The greatest story in the world, period 3 (of 3)

by Horace G. Hutchinson

Peace of Utrecht

It was not until 1713 that its terms were finally agreed, in the Peace of Utrecht; and in the main it gave the allies what they had fought for. Certain frontier fortress towns were ceded to the Netherlands by France. Louis, as representing the Habsburg house, gave up all claim to the Spanish Netherlands. The King of Spain was recognised as ruler in his own country, but renounced all right to the French Crown. On the other hand, it was the Peace of Utrecht that made Austria dominant for many years in Italy. In Canada, England gained a large territory from the French.

Look where we may on the scene of the great story in this period, we find great misery everywhere. No sooner had the wars of religion ceased than there began those wars over the succession to the thrones of the newly formed or forming nations. It seems that as soon as the people began to have any sense of nationality, as we say—any feeling that as a nation they had an existence free and independent of the others—they at once found themselves faced by the danger of some one nation, or some one Royal house ruling several nations, becoming so strong as to take their liberty from them. First were the Habsburgs and next the power of Spain, then that of France: nor have we even so by any means come to the end of these wars of succession. We have to hear of more. The nations could no longer endure the idea of an empire such as Charlemagne's, with authority over them.

The Emperor, still so-called, had little power: it was scarcely more than nominal over the German States by which he was elected. About the date of the Peace of Utrecht, an event took place in those German States which was to be of much importance in the future. That was the accession of the Elector—the ruler who had a vote for the election of the Emperor—of Brandenburg, to the throne of Prussia. Its import, of course, was not seen at the time, but it was the beginning of the dominance of Prussia over Germany.

The Emperor, with such power as he might command, had been one of the allies against Louis, but he had his own troubles on his north-eastern boundary to occupy his attention. We have before now, in course of the story, seen a King of Sweden coming down from the north and fighting in Germany. That was in the days of the great Gustavus Adolphus, commanding the Protestant forces and dying in the hour of victory at Lutzen, near Leipsic.

Charles XII

Now, in the early years of the eighteenth century, we have another King of Sweden, Charles XII., fighting in Germany; but it is no religious war that he is waging. He is fighting in the first place to maintain his right to his kingdom of Sweden. Kings of Sweden had at one time or other coveted the throne of Poland. But also more than one King of Poland had laid claim to the throne of Sweden. And now, although this claim had been formally renounced, Charles XII. had no sooner acceded, than Danes (including Norwegians), Poles, and Russians united to dethrone him. That very remarkable ruler, Peter the Great, was at this time Tsar.

The young King of Sweden first met and defeated the Danes, next the Russians, and then marched his victorious troops into Poland, which he conquered and overran. As a result of his victories he seems to have gained little, however, beyond the maintenance of his own throne in Sweden, and, after remaining two years or more in Poland, he set a king of his own nomination, Leszynska, on its throne, made peace with his enemies and went back to his own country. Three years later, however, he was again fighting in Russia, and it was during this campaign, that his armies pushed into Germany also. In Russia he finally suffered an overwhelming defeat at Pultowa: this was in 1709, and one result of that disaster was that his nominee lost the crown of Poland.

After Pultowa, Charles fled to the Turks, engaged them as his allies and persuaded them to send an army of invasion into Russia; but after a short campaign peace was made between Russia and Turkey, and in 1714 Charles returned to his own country. He died four years later; and thereafter Sweden was no more a great actor in our story. The power of Russia, on the other hand, continually increased, and within a few years Russian armies were victoriously overrunning Sweden itself. The Swedes, nevertheless, preserved their independence, but were no longer dangerously aggressive to the nations south of the Baltic.