What level of power did the Swedish Empire have under Gustavus Adolphus, under his military and diplomatic influence?
Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire (Swedish: "stormaktstiden, "the era of great power"" ) was a European great power that exercised territorial control of much of the Baltic region during the 17th and early 18th centuries. The beginning of the Empire is usually taken as the reign of Gustavus Adolphus, who ascended the throne in 1611, and the end as the loss of territories in 1721 following the Great Northern War.
Union of Kėdainiai Union of Kėdainiai (or Agreement of Kėdainiai, Polish: "Umowa Kiejdańska") was an agreement between several magnates of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the king of the Swedish Empire, Charles X Gustav. It was signed on 20 October 1655 during the "Swedish Deluge", part of the Second Northern War. In contrast to the preceding Treaty of Kėdainiai of 17 August, which put Lithuania under Swedish protection, the purpose of the Swedish-Lithuanian union was to end Lithuania's union with Poland, and set up two separate principalities in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. One of these was to be ruled by the Radziwiłł ("Radvila") family, while the rest of the duchy was to remain a Swedish protectorate.