On the eve of the Great Northern War Sweden had 15 recruited infantry regiments. Of these, four, including the Life Guard (see part 11 no 1) were stationed in Sweden proper, four in the Baltic provinces and the remaining seven in the German provinces. With only a few exceptions the colours of these regiments aren't known. Those that are belong to the regiments stationed in Sweden. The life colours were in most cases as for the provincial regiments and I think it safe to assume that most of these recruited regiments had life colours according to regulations. As said above one of the four regiments in Sweden was the Life Guard. The ordinary colours of the other regiments were:

1/ Tyska Livregementet. Part of the Life Guard that became an independent regiment in 1680. Disbanded 1719. The colours were blue with the king's cypher and a crown in each corner (see picture 1).

2/ Svenska Livregementet. Raised from provisional units after the Scanian War (1675-79) and disbanded 1719. Before the war the regiment was known as Prins Karls Livregemente, ie the future Karl XII. Because of this the regiment had blue colours with the prince's cypher and a crown in each corner. The prince's cypher was a double C with a small P in between (standing for prince). Probably the P was taken away after Karl XII ascended the throne in 1697 and replaced by the roman numeral XII.

3/Drottningens Livregemente. Raised as a provisional unit in 1674 and reorganized in 1680 with the above title. After the queen's death in 1694 it was mostly known as Garnisionsregementet i Malmo. Disappeared through several amalgamations between 1719 and 1722 into what later became Jagerhorns regemente (part IV no 3). The life colour was white with the combined arms of Sweden and Denmark below a crown and supported by two lions. Ile ordinary colours were blue with the queen's cypher, the letters UERS intertwined, and with a crown in each corner. I have no evidence of any new colours after the queen's death but her life regiment of horse (part I no 4) got new ones in 1700 so it isn't impossible that this regiment also had new colours from about that date.

Russia captured several Swedish colours during the war. Some of them (but far from all due to a great fire in St Petersburg in the 1730s) had survived at least until the beginning of this century. Among these there are two sets that come from regiments with connections with Estonia and two sets from regiments from Livonia. Exactly which regiments carried them is not known. To make things simple there were only two regiments (plus a militia regiment) raised before or during the war with connections to Estonia. On the other hand there were at least eleven regiments (and a similar number of militia units) raised before or during the war in Livonia.

The Estonian colours are

4/ Blue with yellow flames (numbers not known but I have guessed four). Within palm leaves, a yellow field and on the field a golden shield with three blue lions (the arms of Estonia). Above the shield a crown (picture no 2).

5/ The field quartered green and white with the three blue Estonian lions in quarter no 1 (ie the upper inner one). Surrounding the lions palm leaves and above them a crown (picture no 7). These colours are credited to a provincial reserve unit but no such regiment was raised in Estonia. The two regiments with connections to Estonia were the garrison regiment of Narva, mostly known as Horns regemente, and Mellins estniska regemente, raised in 1702 and performed mostly garrison service in Reval (Tallin of today). No 5 could have belonged to the Estonian militia regiment but I guess they belong to Mellins regiment. In such case could no 4 could belong to Horns regiment.

The Livonian colours are

6/ Blue with the Livonian arms, which was a white griffon with a raised sword (directly on the field, not in a shield). On the breast of the griffon the letters CRS with a coronet above.

7/ Blue with a shield-frame in gold surrounding the Livonian griffon. Above the shield a crown and the letter CRS with XII in the C. Below the shield palm leaves (picture 3).

As I said before I can't attribute these colours to any individual regiment but no 7 ought to belong to a regiment raised during the war.

There is also a set of dragoon guidons; in Russia with the arms of Ingermanland and since only one dragoon regiment was raised in Ingermanland I think it is rather safe to say that those guidons belonged to that regiment. 'Me regiment was Wellingks (later Brakels) dragonregemente.

8/ The life guidon was white with a shield below a crown. Within the shield a yellow field with two crenellated walls and a blue stream between them and three balls below the lower wall. On the reverse the king's cypher. The ordinary guidons were yellow with the kings Cypher above palm leaves on both sides (picture 6).

When it comes to the regiments in Germany we don't even know as much in most cases. Some information is available since a number of colours were captured in 1712 with the fall of Bremen or 1713 in the capitulation of Tonningen.

9/ Schultz regemente. Did garrison service in Stralsund most of the time. 'Me remnants were disbanded after the fall of Stralsund in 1715. The described colour is probably the life colour since it is white with a large shield supported by two lions. If it is the life colour it is according to normal regulations.

10/ Wellingks regemente. Did garrison service in Stade in the duchy of Bremen. Disbanded after the fall of Stade in 1712. The colours were red but the motif is unknown.

11/ Lewenhaupts regemente. The garrison regiment in Wismar. To my knowledge disbanded after the fall of Wismar in 1716. The ordinary colours were blue with an unknown motif.

12/ Ekeblads regemente. Raised in 1703 to garrison towns captured in West Prussia, later transfered to Pommerania and disbanded after the fall of Stralsund. The colours were yellow with a black griffon within a wreath.

13/ Bretholtz framlingsregemente. Raised in 1706 from prisoners-of-war. Disbanded in 1710. Dark blue colours with the king's cypher.

