The final, desperate raid that looted an empire's greatest treasures

Wars & Conflicts · Published 4 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: As the Thirty Years' War neared its end, Swedish forces launched a sudden night assault on Prague. Their target wasn't just territory, but a legendary collection of art and manuscripts. This final campaign would permanently scatter the treasures of the Holy Roman Empire across the continent.

In the late summer of 1648, while peace negotiations for the Peace of Westphalia were already underway, Sweden launched a final offensive into Bohemia. Led by General Hans Christoff von Königsmarck, a Swedish flying column exploited a weakness in Prague's defenses—a wall undergoing construction—to execute a daring night raid. The attackers successfully seized Prague Castle and the western districts of Hradčany and Lesser Town, even breaching the Strahovská gate to allow further Swedish divisions to flood the area.

The primary objective of this campaign is widely believed by historians to have been the seizure of the magnificent art collection assembled by Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II. The looting began almost immediately during the assault on the left bank. Valuable items, including the Codex Gigas and Codex Argenteus, were loaded onto barges and transported down the Elbe to Sweden. A 1652 Swedish inventory even recorded 472 paintings taken from the city.

Despite the initial success, the Swedish advance was halted. While they held the western side of the Vltava, their attempts to cross the Charles Bridge to reach the Old Town were repulsed by the forces of Governor Rudolf von Colloredo. The defense was a multi-layered effort involving veteran soldiers, local burghers' militias, and student volunteers known as the Academic Legion, led by priests Jiří Plachý and Hans Georg Kauffer. The Swedes eventually withdrew from the western bank on 30 September 1649.

The legacy of the battle remains visible in Europe's museums today. While some treasures remain in Sweden, others were dispersed following the death of Queen Christina in 1689. A significant portion of Rudolf II's paintings eventually formed the basis of the Orleans Collection, which was later sold in London following the French Revolution.

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