ABSTRACT
One effect of the Thirty Years War had been to draw the northern powers towards the mainstream of European politics. Reflecting the increasing demand for timber, tar, pitch, hemp and grain, the Baltic, with its river mouths and ports, was no longer just the scene of local rivalries, but the focus of interest of the major states. The intention of the Habsburg’s Admiralty Plan, leading to the unsuccessful siege of Stralsund (1628) had been to secure a naval base from which to operate against the Dutch. Enjoying the lion’s share of trade through the Sound, the busiest shipping lane in Europe, the Dutch had an interest in maintaining a peaceful balance within the region. One issue in the Thirty Years War, not resolved in Sweden’s favour until 1629, had been the disputed Swedish succession, between Polish and Swedish branches of the house of Vasa. After the truce of that year, negotiated by Richelieu’s envoy to prepare the way for Gustavus Adolphus’ subsidised intervention in the German war, Sweden was a major player in the conflicts finally settled by Westphalia: it left Sweden a German power.