14/ Cederstroin has described a colour in Copenhagen. It was blue with a large crown of silver and smaller crowns in the corners. 'Me field is strewn with small coronets (picture 8). Due to all the crowns and coronets it sounds as if it belonged to a ranking regiment and there was only one such regiment in the German provinces. It was Riksankedrottningens livregemente which did garrison service in Wismar. If the described colour belonged to this regiment it could have been captured at Tonningen 1713 but at least with the fall of Wismar in 1716.

During the Great Northern War was a large number of regiments raised, at least some 30 infantry and 25 dragoon units. They were mostly, as most of those mentioned above, known by the name of the colonel. The colours and guidons, of most of them are not known. One regiment raised in 1712 by conscription in the province of Halland a had colour that has survived.

15/ White with a circular blue field in the upper inner comer. On the field the white lion of Halland (picture 4). Since white is the main colour this might have been the life colour. If that is the case the ordinary colours could have been blue all over with the lion in the corner. (T'hat would be according to the regulations of 1700 for colours and standards of the provincial reserve units, see below.)

At about the same time two regiments were raised by conscription in Scania. A colour belonging to one of these regiments is known (but which of the two regiments is not known).

16/ White with a circular yellow field in the corner with a red eagle's head on the field. See comments under 14. (The other could have had a divided field; compare with the indelta cavalry regiments from Scania, part I no 14 and 16.)

A large part of the remaining regiments had probably the kings cypher as motif In Russia but also in Denmark there are a large number of colours and guidons with the king's cypher but they can't be traced to individual regiments. The colours of the guidons of several dragoon regiments are known because of a Russian list of colours and guidons captured at Ljesna (1708), Perevolotjna (1709) and Tonningen (1713).

17/ Livdragonregementet (existed 1700-09 and 10-21) White
18/ G.A. Albedyhls dragoner (1700-09) blue
19/ W.A. Schlippenbachs dragoner (1700-09) blue and yellow
20/ J.A. Schlippenbachs dragoner (1700-09) blue
21/ Brandts dragonskvadron (1700-09) yellow
22/ Marschalacks dragoner (1702-15) blue with yellow
23/ Duckers dragoner (1703-09) red
24/ Taubes dragoner (1703-09) probably blue
25/ Mardefeldts dragoner (1703-15) blue with cypher
26/ Stenbocks dragoner (1703-09) yellow
27/ Meijerfelts dragoner (1703-09) dark yellow
28/ H.O. Albedyhls dragoner (1706-09) blue
29/ Gyllenstiernas dragoner (1707-09) blue
30/ von Schwerins dragoner (1710-12) blue
31/ Bassewitz dragoner (1711-15) blue with silver flames

During the war were also a large number of units raised in Sweden and Finland that could be called provincial reserve regiments. They were either raised on the cantonal system with one new soldier for every three, four or rive old soldiers (in Finland even one new for every old soldier) or from those that were exempted from the cantonal system. In this way were 17 infantry regiments, 2 infantry battalions, 8 cavalry regiments, and 4 dragoon regiments and 2 dragoon companies raised. Most of them seem to have received standards, guidons; and colours according to a regulation given in 1700. According to this the flags should have the device from the province in which the company was raised in the upper inner corner, otherwise a plain field. The life flags could be of the ordinary type or white with a circular field in the corner with suitable provincial arms.

Only a few of the cavalry and dragoon regiments participated in the field army. The others did garrison service in Sweden, Finland and the Baltic provinces. Three regiments participated at Poltava (1709) and five at Helsingborg (1710).

32/ Upplands tremfnningsregemente till hast. Life standard as normal. Ile ordinary standards were blue with five different motifs: an orb, three flaming mountains, a black griffon, a yellow griffon with roses and two arrows with roses (picture 5). Lost after Poltava but reraised in 1712. It seems the regiment then received similar guidons but with the device on a shield with the correct colour on the field, and with a text telling which regiment and company.

33/ Upplands femmanningsregemente till hast. Life standard not known. The ordinary colours were similar to the first set under 31 but also a white tower on a green mound and a red lion with a crossbow as motif Participated at Helsingborg.

34/ Vastgota tre-och femmanningsregemente till hast. Life standard white with the yellow and black lion of Vastergotland. The ordinary standards were diagonally divided black and yellow with either a yellow and dark grey lion or a tower flanked by a lion and a sword. Participated at Helsingborg.

35/ Abo, Nylands och Viborgs tremanningsregemente till hast. Life standard white with the yellow lion of Finland (part I no 9). The ordinary standards were red with the lion, the helmet of southern Finland (part I no 11) or the two arms of Karelen (part I no 13).

36/ Upplands tremanningsregemente till fots. Life colours white with the orb of Uppland. The other colours were red with the orb of Uppland (part II no 6), the mountains of Vastmanland (part II no 21) or the arrows and coronet of Dalarna (part II no 13).

37/ Ostgota-Sodermanlands tremanningsregemente till fots. The life colour was white with the king's cypher in the middle and the griffon and roses of Ostergotland (part 11 no 14) in the corner. The ordinary C61ours were red with either the griffon and roses of Ostergotland or the black griffon of Sodermanland.

The colours of some other regiments can be guessed at. Each ordinary Finnish regiment raised one reserve regiment which probably had the same device as the parent regiment on the colours (but in the corner).

Vastgota tremanningsregemente till fots; could have had colours diagonally divided balck and yellow and a lion as under 33.

Introduction

More 18th C. Swedish Military Flags

Part I
Introduction
Standards and Guidons
Illustrations (slow: 154K)

Part II

Introduction
Regiments
Illustrations (very slow: 282K)

Part III

Introduction
Regiments