Magnus Stiernstråle (died 18 December 1738) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

military

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

, and was most likely from

Livonia Livonia, known in earlier records as Livland, is a historical region on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It is named after the Livonians, who lived on the shores of present-day Latvia. By the end of the 13th century, the name was extende ...

. Stiernstråle became captain of the

Hämeenlinna Hämeenlinna (; ; ; or ''Croneburgum'') is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Kanta-Häme. It is located in the southern interior of the country and on the shores of Vanajavesi, Lake Vanajavesi. The population of Hämeenlinna is appr ...

infantry in 1648. When the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

erupted in 1700, he was lieutenant colonel and commander of the

Ivangorod Fortress Ivangorod Fortress (; ; ) is a castle in Ivangorod, Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It was built in the 15th century. It is located on the east bank of the Narva River, which currently forms the international border between Russia and Estonia, acro ...

, which he had to give up on 16 August 1704. In 1710 he became a colonel in

Vyborg Vyborg (; , ; , ; , ) is a town and the administrative center of Vyborgsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of Vyborg Bay, northwest of St. Petersburg, east of the Finnish capital H ...

and Commandant of the Vyborg Fortress, which was fitted with a garrison of only 4,000. In March it was attacked by a numerically superior Russian force under General

Fyodor Apraksin Count Fyodor Matveyevich Apraksin (also ''Apraxin''; ; , Moscow) was one of the first Russian admirals, governed Estonia and Karelia from 1712 to 1723, was made general admiral (1708), presided over the Russian Admiralty from 1717 to 1728''GR ...

. At first, the Russians, who had not brought any real siege artillery, had little success. Soon, however, when

Czar Peter I Peter I (, ; – ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...

himself arrived on May 10 with reinforcements and supplies, they gained the upper hand. From this time, they were besieged in a position more and more desperate, and in vain waited for rescue from the Finnish side. Since the city walls to a large extent been destroyed and the crew weakened by disease and suffering, Stiernstråle surrendered on 13 June 1710. Although he was the commander of the defense forces, and much of the

bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and aristocracy. They are traditionally contrasted wi ...

were taken as prisoners to Russia, Stiernstråle was taken to Pinsgorod, from where he first after peace returned in 1721. He was promoted to Major General in 1721, and in 1723 received command of the

Savo Savo may refer to: Languages * Savo dialect, forms of the Finnish language spoken in Savo, Finland * Savo language, an endangered language spoken on Savo People * Savo (given name), a masculine given name from southern Europe (includes a list of ...

Regiment.

References

Swedish military personnel of the Great Northern War 18th-century Swedish military personnel 1738 deaths Year of birth unknown {{Sweden-mil-bio-stub