw your reaction, you just made my day
Thanks, your comments make me happy too.
Almost christmas so it´s time for some Majestica - Ghost Of Christmas Past or Ghost Of Marley.
Majestica is Tommy from Sabaton´s own band.
Happy Holiday´s
Added to the list
It´s about this guy: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_XII_of_Sweden
Always love a little bit of sarcasm.
Super nice compilation of both historic ,lyric and live videos. By the way "Batman in your comments " . ;)
Thank you so much 😀
An angry Joakim must be terrifying
You are correct about the subjectmatter. Absolute monarcs and boykings going to war is madness. But we can appreciate the music anyways.
i think the song's controversial subject doesn't make the crowd cheer like when for example Sabaton sings a lifetime of war which is about the common soldier that the people feel closer and most of them are related to than a king who made the country pretty bad and which is an ambiguous symbol in modern Sweden. That's not to say it's a bad song. I think it is important that people dare to talk about who Charles the Twelfth really was and neither glorify nor demonize him. I like the song. But like lifetime at war much more. Love the album Carolus Rex as there are few musicians who dare to bring up the great power era as a theme. You don't want to talk about Sweden's warlike past when you are trying to act as a peacekeeper and in solidarity, etc. But our history is marked by wars and conquests as well as losses and we are the product of both the bad and the good of history. As a descendant of soldiers in several generations during Sweden's history, I feel pain and pride at the same time as shame over the abuses committed by the Swedes on the continent and in the Baltic Sea area, when I listen to Sabaton's Swedish songs. They touch deeply and often make me cry. Thanks for a great reaction!
Thank you so much for binging today.
It would be awesome to see you react to "Caroleans prayer"/"Karolinens bön" its a highly religious song and almost like a second national anthem :). Basically the creed the caroleans fought under.
Really great reaction mate! Would be so happy if you could react to Fields of Verdun aswell!
I'll check it out
He was one of our great kings of Sweden.
First, Batman.
I had no idea about this guy before hearing the album, either. Then again, most of the history I've gone out of my way to study is American Civil War and later, or the Bronze age Mediterranean civilizations
Thanks for watching till the end of the video.
I like your content with, the lyric video (and/or music video), live and history episode. (In wich order, doesn't matter to me). Since Sabaton give a history lesson with every song, this is a good way to understand it better. The other band on stage was Apocalyptica. They were opening band on that tour, along with Amaranthe. They've also made an awesome cover of an old Sabaton song, together with Sabaton. It's a real masterpiece, I highly recommend it. "Angels Calling" feat. Apocalyptica. Official music video and live from Vienna, 2020. This was my favourite moment when I saw them live in Oslo.
I also recommend "Lion from the North" from the "Carolus Rex" album. The official music video with footage from the Great Tour, is awesome! (If you watch that one, make sure you watch it to the very end. Some hilarious stuff there.. 😉). And of course, the lyric video and history episode!🤘 Great reaction, btw!
Thanks, I'll add those to the list.
You should now take the songs in order. Next one is Killing Fields. and then Poltava, Long live the King, and at the end: Ruina Imperii.
Yes full on Swedish history lessons would be awesome if he react to them. XD
All are now on the list. Can't guarantee when I'll get to them.
@@TouchyReactions I’ll wait as long as they will eventually happen. :)
the Swedish Kings that MOST people in Sweden have heard or remember from school etc are often Gustav Vasa, Carl XII(carolus rex), Gustavus Adolphus(lion of the north) and ofc the first royal line, Björn Ironside(The House of Munsö)...Ignore the "history" in the tv show Vikings, it is a cool show, but lots of lies to make the show exiting and dramatic
Carolus way of beeing at the front eventually became his death.
I like long videos, especially Sabaton ones.
Then you will like my channel.
nicely done again! And thanks for the honest words again
Any time!
