Hakkapeliitta
Encyclopedia
Hakkapeliitta is a historiographical term used for a Finnish
light cavalry
man in the service of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden
during the Thirty Years' War
(1618 to 1648). Hakkapeliitta is a 19th century Finnish modification of a contemporary name given by foreigners in the Holy Roman Empire
and variously spelled as Hackapelit, Hackapelite, Hackapell, Haccapelit, or Haccapelite. These terms were based on a Finnish
war cry hakkaa päälle (hack on; ), commonly translated as "Cut them down!"
The hakkapeliitta-style cavalry was first used during the Polish-Swedish Wars
of the late 16th century. In the early 17th century the cavalry led by the Field Marshal Jacob De la Gardie
participated in campaigns against Poland
and Russia
. The Hakkapeliitta cavalry men led by Field Marshal Gustaf Horn were vital to the Swedish victories in Germany
during the Thirty Years' War.
Finnish military march Hakkapeliittain Marssi
is named after hakkapeliittas.
men who excelled in sudden and savage attacks, raiding
and reconnaissance
. The greatest advantage of the fast and lightly armored Hakkapeliitta cavalry was its charge
. They typically had a sword
, a helmet
, and leather armor or a breastplate of steel. They would attack at a full gallop
, fire the first pistol at twenty paces and the second at five paces, and then draw the sword. The horse itself was used like another weapon, as it was used to trample enemy infantry
.
The horse
s used by the Hakkapeliitta were the ancestors of the modern Finnhorse
; despite their small size they were strong and durable.
s from Finland:
Their most famous commander was Torsten Stålhandske
(surname meaning "steelglove"), who was commissioned as a lieutenant-colonel with the Nyland and Tavastehus Cavalry Regiment in 1629 and led it for the first time in the Thirty Years' War.
The original provincial regiments (landskapsregementen) had been raised by splitting the old Grand regiments (Storregementen, also "Land regiments" (landsregementen), organized by Gustavus Adolphus at the end of the 1610s, forming 21 infantry and eight cavalry regiments as written in the Swedish constitution
of 1634.
200 Hakkapeliitta were also part of the army which King Karl X Gustav of Sweden led across two ice-frozen Danish straits in the winter of 1658, which enabled him to conquer Skåneland
from Denmark
in the Treaty of Roskilde
.
Despite long-held beliefs in Finland, the Hakkapelites were not particularly well-known on the Central Europe
battlefields; Finns are rarely mentioned in Central European sources of the time. Nonetheless, during the era of the Swedish Empire
of the 17th century, the Finnish cavalry was constantly used in Germany
, Bohemia
, Poland
and Denmark
. Parts of the cavalry were stationed in Estonia
and Livonia
.
Aulis J. Alanen described the Finnish cavalry:
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
light cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
man in the service of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
during the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
(1618 to 1648). Hakkapeliitta is a 19th century Finnish modification of a contemporary name given by foreigners in the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
and variously spelled as Hackapelit, Hackapelite, Hackapell, Haccapelit, or Haccapelite. These terms were based on a Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
war cry hakkaa päälle (hack on; ), commonly translated as "Cut them down!"
The hakkapeliitta-style cavalry was first used during the Polish-Swedish Wars
Polish-Swedish wars
The Polish–Swedish Wars were a series of wars between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Sweden. Broadly construed, the term refers to a series of wars between 1563 and 1721. More narrowly, it refers two particular wars between 1600 and 1629...
of the late 16th century. In the early 17th century the cavalry led by the Field Marshal Jacob De la Gardie
Jacob De la Gardie
Field Marshal and Count Jacob Pontusson De la Gardie was a statesman and a soldier of the Swedish Empire....
participated in campaigns against Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. The Hakkapeliitta cavalry men led by Field Marshal Gustaf Horn were vital to the Swedish victories in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
during the Thirty Years' War.
Finnish military march Hakkapeliittain Marssi
Hakkapeliittain Marssi
Hakkapeliittain marssi or Finska Rytteriets Marsch in Swedish , also known as Suomalaisen ratsuväen marssi 30-vuotisessa sodassa or Finska rytteriets marsch i trettioåriga kriget is one of the Finnish and Swedish cavalry's battle marches and one of the...
is named after hakkapeliittas.
