Events from the Year 1718 in Sweden
Incumbents
Monarch: Charles XII, followed by Ulrika Eleonora
Key Events
- April: The royal privateer Lars Gathenhielm dies, and his widow Ingela Gathenhielm takes over his Baltic privateer and pirate empire.
- May: Charles XII initiates peace negotiations with Russia on Åland, overseen by Georg Heinrich von Görtz, with hopes to conquer the Danish province of Norway with Russian assistance.
- August 29: A force of 10,000 men under the command of Lieutenant-general Carl Gustaf Armfeldt attacks Trøndelag from Jemtland.
- October 30: Charles XII launches an attack on Norway.
- November 12: Georg Heinrich von Görtz concludes negotiations with Russia, proposing a peace treaty.
- November 30: King Charles XII of Sweden is killed at Fredrikshald in Norway.
- December 1: Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp, Charles XII’s brother-in-law and husband of Princess Ulrika Eleonora, halts the siege of Fredrikshald.
- December 2: Georg Heinrich von Görtz is arrested by Frederick of Hesse for supporting Charles Frederick, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, the rival of Ulrika Eleonora for the throne.
- December 5: News of Charles XII’s death reaches Stockholm.
- December 6: Following the death of Charles XII, his sister Ulrika Eleonora proclaims herself Queen regnant of Sweden.
Notable Births
- July 15: Alexander Roslin, painter (died 1793)
- November 28: Hedvig Charlotta Nordenflycht, writer and poet (died 1763)
- October 25: Reinhold Angerstein, metallurgist (died 1760)
- Anna Maria Hjärne, courtier (died 1798)
Notable Deaths
- April: Lars Gathenhielm, privateer and pirate (born 1689)
- November 30: King Charles XII of Sweden, monarch (born 1682)