HOSTILITIES of the SWEDES in POMERANIA.

The Swedes, after many debates between their king and senate, had at length resolved upon an open declaration against the king of Prussia, and, in consequence of that resolution, sent so many troops into Pomerania, that by the end of August, their army in that country amounted to twenty-five thousand men. Their first act of hostility was the seizure of Anclam and Dem-min, two towns that lay in the way to Stetin, against which their principal design was levelled. But before they proceeded farther, general Hamilton, their commander, by way of justifying the conduct of his master, published a declaration, setting forth, “That the king of Sweden, as guarantee of the treaty of Westphalia, could not help sending his troops into the upper part of the duchy of Pomerania belonging to the king of Prussia; and that, therefore, all the officers appointed to receive the public revenue in that country must pay what money they had in their hands to him, who was commissioned to receive it for his Swedish majesty; that, moreover, an exact account was required, within eight days, of the revenues of the country; but that no more than ordinary contributions would be demanded of the inhabitants, who might rest assured that the Swedish troops should observe the strictest discipline.” After this declaration, they attacked the little fortress of Penemunde, upon the river Pene, and on the twenty-third of September, after a siege of nine days, obliged the garrison, which consisted only of militia, to surrender themselves prisoners of war. This alternative the commanding officer chose, rather than engage not to serve for two years, observing, that such an engagement was inconsistent with his honour, whilst his prince had so much occasion for his service; and the Swedish general, touched with this noble way of thinking, was, on his part, so generous as to give him his liberty. On the other hand, general Manteuffel, who commanded the Prussian forces then in Pomerania, amounting to twelve thousand men, with whom he was encamped before Stetin, to cover that place, published in answer to this a declaration, enjoining the inhabitants of Pomerania to remain faithful to the king of Prussia, their lawful sovereign, under pain of incurring his just indignation, and absolutely forbidding them to pay any regard to the Swedish manifesto.

In the meantime, maresehal Lehwald, immediately after the battle of Norkitten, when the Russians began their retreat, detached prince George of Holstein-Got-torp, with a considerable body of forces, to the relief of Pomerania; and, shortly after, the Russian forces having totally evacuated every part of Prussia, except Memel, and most of them being actually gone into winter-quarters, he himself followed with an additional reinforcement of sixteen thousand men. Upon his approach, the Swedes, who were then encamped at Ferdinandshoff, and had begun to fill up the harbour of Swinnemunde, by way of previous preparation for the siege of Stetin, retired with such precipitation, that they did not allow themselves time to draw off a little garrison they had at Wollin, consisting of two hundred and ten men, who were made prisoners of war. Dem-min was cannonaded by the Prussians on the twenty-ninth of December; and the Swedes having lost one officer and forty men, desired to capitulate. As, in order to ease the troops, it was not thought proper to continue the siege in so sharp a season, their request was granted, and they had leave to retire with two pieces of cannon. The Prussians took possession of the town on the second day of January, after the Swedes had, on the thirtieth of December, likewise given up Anclam, where the conquerors took an hundred and fifty prisoners, and found a considerable magazine of provisions and ammunition. Maresehal Lehwald then passed the Pene, entered Swedish Pomerania, and reduced Gutzkow, Loitz, Tripsus, and Nebringen. At the same time, lieutenant-general Schorlemmer passed with his corps from the isle of Wollin into the isle of Usedom, and from thence to Wolgast, the Swedes having abandoned this town, as well as Schwinemunde, and the fort of Penemunde. The prince of Holstein advanced as far as Grimm and Grieffwalde, and the Swedes, losing one town after another, till they had nothing left in Pomerania but the port of Stralsund, continued retreating till they had reached this last place. The French party in Sweden, to comfort the people, called this retreat, or rather flight, going into winter-quarters. The Prussian hussars were not idle wherever they penetrated; for, besides plundering and pillaging, they raised a contribution of an hundred and sixty thousand crowns in Swedish Pomerania. The Mecklenburghers, who had joined the Swedes with six thousand of their troops, now found cause to repent of their forwardness, being left quite exposed to the resentment of the victors, who chastised them with the most severe exactions. The army of the Swedes, though they did not fight a battle, was, by sickness, desertion, and other accidents, reduced to half the number it consisted of when they took the field. The landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, soon after his territories were invaded by the French, in consequence of their advantage in the affair of Hastenbeck, had applied to the king of Sweden, as one of the guarantees of the treaty of Westphalia, desiring him to employ his good offices with the court of France, to obtain a more favourable treatment for his dominions; but his Swedish majesty, by the advice of the senate, thought proper to refuse complying with this request, alleging, that as the crown of Sweden was one of the principal guarantees of the treaty of Westphalia, it would be highly improper to take such a step in favour of a prince who had not only broke the laws and constitution of the empire, in refusing to furnish his contingent, but had even assisted, with his troops, a power known to be its declared enemy. The Aulic council too, seeing, or pretending to see, the behaviour of the landgrave in the same light, issued a decree against his serene highness towards the end of this year.