The Treaty of Labiau was a
treaty
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pe ...
signed between
Frederick William I, Elector of Brandenburg and
Charles X Gustav of Sweden on 10 November (
O.S.) / 20 November (
N.S.) 1656 in
Labiau (now Polessk). With several concessions, the most important being the elevation of Frederick William I from a Swedish vassal to a full sovereign in the
Duchy of Prussia
The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establish ...
and in
Ermland (Ermeland, Warmia), Charles X Gustav strove to "buy Frederick William's support" in the ongoing
Second Northern War.
[Sturdy (2002), p. 215]
Background
When the
Second Northern War broke out in 1654,
Charles X Gustav of Sweden offered an alliance to
Frederick William I, the "Great
Elector" of Brandenburg and
duke of Prussia
The monarchs of Prussia were members of the House of Hohenzollern who were the hereditary rulers of the former German state of Prussia from its founding in 1525 as the Duchy of Prussia. The Duchy had evolved out of the Teutonic Order, a Roman C ...
.
[Shennan (1995), pp. 19-20] As the price for this alliance would have been the surrender of the Prussian ports of
Pillau
Baltiysk (russian: Балти́йск; german: Pillau; Old Prussian: ''Pillawa''; pl, Piława; lt, Piliava; Yiddish: פּילאַווע, ''Pilave'') is a seaport town and the administrative center of Baltiysky District in Kaliningrad Oblast, Ru ...
(now Baltiysk) and
Memel (now Klaipėda) to Sweden, Frederick William I refused and instead signed a defensive alliance with the
Dutch Republic
The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...
in 1655.
[
Following Swedish military successes, including an invasion of Prussia,][Shennan (1995), p. 20] Frederick William I was forced to take Prussia as a fief from the Swedish king in the Treaty of Königsberg[Vierhaus (1984), p. 169] on 7 January ( O.S.) / 17 January ( N.S.) 1656.[Evans (1997), p. 54] Before, Frederick William I had held that duchy as a fief of the Polish king.[ In Königsberg, the "Great Elector" further had to meet the Swedish demands for Pillau and Memel, promise financial and military aid, and surrender half of the port duties to Sweden.][
On 15 June ( O.S.) / 25 June ( N.S.) 1656, Charles X Gustav and Frederick William I concluded a formal alliance in the Treaty of Marienburg after Swedish advances in the ]Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ru ...
had stalled.[Shennan (1995), p. 21] Sweden offered conquered Polish territories, and Frederick William I went to support Charles X Gustav with his newly formed army in the Battle of Warsaw on 28–30 July, which marked "the beginning of Prussian military history".[Holborn (1982), p. 57]
Though victorious, the subsequent entry into the war of the Russian tsar, the Holy Roman Emperor and the Dutch navy left Sweden in an unfavourable condition, and dependent on further Brandenburgian support.[ This enabled Frederick William I to raise the price for remaining a Swedish ally, and Charles X Gustav met his demands in the treaty of Labiau.][
]
Terms
Charles X Gustav granted Frederick William I full souvereignity in the Duchy of Prussia
The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establish ...
[ and Ermland (Ermeland, Warmia).][ For his Prussian possessions, Frederick William I was elevated from the status of a duke to a ''princeps summus & Suverenus''. Article III specifies that this applies also to Frederick William I's successors, who likewise would have the status of ''principes summi & absoluti Suverenii''.
Sweden further relinquished her rights to collect custom dues in Prussian ports,][ in turn, Frederick William I was to satisfy Sweden with 120,000 riksdalers. A ]Calvinist
Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
himself, he also obliged himself to grant religious freedom to the Lutherans
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...
in his Prussian territories, confirming the similar articles IV and XVII of the treaties of Marienburg and Königsberg, respectively.[
In addition to these terms, the treaty also included secret articles: therein, Frederick William I accepted Swedish claims to the Baltic coastal areas between Prussia and Swedish Livonia, namely Courland, Lithuania, ]Samogitia
Samogitia or Žemaitija ( Samogitian: ''Žemaitėjė''; see below for alternative and historical names) is one of the five cultural regions of Lithuania and formerly one of the two core administrative divisions of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...
and Semigallia
Semigallia, also spelt Semigalia, ( lv, Zemgale; german: Semgallen; lt, Žiemgala; pl, Semigalia; liv, Zemgāl) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands located in the south of the Daugava river and the north of the Saule region of Samogitia. ...
