Wars, politics & history

Deluge

from 1655 to 1660

The Deluge is the Polish name for the Swedish invasion and occupation of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, which began when King Charles X Gustav attacked in 1655. The Commonwealth was already weakened by the Khmelnytsky uprising and war with Russia, and much of it fell with little resistance, including Warsaw and Kraków. Many nobles at first accepted Swedish rule, but looting, religious tension and the defence of the Jasna Góra monastery at Częstochowa helped turn opinion and spark a national revolt. King John II Casimir returned from exile, and allies including Brandenburg-Prussia, Russia and the Habsburgs changed sides. The war ended with the Treaty of Oliva, but the Commonwealth lost population, wealth and standing.

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