(Dal Regiment)

The Dal Regiment is one of the oldest regiments in the Swedish army and it participated in all the long wars of Sweden’s Age of Greatness (1611-1718). During the Scanian War, it fought both in Germany and in Scania, where it participated in all major battles. But it had its Heydays during Charles XII's campaigns of 1700-1709 when the Dal Regiment was considered an elite regiment. Although it also experienced setbacks and was forced to be completely restored after both the Battle of Poltava in 1709 and the capitulation in Tönningen in 1713.

Organisational History

Like the other Swedish provincial regiments, the Dal Regiment can trace its origins to the fänika units that were set up through conscription in the 16th century. But unlike the others, the Dal Regiment would be “indelt” as early as 1621, just over sixty years before this reform was fully implemented in the rest of the country. In exchange for not being conscripted, the peasants in the province of Dalarna undertook to recruit a permanent force of 1,400 men on their own. It was the peasants in Dalarna who put forward the proposal themselves and the reason was that the conscriptions hit Dalarna harder than in other provinces. Peasants who worked land owned by the nobility were not conscripted to the same extent as other peasants, but in Dalarna there was hardly any land owned by the nobility. In addition, the conscriptions since 1591 were not based on population but on the number of farms, which disadvantaged Dalarna with its many small and poor farms. The king agreed to let Dalarna get a special solution because the dissatisfaction of the common people with the conscriptions had made them increasingly difficult to implement there. The fundamental injustice would not be solved with this measure, but the peasants now had the freedom to choose who would become soldiers and a set ceiling on how many soldiers the crown could demand from them.

From 1617, all fänikor from Dalarna were part of Uppland Land Regiment, which also included men from Västmanland. In total, there were six fänikor in the regiment, two from Uppland, one from Västmanland and three from Dalarna. In 1621, the three fänikor from Dalarna had an effective strength of 345, 485 and 535 men respectively. These were then reorganised into six companies the same year. In 1623, two new companies were formed and the following year two more companies were added so that Dalarna contributed with 10 companies in a regiment with a total strength of 24 companies. The companies in the large Uppland Land Regiment were divided into three field regiments, each with eight companies. From 1628, the field regiments were completely independent units. The Dalarna companies were part of two regiments, two companies in the Västmanland Regiment and eight in the Österdalarna Regiment, which was later renamed the Dal Regiment. In addition, an independent squadron (battalion) consisting of four companies of additional troops was established in 1629 but was disbanded shortly afterwards and its men transferred to the Dal Regiment when the Polish War ended. Thereafter, the regimental and company organisation were stable.

When the "permanent force" was introduced in 1621 an allotment system was created in which recruitment districts, called rotar, were created for each soldier. Initially, this did not include Västerbergsslagen which was apparently not counted as part of Dalarna at the time. But in 1623 this part also made an agreement with the crown for a permanent force consisting of 74 men. A renegotiation of Dalarnas’ allotment system in 1633 resulted in Västerbergsslagen's contribution being included in the previously agreed strength of 1,400 men. To make the distribution of the rotar in the province fairer, a reorganisation was carried out in 1635 which meant that Västerbergsslagen and Västerdalarna were divided into 260 rotar which would belong to the Västmanland regiment. The Dal Regiment's rotar now numbered 1108 since 32 rotar were to supply labour to the mines instead of soldiers. The manpower had also been reduced as the 1,400 rotar now also included non-commissioned officers, corporals, drummers and pipers (15 rotar per company).

Despite the reorganisation, the small and poor farms in upper Dalarna still had a disproportionately large burden compared to their better-off neighbours in the south. The governor also reacted to this when he noted in 1662 that the Kopparberg, Säter and Näsgård bailiffs in the south paid a total of 16,541 daler and 10 öre silver coins in tax but recruited only 401 soldiers. The bailiff of Österdalarna, on the other hand, paid 14,991 daler and 10 öre silver coins in tax but recruited almost twice as many soldiers (707 soldiers).