@@TouchyReactions Im german, and i liked your reaction on "Ghost Divison" cause in the end, you said something like, you were told the germans are bad, but this is about the soldiers, fighting for their country... Thanks for it! if Sabaton is a first step to understand were all people, its a huge leap for mankind (dont mention Apollo 11 ;) )
Carolus rex = Charles XII of Sweden. And only right you do not know since your country has a 300 years of history , while the rest of us, has more than 2000 years, Dude i have traced my Family back to 1227
Holy Batman.
I know monarchies can be scary to republics.
I know the Swedish King does have a fair deal of political powers. Being the highest official in the military etc etc.
But in these days most of the things are delegated to the political government.
But monarchies are also more stable than republic governments.
Just take a look at the British Queen Elizabeth. If you want a good scare on how much power the Queen really has I recommend watching a video explaining just this topic. I personally found this very interesting.
ruclips.net/video/wiDCwqpupj8/видео.html
Thanks for watching till the very end.
Being Polish-American, I didn’t think the Polish songs could be topped… but this song…THIS SONG…doesn’t rock…it RULES.
40:1 Hella fire though
@@rubenskog3077 oh I won’t argue that!
@@detroitpolak9904 Resist and bite to me is just as epic as the 40:1 song
"forced to tell the truth, We'll tell it with a smile, we surprise them with a laugh, WE ARE ALL!"
You need to have a strong mix of having massive balls and being touched in the head to be able to do that to ROMMEL of all people.
Also, im not new i saw sabaton when they were not famous, in finland and also i like these kinda videos, so yeah
Karl XII was a wild child. Rode his horses inside the Stockholm castle and created havoc within the court. Once, he even let a bear loose inside the castle.
But as his father died, he had to quickly become an adult, and also take over the monarcy, only as 16 years old.
He did it all with honors!
How many young men today have to shoulder an entire country, that also threatened by many enemies? He did it!
He was loved by his men, he lived among them, shared their meals and was just one of the comrades.
After he died by a bullet in Norway, his men carried his body all around Sweden on the way to Stockholm. Many of them died on the way back in the middle of the cold winter. Noone today can even imagine the hardships in those days.
Charles the twelfth was actually the one defending in a defensive war Sweden was attacked by 4 major countries.
Okay, that is fine.
@@TouchyReactions Well it was a defensive war for the Swedish empire (wasn’t actually called the Swedish empire just called that now) in Sweden we call it stormaktstiden basically translated to great power time/era.
When Denmark first declared war on Sweden ahead of its allies Poland and Russia Charles quickly took the fight to Denmark and successfully landed near Copenhagen and managed to make Denmark leave the war then he sailed to Estonia (then part of Sweden) and crushed a Russian army besieging Narva with his army of approximately 10 thousand Swedish soldiers against approximately 40 thousand Russia soldiers and crushed their army.
I make it sound like it happened immediately and in quick succession but the truth is this war (great northern war)lasted for a bit over 20 years.
Touchy keep up the good work some your videos have hit high viewer ship
Thanks, will do!
With Sabaton being accused of being neo-Nazis and the like, that's unfortunately something they'd face regardless of the subject material they cover. They're a Swedish heavy metal band. That *alone* would have people assuming they're neo-Nazis.
Edit: I suspect the energy level of the crowd is a combination of the controversial subject matter and these being *Swedes.*
Still a great song though
True its sad that the current culture war is making it controversial to study certain topics it makes you a suspected Nazi to a certain part of the left, its ridicules considering Karl XII lived at the start of the modern era. He simply lacked our concepts of race and nations. The world was a very different place in the year 1700, modern people would have a very difficult time trying to understand the thinking of a person from that time.
its true that the Swedish mentality wont allow the audience to rely let go to this song hehe it's just a Scandinavian thing. We think were to good to celebrate past military victories or any achivements in general. If you want to make a Swede uncomfortable praise him and watch him stutter.
@@TheSlyngel *LOL* Being part Norwegian, I feel slightly called out in that last part.
Heh, if you're not this guys biggest fan, their song Poltava might be just the song for you.
