March across the Belts
Encyclopedia
Second Northern War
The Second Northern War was fought between Sweden and its adversaries the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , Russia , Brandenburg-Prussia , the Habsburg Monarchy and Denmark–Norway...
where Swedish king Karl X Gustav led the Swedish army
Swedish Army
The Swedish Army is one of the oldest standing armies in the world and a branch of the Swedish Armed Forces; it is in charge of land operations. General Sverker Göranson is the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Army.- Organization :...
from Jutland
Jutland
Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...
across the ice of the Little Belt
Little Belt
The Little Belt is a strait between the Danish island of Funen and the Jutland Peninsula.The belt is about 50 km long and 800m to 28 km wide, the maximum depth is approximately 75 m, and contains numerous small Danish islands....
and the Great Belt
Great Belt
The Great Belt is a strait between the main Danish islands of Zealand and Funen . Effectively dividing Denmark in two, the Belt was served by the Great Belt ferries from the late 19th century until the islands were connected by the Great Belt Fixed Link in 1997–98.-Geography:The Great Belt is the...
to reach Zealand . The risky but vastly successful crossing was a crushing blow to Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, and led to the Treaty of Roskilde
Treaty of Roskilde
The Treaty of Roskilde was concluded on 26 February or 8 March 1658 during the Second Northern War between Frederick III of Denmark–Norway and Charles X Gustav of Sweden in the Danish city of Roskilde...
later that year.
Background
During the Second Northern WarSecond Northern War
The Second Northern War was fought between Sweden and its adversaries the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , Russia , Brandenburg-Prussia , the Habsburg Monarchy and Denmark–Norway...
, king Karl X of Sweden was bogged down in his war with Poland, unable to reach a decisive conclusion to the hostilities despite taking Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. A way out was provided when king Frederick III of Denmark
Frederick III of Denmark
Frederick III was king of Denmark and Norway from 1648 until his death. He instituted absolute monarchy in Denmark and Norway in 1660, confirmed by law in 1665 as the first in western historiography. He was born the second-eldest son of Christian IV of Denmark and Anne Catherine of Brandenburg...
declared war on Sweden. The Swedish army could now march from Poland to the western and central parts of Denmark without making it look like a rout and without having to return to Sweden and then fight its way through then-Danish Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
. Forced marches, amounting to several tens of kilometers a day, took 6,000 Swedish soldiers to Jutland
Jutland
Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...
. The army wasn't large but these soldiers were some of the best equipped and trained troops Europe had seen until then. The army swept away the Danish resistance; no one dared to commit to a pitched battle with the "invincible" Swedes.
On 25 August 1657, the Swedish army stood before the newly completed Danish fortress Fredriksodde on Jutland's east coast. The fortress had a complement of about 8,000 men. This fortress did not exist in 1645 (the last time Karl had been there). Fredriksodde was besieged
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
by general Karl Gustav Wrangel for two months, and then stormed on the night of 24 October. Few Swedes perished and 6,000 Danes were captured. In addition, the Swedish army now had all of the Jutland army's supplies.
All of Jutland was soon under Swedish control and the king started preparations for an attack against the Danish islands. In the middle of December the weather shifted, turning into the coldest winter in memory. The seawater between the islands froze, making a ship-borne assault impossible. Engineer Erik Dahlberg
Erik Dahlberg
Count Erik Jönsson Dahlbergh was a Swedish engineer, soldier, and field marshal, called the "Vauban of Sweden".- Life :...
was dispatched by the king to ascertain whether the ice would support the weight of the Swedish cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
and artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
. Dahlberg reported that a crossing over the ice was feasible.
Crossing
Early in the morning of 30 January 1658, the army was lined up to cross the Little BeltLittle Belt
The Little Belt is a strait between the Danish island of Funen and the Jutland Peninsula.The belt is about 50 km long and 800m to 28 km wide, the maximum depth is approximately 75 m, and contains numerous small Danish islands....
to reach Fyn
FYN
Proto-oncogene tyrosine-protein kinase Fyn is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the FYN gene.This gene is a member of the protein-tyrosine kinase oncogene family. It encodes a membrane-associated tyrosine kinase that has been implicated in the control of cell growth...
. The army consisted of about 9,000 cavalrymen and 3,000 foot soldiers. The ice warped under the weight of the soldiers; on occasions water reached up to the men's knees. Close to the shore of Fyn a skirmish broke out with about 3,000 Danish defenders, but these were brushed aside quickly and the army was safe on Fyn.
Now investigations were made to find the best way over the ice that covered the Great Belt
Great Belt
The Great Belt is a strait between the main Danish islands of Zealand and Funen . Effectively dividing Denmark in two, the Belt was served by the Great Belt ferries from the late 19th century until the islands were connected by the Great Belt Fixed Link in 1997–98.-Geography:The Great Belt is the...
in order to reach Zealand. Again Erik Dahlberg led the investigation, and he advised taking the longer route via Langeland
Langeland
Langeland is a Danish island located between the Great Belt and Bay of Kiel. The island measures 285 km² and, as of 1 January 2010, has a population of 13,277. The island produces grain and is known as a recreational area. A bridge connects it to Tåsinge via Siø - a small island with a...
and Lolland
Lolland
Lolland is the fourth largest island of Denmark, with an area of 1,243 square kilometers . Located in the Baltic sea, it is part of Region Sjælland...
rather than the more direct route across the Belt. The night of 5 February the king set off with the cavalry across the ice and safely reached Lolland later in the day. The infantry and the artillery followed the next day. Thus, on 8 February, the Swedish host was safely on Zealand, and on 15 February, after forced marches, it reached the outskirts of Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
. The Danes, who had thought the Swedes would start their offensive in the spring at the earliest, panicked and yielded. Negotiations were started and on 26 February the Treaty of Roskilde
Treaty of Roskilde
The Treaty of Roskilde was concluded on 26 February or 8 March 1658 during the Second Northern War between Frederick III of Denmark–Norway and Charles X Gustav of Sweden in the Danish city of Roskilde...
was signed by the two parties.
Aftermath
The march across the Belts was a risky gamble entirely to King Karl's liking. The news of the victory spread quickly; it was an achievement that drew admiration all over Europe. For Denmark, the outcome of the treaty of Roskilde was disastrous: the entire eastern part of the country (ScaniaScania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
) was ceded to Sweden, and Denmark's existence as an independent state lay in doubt.