A 17. századi svéd gyarmatosítás egy rövid epizódja

Abstract

The possibility of Swedish colonialism emerged for the first time during the reign of Gustav II Adolph of Sweden (1611–1632), when he issued a decree on the policy of Swedish colonization outside Europe in 1625. The Kingdom of Sweden was one of the most spectacularly expanding states in Europe in the 17th century, and the unmatched success of Swedish dynasticism was primarily due to their expansive foreign policy. The establishment of the Swedish colonization of the era – the founding of New Sweden in North America and the Swedish Gold Coast in West Africa – composed important foreground to the Swedish expansion. It is essential to explore the Dutch cultural transfer and intermediation in order to analyze the phenomenon of Swedish colonization, as the political and economic relations with The Hague (Staten-Generaal) and the activity of Dutch agents, diplomats, artists, architects, traders and entrepreneurs produced important background for the Kingdom of Sweden’s ambitions in the 17th century. The present study summarizes the Swedish colonization in North America and examines the activities of the Swedish Africa Company (Svenska Afrikakompaniet) from 1648–1649 to 1663, from the point of view of the Swedish–Dutch cultural transfers of the era, due to the Dutch affiliates involved in the operation of the company.