It is not known exactly how much the Swedish Crown profited from the reductions. The reductions carried out during the reign of Charles XI seem to have resulted in 1,950,000
daler silvermynt in annual rent of which 700,000 were from Sweden and Finland, the core of the
Swedish Empire. The
dominions in the eastern Baltic and northern Germany yielded approximately 1,150,000
daler silvermynt, of which 550,000 came from
Livonia alone.
Swedish Crown Financially, the reduction during the reign of Charles XI resulted in a significant increase of the assets of the Swedish Crown. To a high degree, it contributed to the development of the strong and meticulous organization of the realm's finances and government. The reduction also improved the situation of the landowning
peasant's estate, especially since many of the recovered fiefs were sold to peasants during the reign of
Charles XII. Sometimes the reduction is claimed to have saved the independence of the peasant estate, but this claim is not substantiated.
Nobility The reduction had an enormous effect on the economy and status of the nobility in Sweden. Since the fiefs that were reduced might have changed owners over the course of many generations, the reduction resulted not only in the loss of the fiefdoms but the cancellation of inheritances from times past, purchases, exchanges, etc. This caused a general insecurity with regards to ownership and
creditworthiness among the noble families. Politically, the reduction meant a complete change in the status of the aristocracy. The old land-owning nobility, which through its land ownership had asserted a certain independence even against royal power, lost its power base and was replaced by a rather dependent nobility serving the state in a bureaucratic capacity. The differences between the estates persisted, however, as did the privileges; among these, land still owned by the nobility was taxed at lower rates than land owned by the peasantry.
The foreign dominions The reductions had major consequences in the Swedish foreign dominions. They affected both Swedes who had received fiefdoms and were represented in the
Swedish riksdag and native landowners in the dominions. The Swedish Crown demanded fiefdoms in the
Baltic provinces that had been given before Swedish
suzerainty. Some local nobles claimed that the Swedish Crown thereby ignored the local laws in the dominions. Especially in Livonia, an old
feudal state in which all land since the establishment of the
Teutonic Order had been in the hands of the nobility, the demands had profound consequences.
Serfs on the reduced fiefdoms were now transferred to the Swedish Crown, which caused dissatisfaction among members of the
Baltic German nobility and led, in particular, to Livonian nobleman,
Johann Patkul (1660–1707) conspiring with
Peter the Great (1672-1725) of
Russia and
Augustus the Strong of
Saxony (1670–1733), to start the
Great Northern War against Sweden. == See also ==