The Swedish Levant Company () was a Swedish

chartered company A chartered company is an association with investors or shareholders that is Incorporation (business), incorporated and granted rights (often Monopoly, exclusive rights) by royal charter (or similar instrument of government) for the purpose of ...

founded on 20 February 1738 with the exclusive right to

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

in the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

for a period of ten years.

Background

Following the surrender at Perevolochna, King

Charles XII Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII () or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.), was King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of the House of ...

was exiled to

Bendery Bender (, ) or Bendery (, ; ), also known as Tighina ( mo-Cyrl, Тигина, links=no), is a city within the internationally recognized borders of Moldova under ''de facto'' control of the unrecognized Transnistria, Pridnestrovian Moldavian Rep ...

in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. It was during this time that Charles began to seek closer ties with the Ottomans, and Sweden's interest in the empire began to rise. The primary backer for trade with the Ottoman Empire was Swedish Board of Trade member Johan Silfvercrantz. He proposed following the example of the English Levant Company to import goods such as

silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...

while exporting Swedish products to the region. Charles sent Silfvercrantz to the Levant to explore a future trade relationship, but he was unable to complete his work before his death the next year in 1712. In 1718, Charles died, and this marked the end of autocratic kingship in Sweden. The subsequent

Age of Liberty In Swedish history, the Age of Liberty () was a period that saw parliamentary governance, increasing civil rights, and the decline of the Swedish Empire that began with the adoption of the Instrument of Government in 1719 and ended with Gustav ...

saw a shift of power from the crown to the Riksdag of the Estates. It was at this time that Sweden had ambitions to expand its influence in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

. In 1737, a

trade agreement A trade agreement (also known as trade pact) is a wide-ranging taxes, tariff and trade treaty that often includes investment guarantees. It exists when two or more countries agree on terms that help them trade with each other. The most common tra ...

between the Ottomans and Sweden was signed. A direct result of the treaty was the formation of the Swedish Levant Company.

Founding

The establishment of the company was a controversial issue. Major issues included which powers the Riksdag should grant the company. Members of the Hat Party generally argued for the English Levant Company structure, but this strategy was criticized by some merchants who favored a freer Dutch method while trading with the Ottomans. The results saw a compromise between the parties. The Swedish Levant Company had tax-free status for its exports, and it was granted

duty A duty (from "due" meaning "that which is owing"; , past participle of ; , whence "debt") is a commitment or expectation to perform some action in general or if certain circumstances arise. A duty may arise from a system of ethics or morality, e ...

-free status for all goods imported from the Levant coast. These imported goods would then be moved to auction for sale. It was not granted a full monopoly on Mediterranean trade but instead limited to the Levantine coast. Additionally, private merchants could apply for a trading license from the company to conduct concurrent business. It had a starting capital of 200,000 ''daler silvermynt''. The two major shareholders of the company were Gustaf Kierman and Thomas Plomgren. Unlike the earlier-formed Swedish East India Company, investment was limited to Swedish merchants only.

Trade

Sweden had hoped to conduct a profitable trade with the Ottomans whereby it could export iron and naval ammunition to

Southern Europe Southern Europe is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, C ...

. In return, luxury goods would be imported into the country.

Closure

The board of directors petitioned the Riksdag for the renewal of its charter, which was granted for an additional 10 years, until 15 January 1748. However, the trading company saw the profits from its primary activity begin to languish. The Private Committee in 1752 made recommendations to the Privy Council for the Riksdag to take additional measures to increase Levantine trade. This effort, however, failed; the company charter was officially revoked in 1756.

References

{{Swedish colonies 1738 establishments in Sweden Trading companies Chartered companies Defunct companies of Sweden Trading companies of Sweden Trading companies established in the 18th century