Siege of Demmin
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changes Demmin is captured by Swedish forces
| Siege of Demmin | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Thirty Years' War | |||||||||
 Map of Demmin, made in 1658 | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Swedish Empire |
 Holy Roman Empire | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Gustavus Adolphus Dodo zu Knyphausen Maximilian Teuffel John Hepburn Robert Monro James Lumsden |
Federico Savelli Heinrich Holk | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
Yellow Brigade Mackay’s Regiment of Foote Green Brigade Lumdsen’s Regiment Dumbartons Regiment Stargate’s Regiment[1] |
Demmin garrison Holk regiment | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 19,000 |
| ||||||||
The Siege of Demnin was a Swedish siege of the Pomeranian town of Demmin during the Thirty Years' War, the siege would result in a Swedish victory.
After thoroughly defeating a Liga army on the coast and establishing a bridgehead near Stettin in 1630, Gustavus Adolphus continued his campaign to secure Pomerania during the winter of the following year. He departed from Gartz with 16,000 men, while 9,000 men remained under the command of Gustaf Horn. During the offensive, the Swedes quickly captured several towns and were soon in Loitz, where about 3,000 men under the command of Dodo zu Knyphausen joined them from Stralsund. The Swedish army then marched towards Demmin.
Siege
Beginning of the Siege
On February 12, the Swedes arrived at Demmin and immediately surrounded it. Thanks to the severe cold, the swamps, and the rivers surrounding the city were frozen, which made it easier for the Swedish movements. The fortress was strong, was in the direction of Stralsund, and an attacking army was met first by a castle, and then by a tower. The fortress's garrison, 2,100 men under Federico Savelli, had orders to defend itself for at least two weeks so that relief under Johann Tserclaes Tilly would have time to arrive.
First attacks
Gustavus Adolphus established himself with the artillery at Nonnenberg, from where he began shelling the city. The plan was that part of the Swedish army would carry out a false attack on the castle while the Yellow Brigade under Maximilian Teuffel attacked the fortress from the western side. While Teuffel attacked the city and captured its outskirts, the attack on the castle met with great success when its defenders, consisting of 400 infantry from the Holk regiment, set the castle on fire and retreated to the tower.[2]
Swedish successes
The day after the Swedes took the castle, they began shelling the tower, whose thick walls the Swedish artillery could not destroy. Since the besieged soldiers in the tower refused to surrender, Gustavus ordered it to be mined. When the soldiers realized this, they retreated again, but were soon captured by a detachment of the Yellow Brigade. Their standards were placed on the Nonnenberg in view of those still besieged in the city. Lieutenant Colonel Robert Monro, a Scotsman in Swedish service,[3] described an incident during the siege. [4]
While the artillery continued to bombard the city, Gustavus decided to examine the walls more closely and therefore walked around them. During the journey, however, the ice broke at one point and Gustavus was left standing with water up to his arms while the soldiers in the fortress took the opportunity to shoot at him. After Gustavus got out of the water alone, he changed clothes, ate a bite of food and then returned to the battle line where he was again in danger of death.[3]'
Conquest of Demmin
By 14 February, the Swedish artillery had destroyed large parts of the wall and the Imperial position were becoming increasingly weak. At the same time, Federico Savelli feared that the valuables he had captured during his campaigns would be lost, and he therefore proposed handing Demmin over to the Swedes in exchange for the garrison being allowed to depart with all it's property. Gustavus, who Demmin before Tilly's arrived, accepted the proposal. The following day, the garrison marched out of the fortress. The Swedes captured 36 cannons, gunpowder and grain along with the fortress.
Aftermath
The conquest of Demmin significantly strengthened the Swedes' position on the Baltic coast, within two months Frankfurt an der Oder was also taken and the Swedish operations to the south could begin in earnest.