Background Following the
Thirty Years' War, the
Swedish Empire emerged as one of the strongest kingdoms on the continent. It had a large army but little money to pay its soldiers. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, weakened by wars with the Cossacks and
Tsardom of Russia, seemed like easy prey, also because its best soldiers had been either killed in the 1652
Battle of Batih or
massacred after it. Furthermore, Swedes remembered claims to their throne by Polish kings
Sigismund III Vasa and his sons
Władysław IV Vasa and
John II Casimir, who themselves belonged to the
House of Vasa. An earlier conflict, the
Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629) had ended with the
Treaty of Stuhmsdorf. The Polish–Lithuanian King John II Casimir (reigned 1648–68) lacked support among the Commonwealth nobility () due to his sympathies with absolutist
Austria and his open contempt for the "
Sarmatist" culture of the nobility. Earlier, in 1643, John Casimir had become a member of the
Jesuits and had received the title of
Cardinal. Nevertheless, in December 1646, he returned to Poland and, in October 1647, resigned his position as Cardinal to stand for election to the Polish throne, after the death of his brother
Władysław IV Vasa. He became King in 1648. However, some of the nobility supported Charles Gustav (King of Sweden from 1654 to 1660 and John Casimir's cousin) for the Polish–Lithuanian throne. Many members of the Polish nobility regarded John Casimir as a weak king or a "Jesuit-King";
Grand Treasurer Bogusław Leszczyński, a Protestant, and
Deputy Chancellor of the Crown Hieronim Radziejowski, an old enemy of the Polish King who had been exiled to Sweden, encouraged Charles Gustav to claim the
Polish crown. Two Lithuanian noble princes,
Janusz Radziwiłł and
Bogusław Radziwiłł, introduced dissension into the Commonwealth and began
negotiations with the
Swedish king Charles X Gustav of Sweden aimed at breaking up the Commonwealth and the
Polish–Lithuanian union. They signed the
Treaty of Kėdainiai (1655), which envisaged the Radziwiłł princes ruling over two duchies carved out from the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania under
Swedish protection.
1655 . In July 1655 two Swedish armies, operating from
Swedish Pomerania and the
Province of Pomerania, entered
Greater Poland, one of the richest and most developed provinces of the Commonwealth, which had for centuries been unaffected by any military conflicts, and whose had not been used to fighting. Greater Poland's noble camp, located in the valley of the
Noteć river, near the town of
Ujście, looked more like a large party, as the , gathered there to face the Swedish Army, was more interested in drinking. To make matters worse, two powerful magnates, the
Voivode of
Poznań Krzysztof Opaliński, and the Voivode of
Kalisz, Andrzej Karol Grudziński, argued with each other whether to fight or to give up. Polish troops lacked gunpowder, cannons, and even food, which was stolen at local villages by hungry soldiers. After an easy Swedish victory at the
Battle of Ujście,
Krzysztof Opaliński surrendered Greater Poland to
Charles Gustav. On July 31, 1655, the army commanded by
Arvid Wittenberg captured
Poznań, and on August 20 near
Konin, the armies of Wittenberg and Charles Gustav joined forces, and headed for Warsaw. On September 2, the Poles lost the
Battle of Sobota, and on September 4, the Swedes captured
Łowicz. Four days later, the Swedish army entered the Polish capital, becoming the first foreign army in history to capture Warsaw. King Charles Gustav left a garrison in Warsaw, under
Bengt Gabrielsson Oxenstierna, and headed southwards, in pursuit of John Casimir. On September 16, the Swedes defeated Polish troops in the
Battle of Żarnów, and the
Polish forces gave up resistance and surrendered to the invaders. The Polish king headed towards Kraków on September 25, and then fled to the
Głogówek castle near
Prudnik in
Upper Silesia. Kraków was left in the hands of
Stefan Czarniecki; on October 3 Swedish forces once again defeated the Poles in the
Battle of Wojnicz, which opened the road to Kraków. The ancient capital of Poland was captured
after a siege, on October 13, 1655. With the three most populated and best developed Polish provinces in his hands (Greater Poland,
Lesser Poland and
Mazovia), Charles Gustav decided to head back northwards to
Royal Prussia, which was defended by the
Voivode of Malbork,
Jakub Wejher. The Swedes, who were generally superior in training, discipline, and equipment, advanced rapidly. Meanwhile, in the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania, whose eastern part had been occupied by another Swedish army under
Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie since August 1655, Janusz Radziwiłł and his cousin Bogusław Radziwiłł signed the
Union of Kėdainiai (October 20, 1655), which ended Lithuania's union with Poland. The decision of the Radziwiłłs was the result of the 1654 Russian invasion, as Janusz Radziwiłł accused the Poles of not helping the Lithuanians with the defence of the Grand Duchy. The Russian capture of
Vilnius (August 9, 1655) and the subsequent slaughter of its residents convinced the Lithuanian nobility that Swedish protection was the best solution. On December 13, Polish troops under Wojniłłowicz recaptured
Nowy Sącz, and soon afterwards Sweden lost
Biała,
Dukla,
Biecz,
Wieliczka, and
Oświęcim. By late 1655, the situation in southern Lesser Poland had deteriorated to such an extent for the invaders that on December 27 they decided to lift the siege of Jasna Góra. On December 16, 1655, in
Sokal, Polish Crown
hetmans urged the nation to fight the Swedish armies. Two days later, King John Casimir left the
Głogówek in Silesia, and via
Racibórz and
Cieszyn, returned to Poland, arriving at
Lubowla on December 27. Two days later, the
Tyszowce Confederation was formed in support of the Polish king. John Casimir himself met with hetmans
Stanisław Rewera Potocki,
Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski,
Stanisław Lanckoroński and
Stefan Czarniecki in Krosno, on December 31, 1655. The meeting was also attended by Primate
Andrzej Leszczyński, and eight
voivodes.
