The siege of Stralsund was an armed engagement between the

Electorate of Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 square ...

and the

Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire was a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic region during the 17th and early 18th centuries ( sv, Stormaktstiden, "the Era of Great Power"). The beginning of the empire is usually ta ...

from 20 September to 15 October 1678, during the

Scanian War The Scanian War ( da, Skånske Krig, , sv, Skånska kriget, german: Schonischer Krieg) was a part of the Northern Wars involving the union of Denmark–Norway, Brandenburg and Sweden. It was fought from 1675 to 1679 mainly on Scanian soil, ...

.Grabinsky (2006), p.12 After two days of bombardment on 10 and 11 October, the severely devastated Swedish fortress of

Stralsund Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund (German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, N ...

surrendered to the Brandenburgers. The remainder of

Swedish Pomerania Swedish Pomerania ( sv, Svenska Pommern; german: Schwedisch-Pommern) was a dominion under the Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815 on what is now the Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish War and the Thirty Years' War, Sweden held ...

was taken by the end of the year,Bohmbach (2003), p.298 yet most of the province including Stralsund was returned to Sweden by the terms of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye and the Peace of Lund, both concluded in 1679.

Prelude

The Scanian War reached

when after the

Battle of Fehrbellin The Battle of Fehrbellin was fought on June 18, 1675 (Julian calendar date, June 28th, Gregorian), between Swedish and Brandenburg-Prussian troops. The Swedes, under Count Waldemar von Wrangel (stepbrother of '' Riksamiral'' Carl Gustaf Wrang ...

(1675) the retreating Swedish forces were pursued by a Brandenburgian army under "Great Elector" Frederick William I's command. Stralsund was one of only two major fortresses Sweden maintained in Pomerania, the other one being

Stettin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major s ...

.Langer (2003), p. 397 After the Brandenburgian army had captured Stettin and

Wolgast Wolgast (; csb, Wòłogòszcz) is a town in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the bank of the river (or strait) Peenestrom, vis-a-vis the island of Usedom on the Baltic coast that can b ...

was seriously threatened. In addition, Danish forces had landed on

Rügen Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, where ...

in 1677, aided by a disloyal Rugian noble. Thus, all buildings outside the fortifications were levelled in 1677 to strip an imminent Brandenburgian attack of cover. Stralsund then held a population of 8,500, including armed burghers,Lorenz (2003), p.429 and close to 5,000 Swedish, German and Finnish foot and horse.

Siege

Frederick William I positioned his artillery south of the town and started bombardment on 10 October 1678. His aim was to force Swedish commander Otto Wilhelm von Königsmarck into surrender by abundantly firing incendiary bombs on the burghers' mansions. The small, newly created Brandenburgian navy also took part in the siege. Most of the southern half of the town was destroyed when the defendants surrendered the town on 11 October, namely 285 houses, 476 huts, and 194 servant dwellings.Kroll (2003), p.107

Aftermath

Despite great efforts of Frederick William I to win the loyalty of the Swedish Pomeranian population,Meier (2008), p.71 including generous aid programs to rebuild Stralsund and Stettin,Meier (2008), p.166 most remained loyal to Sweden.Meier (2008), p.71 After the fall of Stralsund, there were only few Swedish-held areas left in Swedish Pomerania, all of which Frederick William I had cleared by the end of 1678. Stralsund was returned to Sweden in the

Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1679) The Treaty or Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye of 19 June (OS) or 29 June (NS) 1679 was a peace treaty between France and the Electorate of Brandenburg.Asmus (2003), p.211 It restored to France's ally Sweden her dominions Bremen-Verden and Swedi ...

. Due to the devastating bombardment of 1678, as well as another fire on 12 June 1680, the population was reduced to about 6,000, with an additional 2,000 garrisoned Swedes. After the 1680 fire destroyed an additional 48 houses, 89 huts, and 82 servant dwellings, only 205 houses, 408 huts, and 158 servant dwellings were still standing.Kroll (2003), p.108

Sources

References

Bibliography