Thanks, it's on my list
Hey, about the you not knowing what the song’s about, you had a quote of his with name and role all over the screen for a while, before the song started haha.
I feel like history and it’s lesson will be more useful and interesting to you, if you do not hold it against our modern standards.
Being history buff and scandinavian,,,, most songs i know what they be about...
If you like something it is not a problem at all to watch it to the end - you just watch it with pleasure :-) Honest reaction, thanks!
This album received a certification of the golden record in Poland and the platinium in Sweden. I like the dramatic tone of the music in that song! And, yeah, Batman!
Thanks for that! And thanks for sticking around till the end.
Carolus is Latin for Charles, or Karl in Swedish
You need to do Long live the king, and the swedish version with the history. It tells of carolus' death.
I have to agree with the people commenting on the translation of "knä om knä" to "on your knees" - As what he's saying (well, singing) here is that Karl XII (Carolus/Charles twelfth) went to war, shoulder to shoulder with his soldiers (to signify how close their formations were).
I.E. at 10:38 a better translation (IMO) would be Side by side to battle. With Caroleans, I go to war (or I go to war with the Caroleans). Knee to knee (or shoulder to shoulder).
Edit: Batman! ;)
Thanks for hanging in there Batman.
Off course monarchy is an obsolete form of state today, you have to keep in mind that this was in the late 1600's. Different times and he was impressive as hell, no matter what you think of the times as such
Which version do you prefer. Vote below.🤘
carolus rex, known as the warrior king, made sweden lose all land we had won in the previous wars.
Gosebumbs 🤘🍺
Even Batman likes this song!
Thanks for Hanging in till the end.
Its a masterpiece but the translation "on your knees" is from "knä om knä" the Caroleans faught knee by knee. close to each other so on your jnees is an unfortunate translation
I think you should know that at last !
The shooting death of Charles XII during the siege of Fredriksten's fortress in Norway on 30 November 1718 has been a national trauma for over 300 years.
Countless theories about the death have been put forward. However, the question of who shot the legendary Hero King - whether it was the enemy or one of his own - has never really been answered.
But now researchers at the University of Oulu in Finland claim to have solved the riddle.
The researchers have tested different types of ammunition and concluded that Charles XII must have been killed by an iron ball with a diameter of over 20 millimeters. Considering the bullet hole, the bullet should have had a velocity of about 200 meters per second.
According to the researchers, this proves that the killing bullet was fired from 200 meters away, from the enemy's fortress - and thus not by one of his own soldiers.
Karl XII's grave in the Riddarholm church in Stockholm was opened in 1917, and then the corpse was X-rayed.
25 november 2022.
Nice cap. This division is on its way to Poland to support us. Regards
Jag Älskar er Sabaton ❤
Look up sabaton history channel they go in depth on the history their songs are wrote about
That is a great Idea.
@@TouchyReactions yeah, why didn't you think of that before this guy suggested it?
Carolus Rex is about a swedish king
Diffident time diffident standards. and in a time when democracy was only seen in Elective Monarchies and free cities in and around Europe.
And in many cases kings like Carolus felt more at home on the front than in the rear.
In the buildup to the end of America's Independence war, democracies started to make a reappearance and drowned away until the end of the first world war.
love your reactions. oh and batman hahaha
Thank you so much for the full watch.
Batman checking in ;)
Thanks for protecting Gotham and watching the Video.
Let's go Batman
Hey, thanks for hanging in till the end.
I'm Not 🦇 Batman 🦇 Sabaton - Inmate 4859
Thanks for watching till the end.
Good video batman
Thanks so much for the watch.
Much better in the original swedish language. More powerful.
carolous rex? oh thats just tyrannosaurus's cousin from the north pole! lol seriously though, i dont know who that is
I think you shuold lisen too Livgardet 😊
Will do. It's on the list.
Good good
Hey Batman!
Thanks for watching till the end.
@@TouchyReactions hell yeah, I love your reactions!!
Who is Carolus... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_XII_of_Sweden