The storming of Stargard occurred from 7 to 8 May 1659 during the
Second Northern War
The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of ...
. On 6 May, a Swedish force of 2,000 men under the command of Generalmajor von Bülow was ordered to capture
Stargard
Stargard (; 1945: ''Starogród'', 1950–2016: ''Stargard Szczeciński''; or ''Stargard an der Ihna''; ) is a city in northwestern Poland, located in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. In 2021 it was inhabited by 67,293 people. It is situated on ...
. The Swedes arrived on 7 May, quickly taking the defenders by surprise. The city was captured on 8 May, and Bülow returned to
Dirschau
Tczew (, formerly ) is a city on the Vistula River in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, in northern Poland, with 59,111 inhabitants (December 2021). It is the capital of Tczew County and the largest city of the ethnocultural region of Kociewie within th ...
with supplies and prisoners.
Background
In early May 1659,
Adolph John sent a force of 2,000 men under the command of
Generalmajor
is the Germanic languages, Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central Europe, Central and Northern European countries.
Austria
Belgium
Denmark
is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and R ...
von Bülow to capture the city of Stargard.
Storming
On 6 May, the force left for Stargard, arriving there on the day after. Bülow sent his cavalry to block the roads into the city, moving his infantry and dragoons into the
Pelplin cathedral. He divided the force into two groups. One under a certain Kurck, who would command the infantry and storm the southern gate. Another, under the command of
Överste
Colonel (Col) (, öv) is the most senior field grade military officer rank in the Swedish Army and the Swedish Air Force, immediately above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general. It is equivalent to the ...
von Bornsdorff, would consist of the dragoons to storm the eastern gate.
When the storming was initiated, the defenders were taken by complete surprise. According to Kurck, it went like this:
Aftermath
On May 8, the city was finally captured. However, the Swedish camp was soon attacked by the Brandenburgers, which forced the Swedes to withdraw into
Elbing. Returning from Stargard to Dirschau, Bülow took with him prisoners and supplies, and a Swedish garrison was established in the city.
See also
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References
Works cited
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* {{Cite book , last=Munthe , first=Ludvig W:son , title=Fortifikationsstaten under Örnehufwudh och Wärnschiöld 1641–1674 , publisher=P.A. Norstedt & Söner , year=1906 , series=Kongl. Fortifikationens Historia , volume=2 , location=Stockholm , language=sv , trans-title=The Fortification State under Örnehufwudh and Wärnschiöld 1641–1674
Battles involving the Swedish Empire
Conflicts in 1659