Unfaithful and expensive – but absolutely necessary: Perceptions of mercenaries in Swedish war policy, 1621–1636

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MARC

Linnarsson, Magnus,1977-Stockholms universitet,Historiska institutionen (author)

Unfaithful and expensive – but absolutely necessary : Perceptions of mercenaries in Swedish war policy, 1621–1636

Article/chapterEnglish2015

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2015
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LIBRIS-ID:oai:DiVA.org:su-117822
https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-117822URI

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Language:English
Summary in:English &French

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SwePubSwePub

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Subject category:ref swepub-contenttype
Subject category:art swepub-publicationtype

Notes

This article examines the Swedish State Council’s descriptions and perceptions of mercenaries between 1621 and 1636. The survey shows that the Council described the mercenaries as unfaithful, unreliable and expensive. In its discussions, conscripted Swedish troops are said to be better than hired mercenaries. The State Council’s perception of mercenaries confirms a paradox in military history. During the period examined, mercenaries constituted a considerable part of fighting forces, not least in the Swedish army. This study, therefore, shows how an ideal of soldier recruitment collided with political reality. In so doing, this article also reviews British political scientist Sarah Percy’s thesis of a norm against the use of mercenaries. Percy has argued that such a norm has put restrictions on the use of mercenaries since the Middle Ages. A review of the Swedish source material found that this norm existed on a discursive level, but that it did not have any real impact on troop recruitment during the period studied.
Cet article porte sur la manière dont le Conseil d’État de Suède décrit et perçoit les mercenaires entre 1621 et 1636. L’enquête montre que le Conseil considère les mercenaires comme infidèles, peu fiables et couteux. Au cours des discussions, il ressort que les troupes de conscrits suédois sont considérées comme étant de meilleure qualité que les mercenaires qui sont loués. La perception des mercenaires par le Conseil confirme un paradoxe de l’histoire militaire. Pendant la période étudiée, les mercenaires constituent une part très importante des forces combattantes, notamment dans l’armée suédoise. Cette étude par conséquent montre comment l’idéal du recrutement des soldats entre en contradiction avec la réalité politique. L’article permet aussi un réexamen de la thèse de la politiste britannique Sarah Percy selon laquelle l’opposition à l’utilisation des mercenaires était la norme. Selon elle une telle manière de penser a mis des restrictions à l’utilisation des mercenaires depuis le Moyen Âge. À la lumière de l’étude des archives suédoises, il ressort que cette norme peut être trouvée dans le discours, mais qu’elle n’a eu aucun impact réel sur le recrutement des troupes pendant la période qui est étudiée.

Subject headings and genre

HUMANIORA Historia och arkeologi Historia hsv//swe
HUMANITIES History and Archaeology History hsv//eng
Sweden
military history
administration
military entrepreneurs
mercenaries
troop recruitment
norms
Machiavelli
Suède
histoire militaire
administration
entrepreneurs militaires
mercenaires
recrutement des troupes
normes
Machiavel
History
historia

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Stockholms universitetHistoriska institutionen (creator_code:org_t)

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In:Revue d'histoire Nordique:18, s. 51-731778-9605

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https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-117822

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