So inaccurate. Peter was the one that declared war, Charles wanted nothing of it. Though when Russia did invade Sweden, Charles was determined to strike back and not give up until his enemies were defeated.
+dynoahmite That is not quit accurate, Karl XII was a Knight and warrior born. The differance between he and Napolion was that Karl could never start an "unjust war", he must wait for war to come to him, and when it did he took advantage of it, not knowing when the next one would come his way. Peace was offered to him many times by his enamies but he refused simply because "Peace I may have, but how long Before the ink is dried that they would plan to wage war on me again". Peace can only be maintained if the knife is held to the throat of the violent man.
mark warnberg Well sure, I cannot say that he did not want to fight when the time came, such is war for many. He could start an unjust war if he wanted to, he was absolute monarch, he could do whatever he wanted. Which, however, was NOT to start an unjust war. Why would he accept peace from attackers so they could catch their breath? That would just be plain dumb, and dumb he was not.
+dynoahmite Then you know Little of the man. His strict moral upbring forbade him from commiting an inmoral act. He was incapable of low handed deeds, as he was quated after his return from Turkey "a man may loose his luck, for of that he has no Control over, but he should never loose his honour". Peace would have been the honourable thing to do if he thought his enamies would keep the Peace, but he knew he was not dealing with men who knew not the meaning of the Word and so could not be trusted....no more than you can trust Another who cheats at cards. You must remember that War for him was his Life (vigd till regementet, married to the regement), and like Ceaser and Napoleon would have found Life borring despite being masters of many talents or as Napoleon said at his Lifes end "It was a good occupation"
mark warnberg I see your point, but he was not INCAPABLE of immoral deeds, of course he could do wrong, this he would admit. For example, when he came drunk to dinner with his Grandmother, he admitted he had acted in a disrespectful and immoral manner, and thus vowed to never drink again. If he wanted to declare war, then he would. It's not that he's not capable of declaring war himself. He simply did not want to.
No! it was that he was moraly inccapibal of an unjust war, for the warrior King Karl XII he could not start a war, but was forced to accept those wars forced apone him, it was for that reason the wars with his enamies were so long, they had to be totaly complete and thus out of reach for a mortal man.
The two monarks never met. After Carl XII Death Zsar Peter never allowed any disrespektfull talk of his great opponent. Carl XII was a man ruled by a very strict moral code. "Kings demand of their people that they be honorable, for they themslefs are here to administer justice on Earth. Should they then not be Justice Itself? And how can they, alone above all men have the freedom to act as they please? "A man may loose his luck, for of that he has no Control, but a man should never loose his honor". Carl XII to Axel von Löven, 1714
mark warnberg Damn, thanks for the reply. Really interesting. Is his diary available on the internet or where can I buy it? I find these contemporary sources so very fascinating.
@@buffoonustroglodytus4688 I found these and other quots from Franz G. Bengtssons book The Life Of Karl XII whose research came from diaries , documents and other arcive materials. The references are in the back of the book. Sorry to say his book along with all my other material are packed away in storage for the time being. The problem with Karl XII is that he was a man of few words and as thus a difficult person to study, he was a man of Action, "The Sword Must Do It´s Best As It Does Not Joke" he wrote to General Stenbock who was in the Polish Capital trying to unite the Polish Nobility in voteing for the new Polish King Stanislav. While other Kings and Generals said to their armies "go and fight"! Karl XII mearly said "COME" and his men followed him into battle.
Typical HBO historical innacuracy. Charles XII was known for being a very stoic man who loved war a bit too much, this portrayal of him as an effeminate guy has nothing to do with it. Not mentioning both kings never met in person.
Their were alot of feminine man of Royalty and Nobility, but that didn't make them any less dangerous and lust after war and victory!You can go back even further Alexander the Great,....i rest my case!
"Your great grandfather took our baltic ports from tsar Ivan" Gustavus II Adolphus and Charles XII was not related either. Gustavus was from the family of Vasa, and Charles was from Pfalz.