1656 While in Krosno, the Polish king found out about the end of the siege of Jasna Góra, and about the death of Janusz Radziwiłł. On January 12, 1656, John Casimir left Krosno, and after three days, arrived at
Łańcut Castle, which belonged to the
Lubomirski family. On February 10, the king came to
Lwów, which, together with Gdańsk, was one of only two major cities of the Commonwealth not seized by any of Poland's enemies. Soon Polish Army units began to concentrate in the area of Lwów, including
militias from
Red Ruthenia,
Volhynia and
Lublin, as well as forces under Potocki and Prince Lubomirski, together with the garrison of
Kamieniec Podolski fortress. Charles Gustav, after finding out about the return of the Polish king, ordered his armies to concentrate in Łowicz. On February 8, 1656, the Swedes defeated Czarniecki in the
Battle of Gołąb, and continued their march towards Lwów, reaching the
Zamość Fortress on February 25. On March 1, realizing that without heavy guns it was impossible to capture the mighty stronghold, the Swedish army gave up the siege, and headed towards
Bełżec. On March 3, Charles Gustav, whose units were harassed by Polish guerilla forces, decided to retreat. and the relations between the Commonwealth and Transylvania were friendly. George had even been offered the Polish crown, on condition that he convert to Catholicism. Stunning Swedish successes, however, made Rákóczi change his mind. On May 18, 1656, Charles X Gustav, in a letter sent from Malbork, offered the Hungarian prince Red Ruthenia, in exchange for military support against the Commonwealth. Meanwhile, Rákóczi had already been negotiating with Bohdan Khmelnytsky, and on September 7, 1656, Transylvania and the
Zaporizhian Sich signed a peace treaty, which obliged both sides to help each other in war. On December 8, 1656, the
Treaty of Radnot was signed, which divided Poland-Lithuania among Charles X Gustav, Bogusław Radziwiłł, Elector Frederick William, Bohdan Khmelnytsky, and George II Rákóczi. In late January 1657, the Transylvanian army of 25,000
crossed the
Carpathians, heading towards
Medyka, where 10,000 Cossack allies awaited them. To face the new invader, the army of hetman Stanisław Rewera Potocki rushed southwards. At the same time (January 2), in the
Battle of Chojnice, the Swedes defeated the Poles. On February 26, Stefan Czarniecki and King John Casimir met in
Kalisz, where they decided to prevent the Swedish and Transylvanian armies from meeting. in 1657, painted by
E. Dahlbergh After joining the Cossacks, Rákóczi decided not to attack Lwów, but set off towards Kraków, where the situation of the Swedish garrison under
Wirtz was desperate. On March 21, Rákóczi captured
Tarnów, and on March 28, he reached Kraków. Along the way to the ancient Polish capital, the Transylvanian-Cossack army burned and looted towns and villages, murdering thousands. Since his army was too busy looting
Lesser Poland, only 5,000 soldiers reached Kraków, which by the Treaty of Radnot, was to be ruled by Transylvania. After leaving 2,500 soldiers to help the Swedish garrison of Kraków, Rákóczi's army headed northwards, along the
Vistula. On April 12, 1657, the Transylvanian-Cossack army met with Swedish forces under Charles X Gustav, at
Ćmielów. The joined forces began to follow the Polish Crown army under Stanisław Potocki, and the Lithuanian army under Paweł Sapieha, to force a decisive battle. On April 29, the Polish and Lithuanian armies joined forces at
Łosice, and in early May 1657, the Poles decided to organize a revenge raid on Transylvania, under
hetman Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski. On May 13, Rákóczi and Charles X Gustav seized the fortress of
Brześć Litewski, and on May 17, after a three-day siege, the Swedes, Cossacks, and Transylvanians captured Warsaw. Soon afterwards, however, the
Dano-Swedish War began, and Charles X Gustav left Poland with most of his troops. The remaining Swedish army was commanded by
Gustaf Otto Stenbock. The Swedish withdrawal made Rákóczi uneasy, as he was well aware of the poor quality of his soldiers. On July 7–8, 1656, at Łańcut Castle, King John Casimir and his hetmans agreed that Stefan Czarniecki would follow Rákóczi and the Cossacks, while Lubomirski's and Potocki's divisions together with Crimean Tatars. The Ottomans were offended that George II Rakoczi, who was officially their vassal, did not ask their approval to attack Poland and did not want to open another war (in that time they tried to attack Venice through Dalmatia) but when he ignored them they ordered the Crimean Tatars to help the Polish troops and punish Rakoczi. They already replaced Rakoczi's vassal voivodes from Moldavia and Wallachia. On June 20, 1657, Stenbock was ordered by Charles X Gustav to abandon Rákóczi and head with his army to
