Gustav II Adolph

Gustav II Adolph, called Gustavus Adolphus (1594-1632), King of Sweden (1611-1632), who, for his brilliant leadership of the Protestant forces in the Thirty Years' War, became known as the Lion of the North.

The son of Charles IX, Gustav was born on December 9, 1594, in Stockholm. When he succeeded to the throne in 1611, Sweden was at war with Denmark, Russia, and Poland. Gustav concluded a peace with Denmark in 1613, but Sweden regained its southern provinces only after agreeing to pay heavy financial indemnities. He waged a successful war against Russia (1613-1617), acquiring lands that completely cut off Russian access to the Baltic Sea. From 1621 to 1629, Gustav waged a war against his cousin, Sigismund III, King of Poland, who maintained a claim to the Swedish throne. Poland was forced to cede lands and cities along the southern and eastern Baltic coasts in 1629, and Gustav's right to the Swedish throne was ensured. A religious interest in the Protestant cause and a belief that conquest of northern Germany by the Holy Roman Empire would be militarily and economically dangerous to Sweden impelled Gustav to enter the Thirty Years' War. After securing an alliance with France, he landed his army on the coast of Pomerania and succeeded in driving the imperial forces back from the Baltic. His victory at the Battle of Breitenfeld in 1631 gave the Protestants the military advantage, and they went on to occupy Bavaria and Bohemia. Gustav turned his army north in 1632. At the Battle of Lützen in Saxony, he defeated the imperial forces, but was himself fatally wounded on November 6, 1632. Gustav was noted not only as a great general but as a capable administrator. With the help of his chancellor, Count Axel Oxenstierna, who managed internal affairs and diplomacy while the king was involved in military campaigns, Gustav developed a sound and centralized system of government and did much to develop the natural mineral resources of his country. He was succeeded by his daughter, Christina.