Classification system

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A division plant ( swed. Indelningsverket ) is a historical structure of the Swedish army , especially in the years from 1682 to 1901.

precursor

In 1544, the Swedish Reichstag ( State Parliament ) decided the annual recruitment of a certain number of men fit for military service. One suitable man from a group of five or six men should be assigned to military service if there is a risk of war . Under the reign of King Erik XIV , this system was changed so that for every ten men between the ages of 15 and 44, one was drafted as a soldier. These men served exclusively in the infantry , which consisted of regiments with 12 pennants each, each with 500 soldiers. Their service enabled the raised men to become nobilitybe collected. The cavalry was provided by the nobility, who in return enjoyed a tax exemption. In order to maintain the troops formed in this way, the subjects had to pay annual taxes in kind. These native troops turned out to be cheaper than recruited mercenaries , but under King Charles IX. more soldiers had to be used.

The older division system

Swedish soldier of the Altblau Regiment (1624–1650)

These forerunners of the "older division" ( äldre indelningsverket ) were only effectively expanded under the government of Gustav II Adolf . This reorganized the conscription system in 1623 by dividing the kingdom, including Karelia and Finland , into nine conscription districts, in each of which an infantry regiment of 3,600 men should be recruited. In practice, each regiment was divided into three light field regiments, each with eight companies of 150 soldiers each. There was also another court regiment , which gave Sweden a permanent foot troop of 36,000 soldiers.

In practice, the Reichstag approved an "invitation to tender", whereupon commissioners and governors were commissioned to carry out the process. The clergy in each ward played an important role in the tenders as they had to keep lists of the male members of their ward. Although they resisted, they had to fulfill this obligation until 1650, when royal commissioners took on this task. The local municipal administrations were also involved in organizing the tender process. The male population between the ages of 15 and 60 was gathered on the market square and divided into electoral units ( red ) of mostly ten people. The commissioner chose one of these red ones as a soldier. The municipal committees were able to influence the election as they could determine who was considered indispensable from the outset and who was not even included in the red list . Most of the soldiers who were recruited were farmers' sons or servants, as it was in the economic interests of the crown to spare the taxable farmers.

This system resulted in occasional peasant revolts, but the economic burden on the peasant population proved to be of greater significance, as many farms were deserted due to a lack of labor. Therefore the Swedish crown went over to recruiting troops, which were, however, considerably more expensive to maintain. In 1630, 70% of the Swedish army consisted of drafted troops, while in 1631 it was only 20.2% and in 1632 only 18%.

The younger division system

from left to right: Illustration of a Swedish artilleryman, grenadier and dragoon around 1700,
color lithograph by Richard Knötel , late 19th century

The system called “younger division system” ( yngre indelningsverket ) had its roots in a development that had started decades earlier. In the Scandinavian War against Denmark , the Dalarna region asked to be exempted from the tenders as long as it independently kept 900 men under arms and provided replacements for them. After the war, the force was increased to 1,400 men and was not disbanded again. Other landscapes, such as Jämtland (1645) and Västerbotten (1649), followed suit, and soon the total abolition of the excavation system was debated at all levels of the country, without these proposals being accepted.

After the Scandinavian War, the Northern War (1674–1679) revealed the weakness of the Swedish military organization and completely ruined the national budget. Under the reign of King Charles XI. The Swedish system was finally reformed again in 1682 in order to make the military system more effective and to align it with the new defensive foreign policy. The result of these reform efforts was the contract of December 5, 1682 (date of ratification), a treaty between the individual provinces ( landskapen ) and the crown. Each province undertook to set up and maintain a regiment of 1,200 soldiers , named Carolinians (named after Charles XI) . This was done by two to five farmers joining together to form a red one. These peasants each had a soldier. The soldier got a small farm ( torp ), one pig per year and seeds . In return, the farmers who had joined together to form a red were granted tax exemption. If the soldier was called to duty, he also received a fixed pay .

