The Lion of the North

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DATE : Sat, 25 Nov 2006 02:35:00 GMT
Entered in Database : 2006-11-25 02:35:00
length : 5665044
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Gustavus Adolphus II the Great, the Lion of the North, was an innovatoras the king of Sweden and the commander of its armies.  His innovationsinclude the conscription system, the tribute system, the squadron-basedorganization system, the Swedish infantry weaponry, and the artilleryregiment system. 

All of these useful improvements were demonstrated during the BalticCampaigns and during the Thirty Years War.  Oneexample is the Battleof Breitenfield, in which he defeated a larger Holy Roman Empire Army,despite the fact that one of his allies fled during the battle.  He waskilled a few years later in another one of his victories, the Battle ofLutzen. 

The Lion of the North (the name was given to him by Protestants inGermany) is, without a doubt, the greatest commander in Swedish historyand the greatest commander in the 1600s. 

For more information, read:
Military Anecdotes by Max Hastings
Dictionary of Battles by David Chandler
Extreme War by Terrence Poulos
Galenet: Adolphus
ABC-Clio: Adolphus

Military History Podcast is sponsored by: Armchair General Magazine, International Research and Publishing Corporation, and Axis and Allies Reserves
 

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