Tactics
The Hakkapeliitta were well-trained Finnish light cavalryCavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
men who excelled in sudden and savage attacks, raiding
Raid (military)
Raid, also known as depredation, is a military tactic or operational warfare mission which has a specific purpose and is not normally intended to capture and hold terrain, but instead finish with the raiding force quickly retreating to a previous defended position prior to the enemy forces being...
and reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
. The greatest advantage of the fast and lightly armored Hakkapeliitta cavalry was its charge
Charge (warfare)
A charge is a maneuver in battle in which soldiers advance towards their enemy at their best speed in an attempt to engage in close combat. The charge is the dominant shock attack and has been the key tactic and decisive moment of most battles in history...
. They typically had a sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
, a helmet
Helmet
A helmet is a form of protective gear worn on the head to protect it from injuries.Ceremonial or symbolic helmets without protective function are sometimes used. The oldest known use of helmets was by Assyrian soldiers in 900BC, who wore thick leather or bronze helmets to protect the head from...
, and leather armor or a breastplate of steel. They would attack at a full gallop
Horse gait
Horse gaits are the various ways in which a horse can move, either naturally or as a result of specialized training by humans.-Classification:...
, fire the first pistol at twenty paces and the second at five paces, and then draw the sword. The horse itself was used like another weapon, as it was used to trample enemy infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
.
The horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s used by the Hakkapeliitta were the ancestors of the modern Finnhorse
Finnhorse
The Finnhorse or Finnish Horse is a horse breed with both riding horse and draught horse influences and characteristics, and is the only breed developed fully in Finland...
; despite their small size they were strong and durable.
Organization
The Swedish army then had three cavalry regimentRegiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
s from Finland:
- Nyland and Tavastehus CountyNyland and Tavastehus CountyNyland and Tavastehus County was a county of the Swedish Empire from 1634 to 1809.In 1775 a part of Satakunta was added from the Åbo and Björneborg County, while Upper Hollola was transferred to the new Kymmenegård County....
Cavalry Regiment (Swedish: Nylands och Tavastehus läns kavalleriregementeNylands och Tavastehus läns kavalleriregementeNyland and Tavastehus County cavalry regiment was a Swedish Army cavalry regiment located in the county of Nyland and Tavastehus that traced its origins back to the 17th Century. It was split in 1791.- History :...
) - Åbo and Björneborg CountyÅbo and Björneborg CountyTurku and Pori Province was a province of independent Finland from 1917 to 1997. The province was however founded as a county in 1634 when today's Finland was an integrated part of Sweden. It is named after the cities of Turku and Pori ....
Cavalry Regiment (Åbo och Björneborgs läns kavalleriregemente) - Viborg and Nyslott CountyViborg and Nyslott CountyViborg and Nyslott County was a county of the Swedish Empire from 1634 to 1721. Prior to 1658 it was known as the County of Karelia . The county was named after the castle towns of Viborg and Nyslott , today located in the towns of Vyborg in Russia and Savonlinna in Finland.The county was...
Cavalry Regiment (Viborgs och Nyslotts läns kavalleriregemente)
Their most famous commander was Torsten Stålhandske
Torsten Stålhandske
Torsten Stålhandske – Swedish for "Torsten Steelglove", sometimes written "Stålhansch" in the Swedish of the times , and referred to in German literature as Torsten Staalhansch, was a Finnish officer in the Swedish army during the Thirty Years' War.The son of Torsten Svensson , a noble military...
(surname meaning "steelglove"), who was commissioned as a lieutenant-colonel with the Nyland and Tavastehus Cavalry Regiment in 1629 and led it for the first time in the Thirty Years' War.
The original provincial regiments (landskapsregementen) had been raised by splitting the old Grand regiments (Storregementen, also "Land regiments" (landsregementen), organized by Gustavus Adolphus at the end of the 1610s, forming 21 infantry and eight cavalry regiments as written in the Swedish constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
of 1634.
Famous battles
The main battles in which the Hakkapeliitta took part during the Thirty Years' War were:- BreitenfeldBattle of Breitenfeld (1631)The Battle of Breitenfeld or First Battle of Breitenfeld , was fought at the crossroads villages of Breitenfeld , Podelwitz , and Seehausen , approximately five miles northwest of the walled city of Leipzig on September 17 , or September 7 The Battle of Breitenfeld or First Battle of Breitenfeld...
in 1631 - LechBattle of RainThe Battle of Rain was fought on April 15, 1632, as part of the Thirty Years' War. The forces involved in this conflict were 40,000 Swedish troops under Gustavus Adolphus and 25,000 Catholic League troops under Count Johan Tzerclaes of Tilly...
