Georg Lybecker was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

friherre (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

and

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

of the

Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...

, he was son to

Georg Henrik Lybecker Georg Lybecker was a Swedish friherre and Lieutenant General of the Swedish Army, he was son to Georg Henrik Lybecker and Catharina Grissbach. He died on 4 June 1718 at Värsta, Närke (his birth date is unknown). Military career After joining ...

and Catharina Grissbach. He died on 4 June 1718 at Värsta,

Närke Närke () is a Provinces of Sweden, Swedish traditional province, or ''landskap'', situated in Svealand in south central Sweden. It is bordered by Västmanland to the north, Södermanland to the east, Östergötland to the southeast, Västergö ...

(his birth date is unknown).

Military career

After joining the

Scania Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conte ...

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

regiment he rose to the rank of

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

in 1703 and

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in 1704. Lybecker participated in

Charles XII of Sweden Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII ( sv, Karl XII) or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 O.S.), was King of Sweden (including current Finland) from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of t ...

's campaign against Poland during the

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...

, notably at the

battle of Kliszów The Battle of Kliszów (also spelled Klissow or Klezow) took place on July 19, 1702, near Kliszów in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth during the Great Northern War. A numerically superior Polish–Saxon army led by king Augustus II the Stro ...

in 1702. He and was appointed Governor of

Viborg and Nyslott County Viborg and Nyslott County ( sv, Viborgs och Nyslotts län, fi, Viipurin ja Savonlinnan lääni) was a county of the Swedish Empire from 1634 to 1721. The county was named after the castle towns of Viborg ( fi, Viipuri) and Nyslott ( fi, Savonl ...

and

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

of cavalry in 1706. He became

in 1707. When the commander of the army in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

General

Georg Johan Maidel Georg may refer to: * ''Georg'' (film), 1997 *Georg (musical), Estonian musical * Georg (given name) * Georg (surname) * , a Kriegsmarine coastal tanker See also * George (disambiguation) George may refer to: People * George (given name) * ...

was dismissed in 1707, Lybecker was appointed as his successor. His task was to protect Finland against

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n attack. This task was difficult since the available defensive forces in Finland were so weak. In 1708 Lybecker led his forces on an expedition into

Ingria Ingria is a historical region in what is now northwestern European Russia. It lies along the southeastern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordered by Lake Ladoga on the Karelian Isthmus in the north and by the River Narva on the border with Est ...

with the intent to divide Russian forces. The expedition was a failure: Lybecker was forced to evacuate his force by ship at Kolkanpää, abandoning all his cavalry. In 1710, Viborg fell to the Russians without him making any attempt to relieve the city. Lybecker was promoted to Lieutenant General that same year, but the government in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, dissatisfied with his inactivity, removed him from general command and entrusted the army of Finland to count Carl Gustaf von Nieroth. After von Nieroth's sudden death in 1712, Lybecker was appointed commander in Finland a second time, but this time proved himself even less worthy of the position. He made no attempt at preventing Russian troops from landing on the southern coast of Finland, nor did he support Carl Gustaf Armfeldt's beleaguered force in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

, nor did he attempt to recover Helsinki after it fell in Russian hands in May 1713. He assembled his main force in Borgå, but when the enemy prepared for a landing there he withdrew further north without firing a shot and afterwards marched aimlessly around while southern Finland was taken. Lybecker blamed the instructions Charles XII had given him, which forbade him from committing to a major battle. However, the displeasure over his indecision was widespread, both in the army ranks and elsewhere. Lybecker was recalled in autumn of 1713 and was

court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

led in

. After a drawn-out trial, where the bishop of Åbo

Johannes Gezelius the younger Johannes Gezelius the younger (6 September 1647–10 April 1718), also known as Johannes Gezelius den yngre in Swedish and Johannes Gezelius nuorempi in Finnish, was a theologian, professor at the Royal Academy of Åbo and Bishop of Turku between ...

testified against him, he was sentenced to "loss of life, honor, and property". He was pardoned by the king on New Year's Day 1718, but confined to his estate Värsta, where he died on 4 June the same year.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lybecker, Georg Henrik Swedish military personnel of the Great Northern War Caroleans Recipients of Swedish royal pardons Governors of Gothenburg and Bohus County 17th-century births 1718 deaths