Pfaltz and Vasa was related and intermarried . Charles Xll great grandmother was the sister of Gustavus ll Adolphus. Charles X who was Charles Xll grandfather. Inherited the Swedish crown from his cousin. Queen Chrisina who was Gustavus ll adolphus daughter.
That "Royal Palace of Sweden" is extremely inaccurate. That architecture did not exist in Sweden at that time, and the Royal family housed in a way different building.
@@dkfdhdsj6261 Could be Wrangelska Palace, I don´t remember.
10 лет назад
The explanation is that the swedish army surprised the russians who knew that another 20000 soldiers were on its way but Charles surprised everyone by ordering an attack as soon as Charles and his first troops from his fleet had arrived at Narva. This surprise tactic succeded very well indeed! The russians reputation was damaged and Charles then underestimated them.
To bad that the writer didn't read the complete history of charles XII, he never wished for war untill the war was infront of him. Still a great movie tho.
As inaccurate as this is. I just love the iconography of two towering heads of state bantering gentlemanly over a schnaps, alone, on a frozen march that would in time shift the balance of european geopolitics for centuries to come
It's an old american miniseries in two parts about Peter I. Charles XII doesn't have a big role in it. I remember seeing this as a kid, and it took a while before I even realised that the guy we see here was supposed to be Charles XII.
I could find the following mistakes in this short clip: First, that is not the Swedish royal palace seen at the beginning (and in any case, the current one wasn't built at the time; the royal family resided in the Wrangel palace). Second, Charles is offering Peter a drink, and drinks from the same flask, and Charles didn't drink alcohol. And third, Charles and Peter never met in person; the closest they came to each other was about a kilometer, at the battle of Poltava...
The king was observing the fortress from the trench and the norwegians were disturbing the digging with mortar fire exploding above the working troops. A clatching sound was heard when the king was killed by some kind of projectile cal 20 mm. The siege ended and the swedish army returned to Sweden. About hundred years later Norway was however conquered by Sweden until the union was broken 1905.
It is said "History is written by the victors", I think it is written by movie script writers...they have a lot to answer for. However I enjoyed this series as an action drama.
11 лет назад
Charles was like a huligan when he was young and people complained over his behavior. He and hes comrads hunted bears with spears. His cavalry used to attack with immens speed and he was leading them! But he looked down on the russians and underestimated Peters plans for development of Russia.
Statyn I Malmö har inget med Karl X Gustaf att gör. Syftet med statyn var att driva på skandivanismen. Resandet av monument i alla länder var igång i slutet av 1800-talet och början av 1900-talet. Blekinge tillhörde Sverige under medeltiden och under den tiden som kallas vikingatiden. Ockupationen av södra Sverige har att göra med att Danmark hade ett större kontakt nät till kontinenten och tidigare på började byggandet av en centralförvaltning. P.S. jag bor i Blekinge.
It seems like they decided that in order to make Charles a proper antagonist, they had to give him a personality transplant. I mean, disfiguring someone in a fit of pique? Really? Mr. Honorable, I-swear-I-have-no-temper-at-all himself? He wounded somebody’s face by accident once, a little younger than he’s portrayed here, and was in an agony of guilt about it for weeks. …Honestly, maybe it was a necessary decision if you’re trying to make Peter the Great the white-hat and Charles XII the black-hat, given that Peter was the sort of guy to flog his son to death, and practice irresponsible medicine and not be put off when he killed somebody, and Charles was the sort of guy to keep lifelong days of fasting and repentance over major wrongdoings, some of which were accidents, and tear up in the confessional about minor infractions. Peter won the war and Charles died, which allows a Hollywood ending if Peter’s the good guy, but there’s no denying that Charles for all his occasional outward pretenses of callousness was the one with the better developed conscience. And if you let them just be complex people might end up rooting for the wrong side. Though making Charles drink and calling Gustavus Adolphus his great-grandfather, not to mention characterizing him as inviting rather than being surprised by Peter’s attack, gives the impression that they didn’t bother to learn any better. I mean, even Voltaire would have informed them of ‘I have resolved to never begin an unjust war.’
