Königsberg Treaty (1656)
The Treaty of Königsberg of January 17, 1656 was a feudal and subjugation treaty concluded between Elector Friedrich Wilhelm of Brandenburg-Prussia and King Karl X. Gustav of Sweden in Königsberg .
prehistory
After Queen Christina renounced the throne in June 1654 in favor of her cousin Karl X. Gustav, Poland's King John II Casimir made claims to the throne from the House of Wasa . The non-recognition of Karl Gustav in 1655 initially led to a war with the Kingdom of Poland , which was to develop into the Second Northern War . Swedish troops from Pomerania and Lithuania penetrated the country, and the Swedes gained the upper hand without major resistance, John II Casimir fled the enemy to Silesia.
Friedrich Wilhelm von Brandenburg was automatically involved in the dispute as a liege-bearer of the Polish crown over the Duchy of Prussia . At first not averse to an alliance with the Swedes, he finally ordered troops from Kleve and Brandenburg to the duchy. In a treaty concluded in Rinsk , he agreed with the Polish estates to defend the country against the Swedes. This created an opponent for Karl Gustav in his back whom he had to fight.
Conclusion of contract
After the Swedes had gained de facto control of the Duchy of Prussia (except for Königsberg), the Prussian Duke Friedrich Wilhelm submitted to the suzerainty of King Karl Gustav, breaking his vassal oath to the Polish King John II Casimir and a little later in one personal meeting in Bartenstein with the Swedish king on "Brotherhood".
In addition to the acceptance of the duchy as a Swedish fiefdom, the Treaty of Königsberg regulated the abolition of the connection to the Polish estates, the right of transit for Swedish troops, the opening of the ports for Sweden's warships and the delivery of 50 percent of the sea duties to the Scandinavian contracting party. In return, the Principality of Warmia was given to the Elector as a Swedish fief.
The contracting parties basically agreed that an alliance against Poland would make sense, but the Brandenburg man initially remained neutral and was not obliged to provide any military aid.
Further development
The return of John II. Kasimir led to the defection of the Polish nobles who had transferred to the Swedes and the rise of religious and nationalist uprisings against the foreign troops. Since Karl Gustav's army had shrunk in the winter campaign and some of the warriors were bound to occupy the fortress, the flaring uprisings could only be fought at half capacity. In this situation the Swedish king turned to Friedrich Wilhelm von Brandenburg for help and the alliance treaty of Marienburg came about on June 23, 1656.
From then until 1657, the year of the Treaty of Wehlau , he took an active part in the Swedish-Polish War, including the Battle of Warsaw . In addition, the Brandenburg elector received the Swedish-conquered prince-bishopric of Warmia as a fief, which was returned to Poland-Lithuania a year later as part of the change of alliance .
Course of development towards the sovereignty of Prussia
- January 17, 1656 Treaty of Königsberg
- June 23, 1656 Treaty of Marienburg
- 28-30 June 1656 Battle of Warsaw
- November 20, 1656 Treaty of Labiau
- September 19, 1657 Treaty of Wehlau
- November 6, 1657 Treaty of Bromberg
- May 3, 1660 Treaty of Oliva
literature
- Max Braubach: From the Peace of Westphalia to the French Revolution . Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, Munich 1974. (= Gebhardt - Handbook of German History , Vol. 10).
- Heinz Schilling: Courts and Alliances - Germany 1648–1763 . Siedler, Berlin 1998, ISBN 3-442-75523-9 .
Web links
- The Brandenburger Landstreicher ( Memento from April 14, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) (timetable)
Individual evidence
- ^ Gotthold Rhode : History of Poland. An overview . Wissenschaftliche Buchgemeinschaft, Darmstadt, 3rd edition 1980, ISBN 3-534-00763-8 , p. 278.
- ^ Swedish-Polish-Brandenburg-Danish War from 1655 to 1660 . In: Brockhaus Konversations-Lexikon 1894–1896, Volume 14, pp. 704–705 (here p. 705).