Sweden's 1709 Poltava: The Battle That Broke an Empire

In 1709, Sweden's army under Charles XII met devastating defeat at Poltava in Ukraine. This episode explores the battle itself — the tactics, the terrain, the moment a bullet hit the king — and the immediate aftermath: the surrender at Perevolochna, the flight to Bender, and the collapse of the Swedish empire in the Baltic. Lucas and Luna examine how the seeds of Poltava were sown in the brutal winter of 1708–1709, why Charles chose to besiege a fortress he didn't need, and how Peter the Great's new model army finally overcame the Carolean veterans. The episode also touches on the fate of the Swedish prisoners who built St. Petersburg — and the echoes of Poltava in Sweden's memory today.

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