Perfect weather again - 30 degrees and sunny. My AirBnB host was brilliant, and let me drop my backpack off early, so I was free to explore. Apparently, according to my host this is the warmest summer since 1992!
Sodermalm, just South of the Old City, is a great place to stay. Its a young, trendy area, and you can tell by the quality of the restaurants, cafes, and bars. (Ramen noodles were fantastic - see above).
This is the Teatern, or Theatre in English, a concept by a famous Swedish chef, which is fast food done in a more classy way. You sit on these tables like in a theatre, hence the name. For the first time on the trip I had some Asian food - I was absolutely craving some spice. The Raman noodle place is popular and excellent - top quality. They make it and cook it fresh. I'm a big fan of this concept. Fast food, done well.
One interesting thing they have in Sweden and Finland is that all hard liquor (spirits, high alcohol beer etc) is sold from a State owned shop that has a monopoly on this business. Alcohol is therefore relatively expensive. My host said that this was due to the Russian influence (Russians are all alcoholics), and Sweden had a problem with alcohol. To address the alcohol related illnesses, deaths on the road, and people passing out drunk and dying in the cold, the State stepped in. In Norway I've heard alcohol is even more expensive. I noted the enthusiasm Nordic people were buying alcohol in the duty free shops on the ferry. Personally, I refuse to pay $10 or more for a beer, so the alcohol policy has worked on me at least in Sweden. I'm sure I'll be healthier, wealthier, and all the better for it.
https://hejsweden.com/en/the-swedes-and-alcohol-about-drinking-in-sweden/
Travel Tip: Remember, the limit is .02 not .05 in Australia.
The Armemuseum (Army Museum) is in Ostermalm, and its a former artillery depot. This is actually a really good museum, and its absolutely free! During the period of the Gunpowder Revolution, and particularly, the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) - primarily Roman Catholics versus Protestants, Sweden was really good at warfare. They made a quantum leap in the game with the arrival of this Swedish King.
Gustav Adolphus who is credited for the founding of Sweden as a great power. He did a number of important military reforms.
Prior to Adolphus, Spain was the greatest land power in Europe. through a massive infantry formation called a Tercio, about 3,000 men strong. They basically composed of pikemen and musketeers, and this great mass usually rolled right over rival countries armies.
The musket of the period, looked like this, but with a long cordlike match, and took about a minute or more to reload. The type above are the more expensive wheel lock muskets. Surprisingly, most soldiers actually preferred the cheaper matchlock musket, because it works nearly all the time - i.e. it has less misfires than the more complicated mechanism. To sum up, the great mass of Spanish pikemen would probably crush you by the time you reloaded your musket, so somebody needed to improve the firepower of a formation to defeat the Spanish.
This is what Gustav Adolphus came up with - a three pounder gun that was far lighter and manoeuvrable on the battlefield than the much larger caliber guns that usually remained static. I was very excited to see a real Swedish three pounder gun for the first time. Note the hook in the trail - you can put a long bar through it, and the gunners can push or pull it around or it can be drawn by a couple of horses - cutting edge at the time.
Note: I was in an artillery unit as a gunner in the Australian Army Reserve, and am a trained historian, so I find this exciting!
It fires a three pound ball like this. Now, remember those huge Spanish formations up to 12 ranks ranks deep. On hard ground these balls will bounce along the ground like a bowling ball and bowl soldiers down like skittles - taking off legs in the process. Incidentally, this was why Napoleon, a former artillery officer, waited so long before attacking at Waterloo - he was waiting for the ground to dry out to achieve this effect.
Furthermore, a three pounder gun, can fire canister shot like this, 24 musket balls, in a canister (although this is for a much larger 18 pounder gun, but you get the idea). Basically, its like a giant shotgun.
But the real secret was the rate of fire - you can fire a 3 pounder gun up to 8 times a minute, because Sweden used prepared rounds with the gunpowder and the ball/s fixed together. So, the gunner, once the gun was loaded, just touched a match and the gun would fire.
In conclusion, Gustav, by inventing modern field artillery, greatly improved the firepower of Sweden's armies on the battlefield.
Gustav also improved the cavalry, by training them to charge boot to boot with the sword instead of using a complicated manoeuvre of firing pistols and wheeling away. This way he used the speed and power of the horse and rider to create what the military called, 'shock.' This particularly effective when you have ripped a giant hole in the infantry formation and can ride into it slashing with the sword, and of course the horse will be bucking and kicking out.
