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Dans les années 1710, sous la pression d’une guerre en cours, Charles XII, le roi absolu de Suède, met en oeuvre une série de mesures fiscales et monétaires qui remettent en question les privilèges traditionnels et impliquent de profondes transformations sociales. La fiscalité est rendue progressive et le crédit de plus en plus important afin de financer la guerre. Les liquidités sont radicalement augmentées, notamment au moyen de la mise en circulation d’une grande quantité de pièces de monnaie fiduciaire. La mort de Charles XII, en novembre 1718, entraîne une réaction hostile à ses politiques militaires. Les mesures fiscales et monétaires sont abolies, provoquant le renversement de l’absolutisme royal ainsi qu’une défaillance partielle de l’État. Cet article s’organise en deux parties. Dans la première, nous cherchons à vérifier l’hypothèse selon laquelle la politique militaire et les mesures monétaires du régime de Charles XII ont conduit à une redistribution des ressources dans la société suédoise, en particulier dans les années 1715-1718. Dans la seconde partie, nous analysons la façon dont les acteurs politiques suédois ont réagi à ces changements socio-économiques entre le décès de Charles XII et le défaut de paiement de 1719. Nos résultats montrent que la monnaie fiduciaire imprégna l’économie et atteint l’ensemble des groupes sociaux, allant même, dans certains endroits, jusqu’à en bouleverser les hiérarchies en vigueur. Les paysans, parmi d’autres groupes de rang inférieur, ont été particulièrement affectés par le défaut de paiement partiel, car ils ont été en grande partie privés de leurs actifs monétaires.

In the 1710s, under pressure from an ongoing war, Sweden’s absolute king Charles XII implemented a number of fiscal and monetary measures that displayed a disdain for traditional privileges and carried a potential for social change. Taxation was made progressive and credit became more important to finance the war. Liquidity was radically expanded, most significantly by the release of very large amounts of fiat coins. Following the death of Charles XII in November 1718, there was a political reaction against the war policies and the fiscal and monetary measures were reversed, resulting in the dismantling of royal absolutism and a partial government default. This study consists of two parts. In the first, we investigate the impact of the war policy and the monetary measures of Charles XII’s regime on the social redistribution of resources in Swedish society, especially in the years 1715 to 1718. In the second, we focus on how the socioeconomic changes were addressed by political agents between the death of Charles XII and the default of 1719. Our results show that the fiat money permeated the economy and reached all social groups, and that in some locations its distribution upset the prevailing social order. Peasants and other low-ranking groups were targeted by the partial default, which largely deprived them of their monetary assets.

The extensive use of white collar workers, such as bookkeepers and clerks, played a crucial role in the formation of modern states during the early modern period. This article focuses on the formation of a Debt Office in Sweden, which was opened in 1719 in order to administer the liquidation of the debt accrued during the previous royal regime. By utilizing the available expertise that been working on the debt market, it was relatively easy for the new parliamentary rule to found the office. The office became part of the credit system when it interacted with various creditors. The clerical staff helped the market to function by providing intermediation, but their role became increasingly contentious. By examining the clerical staff, we learn how the authorities tried to build a trustworthy institution. The case thereby offers another perspective on credible commitment than research which concentrates on formal political institutions. 

En septiembre de 1757, las fuerzas suecas se trasladaron desde sus bases en la provincia de la Pomerania sueca hacia territorio prusiano para intervenir en la coalición contra este país que se había formado después del ataque de Prusia a Sajonia el año anterior. La participación de Suecia en la guerra fue el resultado de propuestas enviadas por Francia y la monarquía de los Habsburgo, que querían fortalecer la coalición y abrir un nuevo frente en el norte contra Prusia. Así, Francia ofreció subsidios si Suecia intervenía activamente en la coalición. Al mismo tiempo, los principales actores políticos suecos vieron la vulnerable posición militar de Prusia en 1757 como una oportunidad para lograr avances territoriales con riesgos limitados y sin tener que comprometer demasiadas tropas. El cálculo se basó en el supuesto de que la poderosa coalición lograría una victoria relativamente rápida y que Francia, en especial, recompensaría a Suecia generosamente por su apoyo en una futura conferencia de paz.

This article studies a previously unknown asset market in eighteenth-century Sweden. It emerged as a result of a partial default in 1719, when large amounts of recently released fiat coins were converted into government liabilities. These could only be redeemed as a customs duty on international trade, the licent. As merchants had to acquire such assets to conduct their trade, tens of thousands of transactions were carried out on a secondary market over a period for over 45 years. Networks of local merchants bought assets from initial holders and sold them on to intermediaries or merchants, who deposited the liabilities with a newly established government agency, the Debt Office. Here, hundreds of account holders could transfer the value of their deposits between them. When a licent payment was due, the amount was deducted from the merchant's account. Prices on the liabilities were low and sometimes volatile, bu the long-term trend was rising. We have distinguished three types of market participants: a small group of very active users, most of them professional dealers or brokers; merchants who traded on a regular basis as they needed to pay the licent, or when a favorable opportunity appeared; and finally, those who traded sporadically. The emergence of this market was part of a financial expansion that occurred in many European countries at the same time, the closest equivalent being the segmented default in France after the abolition of John Law's system. This study aims to broaden our understanding of eighteenth-century developments, which have rarely been studied in a semi-peripheral European economy.