PINYL: #5 - "The Wrath of Charles" (Patreon)

[PATRONS]

After taking a somewhat apathetic approach to the war, mostly because he expected King Charles XII of Sweden to invade Russia first, the Saxon King of Poland was confronted with a spectacle all too terribly familiar to those Poles old enough to remember the 1650s. The Swedish King was on the way, armed with a vendetta only more terrifying than the one pursued by his grandfather during the deluges. Now, for Charles XII, it was personal, and after asking the Polish Primate to essentially give their king up, the unrelenting Swedish king now felt justified using all means at his disposal to bring the war to the Commonwealth once again.  

As Tsar Peter looked on, still stinging after Narva, it was plain that the Polish King was the leader of the anti-Swedish league. Yet for Augustus, much like the Polish crown itself, this mantle of leader of such a fragile group was too heavy a crown for his mediocre head. For the moment, he was able to outrun the Swedish king, but Charles was yet to unleash his secret weapon - an invasion of Saxony itself. In the first few years of the 18th century, in any case, Poland would still have to somehow meet the challenge of these brave Swedish soldiers, led by the most ferociously talented soldier-king (arguably) since the days of Gustavus Adolphus himself.  It was an early turning point for Poland. 

Henceforth, the Commonwealth would never be the same again. It had scarcely been repaired following the deluges two generations ago, and now this. Poland was not yet lost, Augustus might have mused, but as Charles could reasonably reply, Poland was hardly on stable ground. It's all to play for in the latest episode, so make sure you join in!