Swedish Livonia in the accounts of foreign travelers in the second half of the 17th century

The publication examines the formation of the image of Swedish Livonia in the accounts of foreign authors from Western Europe who visited the region in person in the second half of the 17th century. During the period of Swedish dominance and the abolition of the old English privileges of the Muscovy Company, the Baltic region increasingly attracted the attention of the English and Dutch. Thanks to the accounts of Patrick Gordon, a Scottish officer in Russian service, and participants in the Earl of Carlisle's embassy to the courts of the Russian, Swedish, and Danish monarchs, it is possible to reconstruct the general perceptions of English subjects of Sweden's Baltic possessions. These accounts correlate with the accounts of Dutch diplomats who visited Swedish Livonia during the same period. Having visited the province, the authors compiled vivid and pithy descriptions not only of everyday life on the road and the region's natural environment, but also their thoughts on the customs of the local population, the prospects for trade development, and the defense capabilities of Swedish Livonia in the face of its eastern neighbor. A comparative analysis, by comparing the accounts of English and Dutch authors, allows us to create a relatively coherent image of the Swedish possessions in Livonia, as they were seen in Britain and the Republic of the United Provinces during the period of Swedish great power. The Baltic possessions of the Swedish crown are presented as a region that is relatively backward and unpopulated, but not without natural resources. The defenses of Swedish Livonia are weak, with Riga serving as the main fortress, simultaneously serving as the main center of trade and Swedish dominance in the region. It is Riga that the English and Dutch perceive as a truly European city, compared to the poor, semi-wild, and barbaric province. Despite the devastation of the Russo-Swedish War of 1656–1658, the region quickly recovered. However, it clearly lacks the attention it deserves, with road infrastructure development, the modernization of fortresses, and the construction of new fortifications neglected. The local population was subjugated by the Swedes and even economically leaned more toward the neighboring Russian state.

Baltic region, Swedish Livonia, Riga, everyday road life, borderland, notes of foreigners, Patrick Gordon, Earl of Carlisle, Nicolaes Witsen, Jan Struys