After the
terribly cold winter of 1708 the Swedish army
was decimated. Most deaths were caused by
starvation. But many also died of illnesses
caused by the cold weather. During spring 1709
the Swedish army of about 29,000 men were
gathered outside the Russian city of Poltava.
They had been through a lot and the remaining
men were tired and exhausted. There was a lack
of horses and gunpowder.
Tsar Peter had
about 45 000 men at this spot. On June 28 the
battle occurred. The king Charles XII had been
wounded in one foot and his generals were in
command; they did not, as the king did,
believe in a Swedish victory. According to the
king's plan the Swedes should attack at dawn. |
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The Swedish
lost 8,000 men during the fighting while the
Russians lost 1,300 people with 3,300 wounded.
At Poltava 23,000 prisoners were taken by the
Russians and the Swedish army was totally
crushed. Because of the enormous losses, a lot
of soldiers never came back to their homes in
Sweden.
All the main
characters - Eric Sederholm, Jöran Nordberg,
King Charles XII, Tsar Peter I and Sava
Raguzinskywere - were present that day at
Poltava. |
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