Other Protestant armies, particularly Oliver Cromwell's Ironside cavalry in the English Civil War would use this Swedish tactic, and similar equipment (see above).
The infantry were trained to fire at a higher rate, and in a Swedish volley, three people firing at once - one kneeling, one crouching, one standing. The English were fond of this tactic, and went on to use it regularly.
Combine it all together - artillery, cavalry, and infantry - then you get 'Combined Arms' warfare and that was what Gustav Adolphus invented. We still use combined arms warfare today in the military. You might wonder why this matters, well, it matters, because The Treaty of Westphalia signed in 1648 created the modern state system that we live under today, and it is why Northern Europe is Protestant and Southern Europe is Roman Catholic. The treaty signed meant largely the end of the Wars of Religion in Europe. The Thirty Years Wars killed about 5 million people, and about a third of the German population.
Its also one reason why the West finds Islamic terror attacks so shocking, because the West hasn't had a war of religion for over 350 years!
Some say Europe are starting to understand what that means, historically, they are very bloody, and hard to stop.
........................
On the train back to Sodermalm there was a paralytic drunk man lying in the doorway with what looked like vomit down his beard, mumbling incoherently. I don't know if the State owned monopoly of alcohol is working, particularly when there were drunks in the park too. It must have been far worse before they restricted alcohol. Most people only drink on the weekends, and then they have a habit of binge drinking.
I went back to the Theatre for some more delicious Ramen noodles for dinner. I stocked up on some snacks for the railway journey from the local supermarket.
Anyway, tomorrow I'm catching the train to Oslo. Actually, I'm taking a ferry to Nesoddtangen, across the harbour, which is a much nicer area.
Further information:
Arme' museum website - www.armemuseum.se
Max Boot. War made New
Keith Roberts. Cromwell's War Machine: The New Model Army 1645-1660
Alec Ryrie. Protestants: The Faith That Made the Modern World
Piers, Platt. From the Arquebus to the Breechloader: How Firearms Transformed Early Infantry Tactics
Want to learn more about, The Thirty Years War, then watch the video above.
Suomi sub machine gun (see above) - this is the Finnish gun I was talking about the other day that they have in the Swedish Army Museum. Note the longer barrel than you normally find on these type of weapons that makes it more accurate at longer ranges and the 71 round drum magazine. A quality weapon, expensive to manufacture, but a highly desirable combat weapon in WW2.
Sodermalm, just South of the Old City, is a great place to stay. Its a young, trendy area, and you can tell by the quality of the restaurants, cafes, and bars. (Ramen noodles were fantastic - see above).
This is the Teatern, or Theatre in English, a concept by a famous Swedish chef, which is fast food done in a more classy way. You sit on these tables like in a theatre, hence the name. For the first time on the trip I had some Asian food - I was absolutely craving some spice. The Raman noodle place is popular and excellent - top quality. They make it and cook it fresh. I'm a big fan of this concept. Fast food, done well.
One interesting thing they have in Sweden and Finland is that all hard liquor (spirits, high alcohol beer etc) is sold from a State owned shop that has a monopoly on this business. Alcohol is therefore relatively expensive. My host said that this was due to the Russian influence (Russians are all alcoholics), and Sweden had a problem with alcohol. To address the alcohol related illnesses, deaths on the road, and people passing out drunk and dying in the cold, the State stepped in. In Norway I've heard alcohol is even more expensive. I noted the enthusiasm Nordic people were buying alcohol in the duty free shops on the ferry. Personally, I refuse to pay $10 or more for a beer, so the alcohol policy has worked on me at least in Sweden. I'm sure I'll be healthier, wealthier, and all the better for it.
https://hejsweden.com/en/the-swedes-and-alcohol-about-drinking-in-sweden/
Travel Tip: Remember, the limit is .02 not .05 in Australia.
The Armemuseum (Army Museum) is in Ostermalm, and its a former artillery depot. This is actually a really good museum, and its absolutely free! During the period of the Gunpowder Revolution, and particularly, the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) - primarily Roman Catholics versus Protestants, Sweden was really good at warfare. They made a quantum leap in the game with the arrival of this Swedish King.
Gustav Adolphus who is credited for the founding of Sweden as a great power. He did a number of important military reforms.
Prior to Adolphus, Spain was the greatest land power in Europe. through a massive infantry formation called a Tercio, about 3,000 men strong. They basically composed of pikemen and musketeers, and this great mass usually rolled right over rival countries armies.