They never meet in real life. However this proposal was actually made to share the port of Riga who had never belonged to Russia contrary to what the actor says.
Present day Finland and it's port of Helsinki was part of Sweden. Russia needed access to export that mountain of precious minerals they sat on. The generous cut Peter offered Charles would have made Sweden one of the richest countries in the world.
Cant say im too fond of the deptiction being so one-sided, Peter attacked, yet he has the gall to call out Charles on the notion of useless bloodshed? I dunno, why did they make Charles so "feminine" and meek compared to the robustness of Peter? Thats rubbing it in dont you think?
Many idiots think WE started the great nortdic war well we did NOT Sweden was attacked and we defended ourselves as best we could if it had´nt been for Poltava we would´ve won!
No, in Bohuslän which is nearest to Norway. This border region was a lawless place where Danes, geats and norsemen had fought each other since the stone age, bronze age ( se the numerous rock carvings ) and the iron age. See also Beowulf who saved the retired danish king Hrodgar from the walking, manipulated pteranodons who had robbed his meadhall near Hafsten where he later was buried on the whale like cliff. Rhonesness is our Rävsnäs!
10 лет назад
Don´t forget that the population included a number of countries who contributed to the swedish army and fleet. Thats why Sweden could fight all these wars and defeat all these enemies. Plus the inventiv tactic of artillery and cavalry "blitz krieg" attacks and a strong industry that producedand exported cannons and other weapons and ships. Bofors is a follower ot these traditions.
+ThatDutchguy Ehm... The Netherlands weren't even involved in the Great Northern War. It was us, the Danes, that sunk and destroyed the entire Swedish navy.
Its possible he was gay as he showed no interest in women. But he did debunk the negative stereotypes about gays, just like Alexander the Great in terms of being capable of being great soldiers. Another example was Von Steuben who reformed the American army in the war of independence.
+Irish Druid He wasn't gay. He had relations with women in the royal court during his younger days but he stopped not long afterwards because of a bad experience which involved two weeks of binge drinking with his first cousin. XD
There is no evidance of Karl XII eer having relations with women! Not that he was homosexual or prude, but due to his stickt religious upbringing. When confronted on the subject of marrage in later Life he said "when Peace is made I will take a wife, one of whom I love".
He stopped drinking after an incident when he was around 15-17 when his cousin and him brought a drunk bear into the imperial palace when they were drunk.
No one knows who killed him, you are speculating. It could have been a conspiracy to get his sister on the throne, friendly fire, a norwegian sharpshooter or as you said.
11 лет назад
There were a number of smaller fights between units of the norwegian army of 30000 who was unexperienced and the battle hardened swedish troops of 45000. The swedish fleet was much bigger and the norwegians withdrew. As the fight was very uneven the norwegians gave up and there was a union between the two countries under swedish kings that lasted until 1905 which year the union was was cancelled on the brink of anew war between their mobilized armies.
jeez... they got his ideology right, but not how it affected his life, in contrast to previous kings all illustrations of him are in uniform, as he was obessed with war, idealized soldiers, having grown up in the highly militarized state his father had created. he was not the extravagant king you see in this movie.
Peter the Great. It is a movie that came out in 1986, based on Massies biography. It was a big seller. I got the book and saw the movie.
10 лет назад
The troops were regular soviet troops that had much more training and materiel than other countries except germany, france and Japan 1939. After the first stunning mistakes and losses elite gardes troops were thrown at the finns after well prepared planning. It´s very difficult and bloody to storm following Soviet rigid tactic with brutal commissars from NKVD behind ready to shoot their own!
Search: List of wars concerning Sweden.( A terrible list!) Napoleons famous marshal Bernadotte became king of Sweden as Karl the XIV Johan. He is forefather of the great kin of the Bernadottes in Sweden and our present king.