The advantage of the system on the part of the provinces lay in the considerably greater legal certainty when the military was deployed and in the protection of the constant levies. The crown, on the other hand, no longer needed any recruiting officers , was able to maintain its armed forces cheaply and protect the local economy. This system was so successful that by the outbreak of the Great Northern War, the army increased to almost 80,000 soldiers.

Living conditions of officers

Officers were given their own farm ( boställe ) and some farmers provided a fixed amount of money and grain. Instead of the grain, the value of it could also be paid out in money. Assaults by officers on the property of the peasants were strictly forbidden. A soldier began serving as an officer with the rank of sergeant, then ensign , before attaining the rank of first officer. He performed this service mostly in the king's body regiment before he was transferred to a provincial regiment as an officer. After an officer left the service, at least ten farms were available per regiment, which provided for further maintenance.

Living conditions of the teams

In peacetime the soldiers lived in a cottage industry and were able to work for the farmers of the red who keep them. There they were provided for in the form of natural produce (food) and money. The red was also responsible for the uniform, which, however, was treated as state property and for which the individual soldier was held liable. The annual payment was 35 thalers. If a soldier went to war, he had to be given the remainder of his annual salary in advance. The red one did not have to pay for the soldier's family . If the soldier was in the war, however, she was still allowed to live in and manage the cottage. If a soldier fell or deserted , the red had to provide a replacement within three months.

In principle, a soldier should serve as long as possible. Only when the peasants, the red officer and the superior officer, found a soldier unfit, was he dismissed. After saying goodbye, he continued to receive grain deliveries. From 1726 these were replaced by a small amount of money. A soldier's widow had to leave the cottage, but received the deceased soldier's outstanding annual salary.

Armament and training

The soldiers of a regiment were divided into pikemen (1/3) and musketeers (2/3). The pike was 5.40 meters long. The weapons were either kept by the red , the company commander or in the local church and given out to the soldiers if necessary.

The military training took place weekly. Every Sunday from April to November, the 25 soldiers of a corporal body drilled for two hours in front of the church. Originally, the company was supposed to practice once a month for two days , but in fact the soldiers were often indispensable as important harvest workers during this period, so that the exercises only took place three to four times a year. The regimental maneuvers took place once a year in August , during which sharp shooting and maneuvering were practiced in the regimental group. All soldiers were involved with their complete equipment. Officers of the body regiment also instructed the officers of the individual regiments on these occasions. If the king asked, there was a general muster every few years . The king drilled and inspected the regiments personally and convinced himself of their level of training.

abolition

During the 19th century, the system was increasingly called into question, partly because of the heavy burden on farmers and partly because of the advances in the military . But it was not until 1901 that the system of division was abolished and replaced by an army of conscripts .

See also

literature

  • Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Winkler Verlag, Bochum 2000, ISBN 3-930083-58-2
  • Ch. V. Sarauw: Indelningsverk. In: Bernhard von Poten (Ed.): Concise dictionary of the entire military sciences. Volume V, published by Velhagen & Klasing, Bielefeld and Leipzig 1878, p. 5ff.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, pp. 35-38.
  2. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, p. 41.
  3. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, pp. 41-43.
  4. ↑ Klaus-Richard Böhme: Money for the Swedish armies after 1640. In: Scandia. Volume 33, 1967, pp. 54-95.
  5. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, pp. 48-50.
  6. ↑ Exact content of the contract in: Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's military at the end of the 17th century. Bochum 2000, pp. 121-127.
  7. ↑ Since 1875 officers and NCOs received a fixed salary and were therefore no longer dependent on income from the court.
  8. ↑ Exact content of the contract in: Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's military at the end of the 17th century. Bochum 2000, p. 126.
  9. ↑ In a total of 57 regiments, where of 34 allotted and 23 enlisted. Navy units were not included in the 57 regiments. Mobilization statistics at Militaria .
  10. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, pp. 134-141.
  11. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, p. 157.
  12. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, pp. 142-147.
  13. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, p. 156f.
  14. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, p. 147.
  15. ↑ Michael Busch: Absolutism and Army Reform - Sweden's Military at the End of the 17th Century. Bochum 2000, pp. 147-151.

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