WRANGEL, KARL GUSTAV, GREVE

(Count) born Dec. 13, 1613, Skokloster, near Uppsala, Swed. died June 25, 1676, Spieker, Rgen Island, off Pomerania Swedish soldier who succeeded Lennart Torstenson as Swedish military and naval commander during the Thirty Years' War (161848) and subsequent Baltic conflicts. Wrangel began his military career in Germany during the Thirty Years' War and by 1638 was a major general. He participated in victories at Wolfenbttel (1641) and Leipzig (1642) and won a naval victory off Fehmarn (1644). He received successive promotions and, in 1646, returned to Germany as Swedish commander in chief. He proved an able strategist in operations largely coordinated with those of the French commander, Turenne; when the future Charles X of Sweden took his place as commander in chief, Wrangel became governor of Swedish Pomerania. Although appointed vice admiral in 1653, Wrangel achieved most success with the land forces in the First Northern War (165560). He therefore participated prominently in Charles X's wars against Poland, Brandenburg, and Denmark (165558). From 1657 he commanded the navy as grand admiral. During Charles XI's minority, Wrangel sat on the Regency Council (166072), first as grand admiral and (from 1664) as grand marshal and president of the War Board. He favoured the French alliance (1672) against the Dutch. Two years later, despite his poor health, he went again to Germany as commander when the Swedes invaded Brandenburg.