The Deluge was a series of mid-17th-century military campaigns in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In a wider sense, it applies to the period between the Khmelnytsky Uprising of 1648 and the Truce of Andrusovo in 1667, comprising the Polish theatres of the Russo-Polish and Second Northern Wars. In a stricter sense, the term refers to the Swedish invasion and occupation of the Commonwealth as a theatre of the Second Northern War (1655–1660) only; in Poland and Lithuania this period is called the Swedish Deluge, or less commonly the Russo–Swedish Deluge due to the simultaneous Russo-Polish War. The term "deluge" was popularized by Henryk Sienkiewicz in his novel The Deluge (1886).
The Polish–Swedish wars were a series of wars between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Sweden. Broadly construed, the term refers to a series of wars between 1563 and 1721. More narrowly, it refers to particular wars between 1600 and 1629. These are the wars included under the broader use of the term:
The Battle of Warsaw took place near Warsaw on July 28–July 30 [O.S. July 18–20] 1656, between the armies of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Sweden and Brandenburg. It was a major battle in the Second Northern War between Poland and Sweden in the period 1655–1660, also known as The Deluge. According to Hajo Holborn, it marked "the beginning of Prussian military history".
The Russo-Swedish War of 1656-1658 was fought by Russia and Sweden as a theater of the Second Northern War. It took place during a pause in the contemporary Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) as a consequence of the Truce of Vilna. Despite initial successes, Tsar Alexis of Russia failed to secure his principal objective—to revise the Treaty of Stolbovo, which had stripped Russia of the Baltic coast at the close of the Ingrian War.
The Crossing of the Düna took place during the Great Northern War on July 19, 1701 near the city of Riga, present-day Latvia. The Swedish king Charles XII was in hot pursuit of king Augustus II the Strong of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Saxony. The crossing was easily made, and the coalition troops were quickly broken and retreated.
The March Across the Belts was a military campaign waged by the Swedish Empire across the ice between the Danish islands. It lasted between 30 January and 15 February 1658, ending with a decisive victory for Swedish King Charles X Gustav during his first Danish war.
The Battle of Chojnice was a surprise nighttime attack followed by a run-and-chase battle during The Deluge.
The Dano-Swedish War of 1658–1660 was a war between Denmark–Norway and Sweden, with the former backed by the Dutch Republic and Poland. It is known in Denmark as the Second Karl Gustav War, in Norway as Bjelkes Feud in Sweden as Karl Gustav's Second Danish War, and in the Netherlands as the Swedish-Dutch War.
The Battle of Kokenhausen was a major battle opening the Polish–Swedish War (1600–1611). It took place on the 13 June (O.S.) or 23 June (N.S.) 1601 near Koknese in Livonia. In the battle, Polish forces defeated the Swedish relief force and captured the besieging force, relieving the Polish garrison. The battle is notable as one of the greatest victories of the Polish hussars, who defeated their numerically superior Swedish adversaries.
The siege of Dyneburg by the Russian Army under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was one of the first events of the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658), a theater of the Second Northern War.
The Storm of Kokenhusen by the Russian Army under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was one of the first events of the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658), a theater of the Second Northern War. On 14 August 1656 Russian troops stormed and captured the well-fortified town of Kokenhusen (Koknese) in Swedish Livonia
Battle of Wenden was a battle fought during the Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629), between Sweden and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth on December 3, 1626 at Wenden in present-day Latvia. Swedish forces were led by Gustav Horn and Hans Wrangel. Lithuanian forces were led by Aleksander Gosiewski. The Swedes won the battle.
The siege of Pärnu took place between February 28 and March 2, 1609 during the Polish–Swedish War (1600–1611).
The Battle of Selburg was fought during the Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629), between Sweden and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in September 1626. The Polish forces under Aleksander Gosiewski managed to recapture Selburg from the Swedes earlier in 1626 and stationed their troops in the castle. In response the Swedish general Jacob De la Gardie gathered his force to once again capture the town for the Swedes.
The siege of Veprik took place on 3–18 January 1709 during the Swedish invasion of Russia in the Great Northern War.
The sieges of Riga were two sieges which took place on February 22 and June 15, 1700, in Riga during the Great Northern War. The Swedish garrison of about 4,000 men under the command of Erik Dahlberg successfully repulsed the Saxons until the main Swedish army under Charles XII of Sweden arrived to sweep the Saxons away in the battle of Riga which ended the period of sieges for the year.
The Battle of Walk on July 8, 1657 between forces of Sweden commanded by Friedrich von Löwen on one side, and Russian forces led by stolnik Matvey Sheremetyev, who for the first time in his career commanded an army by himself, on the other side. The largest part of the Russian army disobeyed Sheremetyev and left the battle at the beginning, forcing him to rely on the 250 reiters of Colonel Denis Fonvizin, who played the key role in the breakthrough and allowed the rest of the army to escape. The Swedish forces won the battle, and according to their sources they defeated an army of 8,000 men, 32 standards, banners and other field declarations had been captured in the battle and 1,500 Russians were dead or wounded along with their commander Matvey Sheremetyev, who later died in captivity. However, a recent analysis of Russian 17th-century archive documents related to the battle demonstrates that the entire Russian force, most of which escaped, consisted of only 2,193 men, 353 additional troops failed to arrive in time, and even Tsar Alexis I in his correspondence expected his army to be no larger than 3,000, while the casualties included 108 killed, 28 wounded, 5 captured. The Swedish declaration has been criticized by Oleg Kurbatov, an expert in the Russian military history of the 17th century, as often tendentious and inaccurate in its description of the Russian army and having inflated numbers.
The Battle of Sandomierz was a series of battles during Deluge.
Swedish Lithuania, officially known as the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, was a dominium directum protectorate of the Swedish Empire under the rule of King Charles X Gustav in accordance with the Union of Kėdainiai. It de jure existed from 1655 until 1657 when it was terminated and fully reincorporated into the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
On August 11, 1658 Karl X and his forces reached Valby hill from where they could overlook the Danish capital. His arrival was expected and Danish King Frederick III had already ordered every building outside the city walls burnt, even though it had housed a third of the population of the city. That same day the city gates were closed and would not open again for another 22 months. A Swedish fleet of 28 ships blocked the harbor, preventing resupply by sea. The siege had begun.
Swedish Empire 
Tsardom of Muscovy 