in 1632 - LützenBattle of Lützen (1632)The Battle of Lützen was one of the most decisive battles of the Thirty Years' War. It was a Protestant victory, but cost the life of one of the most important leaders of the Protestant alliance, Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, which caused the Protestant campaign to lose direction.- Prelude to the...
in 1632 - NördlingenBattle of Nördlingen (1634)The Battle of Nördlingen was fought on 27 August or 6 September , 1634 during the Thirty Years' War. The Roman Catholic Imperial army, bolstered by 18,000 Spanish and Italian soldiers, won a crushing victory over the combined Protestant armies of Sweden and their German-Protestant allies .After...
in 1634 - LeipzigBattle of Breitenfeld (1642)The Second Battle of Breitenfeld, also known as the First Battle of Leipzig , took place at Breitenfeld , Germany, during the Thirty Years' War— fully eleven years after the first battle at the crossroads village had unbottled the Swedish forces under Gustavus II Adolphus wherein he had...
in 1642 (also known as the Second Battle of Breitenfeld or the First Battle of Leipzig) - Jankau in 1645
- LensBattle of LensThe Battle of Lens was a French victory under Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé against the Spanish army under Archduke Leopold in the Thirty Years' War . It was the last major battle of the war....
in 1648
200 Hakkapeliitta were also part of the army which King Karl X Gustav of Sweden led across two ice-frozen Danish straits in the winter of 1658, which enabled him to conquer Skåneland
Skåneland
Skåneland or Skånelandene are terms used in historical contexts in Scandinavia to describe the area on the southern and south-western part of the Scandinavian peninsula, which under the Treaty of Roskilde was transferred from Denmark to Sweden. It corresponds to the provinces of Blekinge,...
from Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
in the Treaty of Roskilde
Treaty of Roskilde
The Treaty of Roskilde was concluded on 26 February or 8 March 1658 during the Second Northern War between Frederick III of Denmark–Norway and Charles X Gustav of Sweden in the Danish city of Roskilde...
.
Despite long-held beliefs in Finland, the Hakkapelites were not particularly well-known on the Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
battlefields; Finns are rarely mentioned in Central European sources of the time. Nonetheless, during the era of the Swedish Empire
Swedish Empire
The Swedish Empire refers to the Kingdom of Sweden between 1561 and 1721 . During this time, Sweden was one of the great European powers. In Swedish, the period is called Stormaktstiden, literally meaning "the Great Power Era"...
of the 17th century, the Finnish cavalry was constantly used in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. Parts of the cavalry were stationed in Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
and Livonia
Livonia
Livonia is a historic region along the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It was once the land of the Finnic Livonians inhabiting the principal ancient Livonian County Metsepole with its center at Turaida...
.
Aulis J. Alanen described the Finnish cavalry:
Trivia
- The name Hakkapeliitta was also taken up by Nokian Tyres in 1936 for its winter tires.http://www.nokiantyres.com/passengercars_product_en?product=610494&name=NOKIAN+HAKKAPELIITTA+2
- The name "Hakkapeliitta" was also used by the weekly magazine of the Finnish voluntary Home Guard organisation (Suojeluskunnat) from 1926 until 1944.
- "Hakkaa päälle!" is today used by Finnish football fans.
- Translation of "Hakkaa päälle!" is difficult during cultural differences. Tied on situation, it means "Kill'em all" or "Slay'em all", and is today used by Finnish football fans. Basic meaning is, that when you go on offence you don't ever give up. Never.
- The Hakkapeliittans and their battle cry make an appearance in the novel 16321632 (novel)1632 is the initial novel in the best-selling alternate history 1632 book series written by historian, writer and editor Eric Flint. The flagship novel kicked off a collaborative writing effort that has involved hundreds of contributors and dozens of authors...
. - A song by folk metal band TurisasTurisasTurisas is a Finnish folk metal band from Hämeenlinna. It was founded in 1997 by Mathias Nygård and Jussi Wickström and named after an ancient Finnish God of war....
titled "Rex Regi Rebellis" features the Swedish poem, and the "hakkaa päälle" cry. - A song by alternative rock/metal band Tears of Magdalena titled "Cut em´Down" tells also legends of Hakkapeliitta light cavalry men.
- The Bearkillers, a protagonist faction in S.M. Stirling's Emberverse seriesThe Emberverse seriesEmberverse, or Change World, is a series of post-apocalyptic alternate history novels written by S. M. Stirling. The novels depict the events following "The Change", which caused electricity, guns, explosives, internal combustion engines, and steam power to stop working...
, uses this as their battle cry.