When the parliament (Riksdag) decided to introduce the allotment system throughout the country in 1682, it also took the opportunity to implement changes in Dalarna. The crown wanted the 1,108-man Dal Regiment to become a full-size regiment with 1,200 men. In a meeting in Falun on 2 October 1682, an agreement was reached with the peasants to increase the number of rotar by 88 (all but 6 in lower Dalarna). It was not until the following year that it was discovered that the total sum did not reach 1,200, but this was resolved by also reorganising Västmanland Regiment's rotar in Dalarna that year. The total number of rotar in Dalarna was now 1,405, of which 205 rotar would belong to Västmanland Regiment. The demarcation between the regiments was changed so that Västerdalarna's rotar were transferred to the Dal Regiment, while Västmanland was compensated with rotar in south-eastern Dalarna. Non-commissioned officers and musicians were now to be paid for by assigned crown lands and taxes (an indelning) and not from the rotar. With these changes, the Dal Regiment's received the organisation shown below which would apply throughout the 18th century.

Company	Parishes (rotar)	The map of Dalarna (with 19th century district boundaries) gives a rough idea of the geographical distribution of the Dal Regiment. The grey areas were outside the allotment system (Orsa Finnmark, Falu parish and Garpenberg parish). The white areas were part of Västmanland's regimental district.
Colonel's	Husby (63), Hedemora (36), Stora Skedvi (51)
Lieutenant Colonel's (Tuna, Gustaf)	Stora Tuna (66), Gustaf (31), Torsång (18), Vika (11), Stora Skedvi (10), Säter (11), ? (3)
Gagnef	Stora Tuna (72), Gagnef (64), Ål (14)
Västerdal	Floda (15), Säfsnäs (3), Nås (14), Järna (23), Äppelbo (12), Malung (43), Lima (40)
Mora	Mora (93), Rättvik (23), Venjan (12), Sollerön (22)
Orsa	Ore (11), Orsa (84), Mora (20), Älvdal (32), Särna (3)
Rättvik	Rättvik (72), Svärdsjö (45), Sundborn (5), Leksand (7), Bjursås (21)
Major's (Leksand)	Leksand (144), Ål (5), ? (1)
Folkare & Bergslag (Västmanland Reg.)	Folkare: Hedemora (57), Grytnäs (22), Folkärna (39), By (32). Bergslag: Söderbärke (17), Norrbärke (22), Grangärde (16)
The towns of Hedemora and Säter recruited 11 and 6 sailors for the navy during peacetime and double that number in wartime.

Additional Troops in the Scanian War

The Peasants’ agreement with the crown had set a limit on how many soldiers they should recruit. Despite this each rote was required to raise an additional soldier  in the summer of 1675, when war against Denmark-Norway was imminent. they were still given an increased burden after the outbreak of war. These extra soldiers were called "selected men" (utskottfolk) and were not actually considered part of the military organisation, but were under the command of the governor of Dalarna as a kind of peasant levy. The rationale for this was the ancient custom of calling all able-bodied men for military service in times of emergency. But in order to have them deployed for a longer period of time, only selected men would participate. A total of 1,400 men were selected and they were organised into a regiment that was first divided into twelve companies and in 1677 into fourteen companies. The weapons consisted of muskets and axes. The discipline of the selected men left much to be desired and their military value was very limited.

The selected men were initially deployed in their home province with one battalion ("brigade") in Älvdalen and one in Lima. As early as February 1676, they were supposed to participate in a campaign against Norway via Jämtland. But they were delayed and did not make it longer than to Hälsingland before returning to their original places of deployment. At the end of 1676, the regiment was first moved to Värmland and then to Dalsland before returning home to Dalarna in February 1677. In the summer of 1677, they were in Bohuslän and were involved in fighting there, but that was the last time they left Dalarna. When peace was concluded in 1679, the regiment was disbanded.

Additional Troops in the Great Northern War

The same part of the allotment system that recruited the Dal Regiment was given the task of raising an additional 400 men in 1700. This was done by bringing the rotar together into groups of three who would recruit an extra soldier, a so-called tremänning regiment (three-man regiment). These were then combined with the 3-männings from Västmanland and Uppland to form the 1,200-man Uppland 3-männing Regiment, whose colonel was the later famous general Adam Ludvig Lewenhaupt. The recruitment took place in violation of the allotment system’s contract, but the peasants were promised that the 3-männing regiments would not leave their homeland. However, this promise was also broken when the 3-männing regiment was transferred to the Baltic in the spring of 1701. Once there, the regiment was split up when one battalion accompanied the main army to Poland in 1702 while the other remained in the Baltic. A reorganisation then took place in 1703 when the battalion in the main army was incorporated into the Livgarde (Life Guards) while the Uppland 3-männing Regiment was compensated by receiving a battalion from the disbanded Östgöta-Södermanland 3-männing Regiment. Under Lewenhaupt's command, the latter participated in the battles of Jakobstadt, Gemäuerthof and Lesnaya. The latter battle resulted though in such a large loss of equipment that the regiment was disbanded, and the men transferred to the Livgarde in 1708.

