Armistice of Schlatkow

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In the Schlatkow armistice on April 18, 1807, a ceasefire was decided between Swedish and French troops who had previously fought in Swedish Pomerania as part of the Fourth Coalition War.

background

The Swedish King Gustav IV Adolf declared war against France in October 1805 and planned to conduct this fight from Swedish Pomerania. However, after the Napoleonic army had defeated the combined Prussian and Saxon armies in the battle of Jena and Auerstedt , the French campaign against Swedish Pomerania began in January 1807. By January 31, 1807, the Swedish troops were pushed back and could only hold out in the heavily fortified Stralsund . However, the siege of the city could not be carried out with full force from the French side, as the French army in East Prussia came under pressure against Russia. At the beginning of April, therefore, the Swedish troops managed to break out of Stralsund and recapture large areas of Swedish Pomerania. A French counter-offensive on 15./16. April, however, seemed to herald another turnaround in favor of the French army.

Negotiations and contract terms

Peace negotiations in Schlatkow 1807 - theater aftermath 2007

Under the impression of the threatened occupation of Swedish Pomerania, the Swedish Governor General and Commander-in-Chief Hans Henrik von Essen sought ceasefire negotiations with his French opponent Édouard Adolphe Mortier . The French marshal accepted the offer and it was agreed to conduct negotiations in Schlatkow, which was conveniently close to the Peene for both sides . At their meeting on April 18, 1807, the negotiators agreed on the following points:

  • The Peene and the Trebel should form the demarcation lines between the two military powers.
  • The Swedish troops were to withdraw from the islands of Usedom and Wollin .
  • Sweden was not allowed to help the besieged cities of Danzig and Kolberg , or any other enemy of France.
  • The territory of Swedish Pomerania was not allowed to be used by the troops of the opponents of France.

Further course

In June 1807 an extension of the armistice agreement should again be negotiated in Schlatkow, as fighting had broken out again. This time, however, Gustav IV negotiated himself on the Swedish side. His counterpart was Guillaume-Marie-Anne Brune , who had meanwhile taken over Mortier's post. This time, however, the negotiations failed; among other things because Gustav IV tried to get Brune on his side. Even if this suggestion was rejected by Brune, the process was enough to bring him into disrepute with Napoleon. The French marshal was recalled and the negotiations were broken off on June 4th without any result.

consequences

Due to the failure of the successor negotiations, the actual Schlatkow armistice only acquired episodic character. The fighting began again in June 1807 and Swedish Pomerania was then completely occupied by French troops. Nevertheless, the Schlatkow negotiations led directly to the Treaty of Paris 1810 and thus to the preservation of Swedish Pomerania for Sweden.

literature

  • Klaus Brandt: War and Peace in Western Pomerania. 200 years of the armistice at Schlatkow ; in: Zeitschrift Pommern 2007,3; Pp. 261-265.
  • Jens E. Olesen: Swedish Pomerania in Swedish politics after 1806 ; in: Michael North, Robert Riemer (eds.): The end of the Old Kingdom in the Baltic Sea region; Cologne, Weimar, Vienna 2008; Pp. 274-292.