.
Consequences
After the treaty, Frederick William I first continued his military support for Charles X Gustav by detaching some forces to join the latter's Polish campaigns in early 1657.[ However, after ]Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
entered the war and Charles X Gustav left the Polish theater to campaign in Denmark, Frederick William I withdrew his forces from Poland and entrenched them in his Prussian territories.[
When an envoy of ]Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor
Ferdinand III (Ferdinand Ernest; 13 July 1608, in Graz – 2 April 1657, in Vienna) was from 1621 Archduke of Austria, King of Hungary from 1625, King of Croatia and Bohemia from 1627 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1637 until his death in 1657.
...
proposed Polish acceptance of Hohenzollern sovereignty in Prussia in turn for Frederick William I joining the anti-Swedish camp and supporting the Habsburg candidate in the next imperial elections, the "Great Elector" signaled his willingness to change sides.[ Thereupon, Polish king John III Sobieski concluded the secret][ ]Treaty of Wehlau
The Treaty of Bromberg (, Latin: Pacta Bydgostensia) or Treaty of Bydgoszcz was a treaty between John II Casimir of Poland and Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg-Prussia that was ratified at Bromberg (Bydgoszcz) on 6 November 1657. The tr ...
on 19 September 1657,[Wilson (1998), p. 36] wherein the Hohenzollern sovereignty over the Duchy of Prussia, but not Ermland, was confirmed[ in turn for an "eternal alliance" between Brandenburg-Prussia and Poland][ and religious freedom for the Catholics in Prussia.][
The terms of Wehlau was confirmed by the ]Treaty of Bromberg
The Treaty of Bromberg (, Latin: Pacta Bydgostensia) or Treaty of Bydgoszcz was a treaty between John II Casimir of Poland and Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg-Prussia that was ratified at Bromberg (Bydgoszcz) on 6 November 1657. The tr ...
in November, after which Brandenburg actively campaigned against Sweden.[Wilson (1998), p. 37] Frederick William I also gave his vote to the Habsburg candidate, after the emperor on 29 February 1658 agreed to another treaty providing Frederick William I with 10,000 forces to support his campaign in Swedish Pomerania
Swedish Pomerania ( sv, Svenska Pommern; german: Schwedisch-Pommern) was a dominion under the Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815 on what is now the Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish War and the Thirty Years' War, Sweden held ...
.[
On 18 January 1701, based on the sovereignty of the Prussian duchy, ]Frederick I of Prussia
Frederick I (german: Friedrich I.; 11 July 1657 – 25 February 1713), of the Hohenzollern dynasty, was (as Frederick III) Elector of Brandenburg (1688–1713) and Duke of Prussia in personal union (Brandenburg-Prussia). The latter function h ...
crowned himself " King in Prussia."[Holborn (1982), p. 104]
See also
*List of treaties
This list of treaties contains known agreements, pacts, peaces, and major contracts between states, armies, governments, and tribal groups.
Before 1200 CE
1200–1299
1300–1399
1400–1499
1500–1599
1600–1699
1700–1799
...
Sources
References
Bibliography
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External links
*
Scan of the treaty of Labiau at ieg-mainz.de (Institut für Europäische Geschichte Mainz), 27 pages
{{Second Northern War treaties
Second Northern War
Labiau, Treaty of
1656 treaties
Treaties of the Swedish Empire
Treaties of the Margraviate of Brandenburg
1656 in Europe
1656 in Sweden