@xganger2 it is true he didn't start it but he did want it and saying sweden killed 5 times more is also an estimate as the exact number of swedish casualties is unknown but 5 times is simply unrealistic as if that were true surley Sweden would have easly won
@@proudtitanicdenier4300 It's an obvious and natural question following the original statement. At some point you must ask yourself how many lonely mothers and wifes, dead brothers and fathers is one willing to make simply to paint a map for a few years?
@@proudtitanicdenier4300 I comment, should I wish, without anyones authority to do so.
11 лет назад
He was killed by a 20 mm schrapnel from a kartesch bomb fired against the swedish field fortifications in front of the norwegian castle walls in Halden. There is a large hole through his head. His body and horse are preserved mummies! There are speculations about a knob fired by a war tired swedish officer who wanted the war to end.
Interesting theory Sten Åke , but personally i am agree with the second one most because the danish king was so affected/sad of the lost off his royal swedish cousin that personally was demanding an military investigation to find/know the truth. In reality the danish was much more interested to know if was there foul/norwegian allies . It seems to exist an old manuskript in Kronborg castle about the result of investigation who absolve the alliance danish - norwegian of any doubt of assassination.
Also, State Monopoly was invented a long time ago after a democratic voting took place, should we ban alcohol or allow it? the outcome of the voting was almost 50/50. Therefor the government declared State monopoly on alcohol. And yes, the voting took place because alot of Sweds were drinking themselves into an early grave. However, this is also a thing of the past, unlike your countries current state, which is a thing of the present.
Regarding occupying Finland, you really want to open that door? Because I have a very strong memory of a certain Winter War that took place there. Here your government used the same tactic as always, throw untrained and unequipped men and boys on the enemy until they are covered with dead bodies, much cheaper to sacrifice lives than training all of them. Just look at the numbers after the war.
***** I know a lot about the Great Northern war because some of my ancestors participated in some of the campaigns. If they had met that would be mentioned in the history books.It is not a bad idea though what they are discussing. Russia never owned those ports he mentioned, the Poles and the Teutonic order did and after the orders demise the people in todays Estonia asked the Swedish king Erik XIV for protection which was granted.
Can ya guess that this was a shoddy film with its nose all the way up Peter's business end? I wouldn't mind so much if so many people were not so ignorant as to trust films for their history.
No one knows who killed him, he was going to indotruce a tax on the nobility 2-3 percent higher than it already was or it was someone acting on his brother in laws behalf.
Gustav Vasa My dear King, you were good when it came to diplomacy, but you did not do well in combat, or leading men to victory. (Also, it's could've or Could have, not Could of)
I believe that Charles and Peter had a great deal in common. They were both mad with power. One thing that Charles did have was the fact that many Russian, especially Cossaks supported him. The war was about power but many Russians saw it as a chance to liberate themselves from Peter's tyranny.
All European countries, without discrimination, have used propaganda, invaded and occupied other countries. I don't really know what you want to achieve with bringing up past deeds since no country (especially not Russia) has a history of flowers and peace. However, if you want to go down that path maybe you should look up more recent war history? Like first and second WW? It wasn't Sweden who raped and executed innocents and slaughtering others as well as themselves.
Detta möte ägde aldrig rum, Peter träffade dock Svenska sändebud och han erbjöd faktiskt denna delning av Riga men de ville inte, framför allt existerade in sankt Petersburg då, blev grundlagt 1703 på Svenskt territorium.
The mini-series is awful. Charles has a lot to answer for but the old gay crap is ludicrous. In addition to which, he never met ol' Pete face-fo-face. He DID entertain the idea of facing him in single combat but he was talked out of it.
Russia lost a lot of territory to Poland and Sweden during so called Time of Troubles ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_of_Troubles ). And no self-respecting country would let it unpunished. It took them 100 years to regain them ( as it happened with quite a lot on top of it, as Charles was absolutely smashed ). And before Charles adventurous attack, Russia offered him good terms of for peace. But he believed (because of his earlier victories over Russians) that road to Moscow would be easy - fatal gamble which ended Sweden Baltic Empire.