Stettin. To save his skin, the ruler of Transylvania began a quick retreat southwards, towards the Carpathians. On July 11, Stefan Czarniecki's division defeated Rákóczi at Magierów near Lwów, and on July 20, the Transylvanian-Cossack army was destroyed in the
Battle of Czarny Ostrów in
Podolia. Three days later, Rákóczi signed a peace treaty with the Commonwealth, in which he promised to break the alliance with Sweden, withdraw his troops from Kraków and Brześć Litewski, and pay for the damage inflicted by his army. On July 26, remnants of the Transylvanian army were surrounded by the Tatars near
Skałat. Rákóczi himself managed to flee, and the army was temporarily commanded by
John Kemény, who himself was captured by the Tatars. After six months of fighting in Poland, Rákóczi's army of 25,000 ceased to exist, with all survivors taken prisoner by the Tatars. On August 30, the Swedish garrison left Kraków, and throughout August and September 1657, all Swedish troops in Poland moved northwards, to
Royal Prussia. Altogether, by autumn of that year, only some 8,000 Swedish soldiers remained in Poland–Lithuania. The Swedes still kept some Prussian cities, as Malbork, Elbląg,
Sztum,
Brodnica,
Grudziądz, and
Toruń. On September 11, an Austrian army of 11,000, allied with Poland, concentrated near Kraków and set off to
Płock, where it spent the winter. Polish army commanders and King John Casimir, gathered in Poznań on November 26, decided to delay the attack on Swedish forces in Royal Prussia until spring 1658. On November 6, 1657, Poland and Brandenburg–Prussia signed the
Treaty of Bromberg.
Ducal Prussia, which had previously allied itself with Sweden and attacked Poland, changed sides and guaranteed military support of the Commonwealth, in return for sovereignty (it had been a
fief of Poland since 1466). This treaty is regarded by historian Józef Włodarski as one of the worst mistakes in Polish history.
1658–1660 in 1658 In the spring of 1658, the Polish army, together with its Austrian allies under
Raimondo Montecuccoli, began a campaign in Royal Prussia, where several key towns and cities were still in Swedish hands. On July 1, the siege of Toruń began. The heavily fortified city was defended by 2400 soldiers under Barthod Hartwig von Bülow. The Polish troops included the divisions of
Krzysztof Grodzicki, Jan Sapieha and Stefan Czarniecki. Furthermore, they were provided support by the Brandenburgian-Prussian army of
Bogusław Radziwiłł, which after the Treaty of Bromberg changed sides. Altogether, almost 25,000 soldiers besieged Toruń. After a prolonged artillery bombardment, the main attack took place in the night of November 16–17, and on December 30 Toruń capitulated. Meanwhile, Stefan Czarniecki's division headed to
Denmark–Norway, to help the Danes in the
Dano-Swedish War. In October 1658, the Polish army of 4500 reached
Hamburg, and in December 1658, with the help of Polish troops, the fortress of
Kolding was captured (see
Battle of Kolding). On July 1, 1658, the
Sejm ordered the expulsion of the
Polish Brethren, who were accused of collaborating with the Swedish invaders. In 1659, the Swedish army still remaining in Poland under
Lorens von der Linde was withdrawn to major Royal Prussian fortresses – Malbork, Głowa Gdańska,
Grudziądz,
Elbląg, and
Brodnica. In August 1659, the Polish army captured Głowa and Grudziądz, and soon afterwards, the starving Swedish garrison at Brodnica surrendered. The siege of Malbork was continued, and Polish – Brandenburgian troops blocked Elbląg. In December 1659, the siege of Elbląg began. Meanwhile, in late 1658, the Polish–Russian truce ended when Russian forces under
Ivan Andreyevich Khovansky (Tararui) and Jurij Aleksiejewicz Dołgorukow again attacked the Polish – Lithuanian units (see
Russo-Polish War (1654–1667)). The Russians managed to capture large parts of the Commonwealth, but were later defeated in the
Battle of Konotop and the
Battle of Polonka. On May 3, 1660, the
Treaty of Oliva was signed, which ended the Polish–Swedish War. After the conclusion of the conflict, Poland–Lithuania initiated a large offensive against the Russians, who were beaten in the
Battle of Chudnov. In 1661,
Vilnius was recaptured (December 2), and in 1663–64, Polish forces invaded
Left-bank Ukraine. The war with Russia ended with the
Truce of Andrusovo (January 30, 1667). == Other conflicts ==