The musket of the period, looked like this, but with a long cordlike match, and took about a minute or more to reload. The type above are the more expensive wheel lock muskets. Surprisingly, most soldiers actually preferred the cheaper matchlock musket, because it works nearly all the time - i.e. it has less misfires than the more complicated mechanism. To sum up, the great mass of Spanish pikemen would probably crush you by the time you reloaded your musket, so somebody needed to improve the firepower of a formation to defeat the Spanish.
This is what Gustav Adolphus came up with - a three pounder gun that was far lighter and manoeuvrable on the battlefield than the much larger caliber guns that usually remained static. I was very excited to see a real Swedish three pounder gun for the first time. Note the hook in the trail - you can put a long bar through it, and the gunners can push or pull it around or it can be drawn by a couple of horses - cutting edge at the time.
Note: I was in an artillery unit as a gunner in the Australian Army Reserve, and am a trained historian, so I find this exciting!
It fires a three pound ball like this. Now, remember those huge Spanish formations up to 12 ranks ranks deep. On hard ground these balls will bounce along the ground like a bowling ball and bowl soldiers down like skittles - taking off legs in the process. Incidentally, this was why Napoleon, a former artillery officer, waited so long before attacking at Waterloo - he was waiting for the ground to dry out to achieve this effect.
Furthermore, a three pounder gun, can fire canister shot like this, 24 musket balls, in a canister (although this is for a much larger 18 pounder gun, but you get the idea). Basically, its like a giant shotgun.
But the real secret was the rate of fire - you can fire a 3 pounder gun up to 8 times a minute, because Sweden used prepared rounds with the gunpowder and the ball/s fixed together. So, the gunner, once the gun was loaded, just touched a match and the gun would fire.
In conclusion, Gustav, by inventing modern field artillery, greatly improved the firepower of Sweden's armies on the battlefield.
Gustav also improved the cavalry, by training them to charge boot to boot with the sword instead of using a complicated manoeuvre of firing pistols and wheeling away. This way he used the speed and power of the horse and rider to create what the military called, 'shock.' This particularly effective when you have ripped a giant hole in the infantry formation and can ride into it slashing with the sword, and of course the horse will be bucking and kicking out.
Other Protestant armies, particularly Oliver Cromwell's Ironside cavalry in the English Civil War would use this Swedish tactic, and similar equipment (see above).
The infantry were trained to fire at a higher rate, and in a Swedish volley, three people firing at once - one kneeling, one crouching, one standing. The English were fond of this tactic, and went on to use it regularly.
Combine it all together - artillery, cavalry, and infantry - then you get 'Combined Arms' warfare and that was what Gustav Adolphus invented. We still use combined arms warfare today in the military. You might wonder why this matters, well, it matters, because The Treaty of Westphalia signed in 1648 created the modern state system that we live under today, and it is why Northern Europe is Protestant and Southern Europe is Roman Catholic. The treaty signed meant largely the end of the Wars of Religion in Europe. The Thirty Years Wars killed about 5 million people, and about a third of the German population.
Its also one reason why the West finds Islamic terror attacks so shocking, because the West hasn't had a war of religion for over 350 years!
Some say Europe are starting to understand what that means, historically, they are very bloody, and hard to stop.
........................
On the train back to Sodermalm there was a paralytic drunk man lying in the doorway with what looked like vomit down his beard, mumbling incoherently. I don't know if the State owned monopoly of alcohol is working, particularly when there were drunks in the park too. It must have been far worse before they restricted alcohol. Most people only drink on the weekends, and then they have a habit of binge drinking.
I went back to the Theatre for some more delicious Ramen noodles for dinner. I stocked up on some snacks for the railway journey from the local supermarket.
Anyway, tomorrow I'm catching the train to Oslo. Actually, I'm taking a ferry to Nesoddtangen, across the harbour, which is a much nicer area.
Further information:
Arme' museum website - www.armemuseum.se
Max Boot. War made New
Keith Roberts. Cromwell's War Machine: The New Model Army 1645-1660
Alec Ryrie. Protestants: The Faith That Made the Modern World
Piers, Platt. From the Arquebus to the Breechloader: How Firearms Transformed Early Infantry Tactics
Want to learn more about, The Thirty Years War, then watch the video above.
Suomi sub machine gun (see above) - this is the Finnish gun I was talking about the other day that they have in the Swedish Army Museum. Note the longer barrel than you normally find on these type of weapons that makes it more accurate at longer ranges and the 71 round drum magazine. A quality weapon, expensive to manufacture, but a highly desirable combat weapon in WW2.
