Caroleans

Caroleans carrying the dead Charles XII

Caroleans (Template:Lang-sv) were the soldiers of the Swedish kings Charles XI and Charles XII.

An effective type of soldier

To compensate for the lack of manpower and resources Sweden allways strived for inovative ways to make an effective army. The successfull path of inovative military ideas was in fact the only way Sweden managed to achieve a great power status from the beginning, however, having to rely on this to maintain a great power status is very unsafe. The carolean soldier might have been the most effective soldier achieved from this strive to inovative ways, they proved this through their great achievements in the Great Northern War, with the battle of Narva, Jēkabpils, Malatitze, Fraustadt and Holowczyn as good examples of that. Thanks to their achievments during this war, they are regarded to have been maybe the most effective military troop of that day. The Carolean army was small, but effective, it relied on a continuance of great victories, but a heavy defeat would mean the end. It met it's end after a long and fateful march into the Russian inlands, were they were exposed for scorched earth tactics, small frequent raids and the cold Russian climate. As efficient as they were, the Russians were aware of that this was the only way to be able to lay a heavy defeat on them, and the tactics had it's success, since finally at the battle of Poltava the Swedish soldiers that reached there were exausted and out hungered. Infact during this long march an estimated 35 000 Swedes died of famine, disease and exaustion, 70% of the Swedish main army. The battle ended in a decisive Russian victory which resulted in the decline of the Swedish Empire.

Tactics

The Carolean tactics almost exclusively relied on very agressive shock tactic as the infantry and cavalry charged the enemy. As the bayonet was introduced, the pike discarded was in all armies except the Swedish and Russian by 1700. The infantry shock attack operated as follows. The two rear ranks of musketeers were ordered to shoot when "you could see the white in the enemies eye," a range of roughly 50 meters, and then to draw their swords before the battalion resumed their attack. The two foremost ranks then discharged at a range of roughly 20 meters before drawing their swords and the charge began. At this range, the powerful muskets usually felled many enemy troops and was demoralising to them. Directly after the volley the Swedes charged the enemy ranks with pikes, bayonets and sabres. Note that the pikes were used as an offensive weapon: in close combat they had the advantage over their foes' weapons thanks to their range. After the bayonet was introduced in the Carolean army (1700–1706), the final volley was delayed until the soldiers were inside bayonet range. Every infantry battalion had grenadiers attached. They supported the infantry attack by lobbing grenades from the flanks. They also formed units of their own. They were otherwise equipped like infantry. Thus, in the latter half of the 17th century, the major difference between the Swedish army and those common on the continent was the relative lack of firepower and the use of pikes and sabres. Sweden and Russia were the only countries at the time using pikes. In contemporary Europe infantry was equipped with a musket while in the Swedish army every third man had a pike. The pikemen where normally deployed 4 men deep with musketeers of equal depth on the sides. The pike was used to repulse cavalry and to break the enemy lines as they charged.

Out in field

The rules were very strict for the carolean soldier. For example, to steal food from another soldier would lead to very hars punishments. Plundring, as often earlier had been a part of the soldiers every day was forbidden, however, it occasionally occured if it was necessary, for example a couple occasions at Narva and Lemberg. To use gods name was amongst was amongst the worst crime a carolean soldier could do, and the punishment for this was death, since it was very important to keep the morale high amongst the troops, and the christian religion was a way to do this. To interrupt a moment of praying would aswell lead to death penalty. The carolean soldier was told not to fear, since if god meant him to die he would die it didn't matter if he dodged the bullets or not. The carolean offensive tactics needed firm discipline.

A daily ransom of food could consist of 625 grams of dry bread, 850 grams of butter or pork, a 1/3 liters of peas and 2,5 liters of bear. One would rather not drink water since it was often contaminated.

Reglerna var mycket stränga i den karolinska armén. Att till exempel stjäla mat från en annan soldat ledde till mycket stränga straff. Plundring, som ofta tidigare varit en del av soldaternas vardag, förbjöds. Detta förbud efterlevdes inte alltid, som exempelvis vid Narva och Lemberg. Att använda Guds namn felaktigt var bland det värsta brott man kunde begå och straffet för detta var döden.

Matransonen för en soldat i armén kunde vara 625 g torrt bröd, 850 g smör eller fläsk, en tredjedels liter ärter och 2,5 liter öl per dag. Man drack ogärna vatten i armén eftersom det ofta var förorenat.

Swedish allotment system

In 1680 Karl XI drove through his political and military reforms in parliament whereby he made himself autocrat. His greatest reform was the building of the Allotment system whereby all the farmers in every land was to provide the crown with a full regiment of 1000 men complete with weapons and uniforms. Every land was divided into "Root´s". 1 to 5 farmers would form a Root and sign a contract with the crown that they would provide and support a soldier. In the contract it was stipulated that a soldier would be provided with a cottage and a garden plot. The cavalry was built much the same, the difference being that the Root also provided a horse, this being an extra burden the Root was granted a tax reduction by the crown. In this way Karl XI was insured a professional army of 18.000 infantry and 8.000 cavalry. There to can be added 7.000 infantry and 3.000 cavalry in Finland. Along the coast and major city ports seamen were taken in under the system thus providing the navy with 6.600 seamen in Sweden and 600 in Finland.

It is said about Charles XII that "he could not retreat, only attack or fall". The same goes for his soldiers. In the Swedish army tactics of that time retreat was never covered. Troops were obligated to attack or fight where they stood; a military doctrine, that with the advantage of hindsight might have proven a bit rash.

Organization

The Carolean army was organized into regiments according to region.

• Cavalry regiments, including the Jämtlands dragoon regiment, and the king's personal guards, the Livdrabanterna regiment
• Infantry regiments, including the Värmlands and Västerbottens regiment
• Grenadier regiments
• Artillery regiments

The army also included a special unit called the Livdrabanterna (Royal Life Guard Corps). This was a special unit made up of some 100 men. It was under the personal command of King Charles XII, for which he was named captain. To become a private in the corps you had to attain the rank of Captain in the regular army. The king's second in command was a Colonel with the title of Kaptenlöjtnant (Lieutenant Captain). This corps fought to the bitter end, and some of its veterans carried Charles XII's coffin on its arrival to the capital for the burial in 1719.

Uniforms

The Carolean uniform was among many variants of the Swedish Standard Uniform introduced by Charles XI. The great coats were blue with yellow cuffs. The breeches were white, and the vest yellow. They wore tricorne hats or a special cap called a Karpus. They were equipped with Muskets, rapiers, grenades, et cetera.

See also

• Swedish army
• Swedish allotment system
• Great Northern War