The 3-männing regiments were however not sufficient for the army's needs and in 1703 the peasants were ordered to raise 5-männingss by combining the rotar into groups of five to raise an additional new soldier. The Dal Regiment's 240 five-männing were combined with the 5-männings from Västmanland, Uppland and Södermanland to form the 960-man Uppland 5-männing Regiment. This regiment was allowed to remain in their homeland and participated in the Battle of Helsingborg in 1710 together with its parent regiment. When the Dal Regiment was to be restored after the capitulation in Tönning, 275 five-männings were transferred in March 1714 (this contingent should have included the original 41 five-männings belonging to Västmanland’s regimental district in Dalarna). Already in February 1715 the 5-männings were returned to Uppland 5-männing Regiment which in 1720 was converted into Stralsund Garrison Regiment.

The 3- and 5-männing regiments were a one-off recruitment and the peasants did not have to replace their losses. However, this did not prevent them from being forced to set up a new 3-männing regiment in 1712 in the same way as the last time. Although, this time the regiment was allowed to remain in the homeland until it was disbanded in 1719. The men were then transferred to the Guard, the Östgöta-Södermanland 3-männing Regiment and others. Information from Otto Nordensvan (KFÅ 1920) which has been passed on by Lars-Eric Höglund states that the men in the 3-männing regiment were temporarily divided between the Dalregementet and Hälsinge in 1714. However, this is not mentioned by Pihlström and may be a confusion with the 5-männings mentioned above.

Wartime Organisation in the Great Northern War

In September 1700, a temporary reorganisation was carried out so that the men were divided into twelve companies of 100 men and that the number of officers was increased so that each company would be fully staffed. In November of the same year, it was also decided that the three staff companies (Colonel’s, Lieutenant Colonel's and Major's companies) would each have a captain, and an additional captain would be appointed to lead the regiment's grenadiers.

In January 1701, the old organisation of eight companies of 150 men was returned. However, the number of officers did not decrease, instead each company would now have an extra captain, lieutenant and ensign (so-called double or second officers). In the spring, double non-commissioned officers were also introduced, with each company receiving an extra fältväbel, sergeant and förare. This meant that each company would have eight non-commissioned officers instead of the normal five. This organisation was maintained until the Battle of Poltava in 1709. The restored Dal Regiment did not employ double officers until 1712, in preparation for the upcoming campaign in Germany.

When the regiment was restored for the second time in 1714, only an extra captain was introduced for each staff company. However, when Charles XII returned to Sweden, he decided in 1716 that all double officers according to the 1701 organisation should be re-introduced. In addition, a second colonel and a second major were introduced, the latter, however, would also be a company commander. In 1717, six furirskyttar for each company were to be selected from the privates (48 in total). The cost of replacing the ranks that became vacant was to be borne by the crown. In 1718, an extra captain was also introduced for the 96 grenadiers. Other officers for this temporary grenadier company were borrowed from the other companies. After Charles XII's death, a decision was made on 22 May 1719 to return to the organisation from 1714 with only extra captains in the staff companies.

Note that the allotment system never changed, so all additional officers during the war were enlisted and received cash payments instead of indelnings (= crown land + assigned tax revenue).

Colonels and Battles
(Green background indicates victories, red background defeats)

The Dal Regiment was disbanded in 2000 but was revived in 2021.

* = Lützen is an official victory name (unlike Breitenfeld) but the Dal men who participated in the battle constituted just over a third of a combined regiment under Erik Hand's command, which also included men from Östergötland, Jönköping, Uppland and Närke-Värmland.

Scanian War

When the Scanian War broke out in 1675, the Dal Regiment's colonel’s battalion was in the home province, while the other battalion had been stationed in Stettin since 1670. Already at Christmas 1674, the Stettin battalion crossed the border into Brandenburg as part of an army under Wrangel's command. The incursion was at the request of France, and Sweden did so to not lose French subsidies. However, the Swedish army immediately went into winter quarters in eastern Brandenburg, claiming not to be a belligerent but only to guarantee the provisions of the Peace of Westphalia. The actual war did not begin until May 1675 when Brandenburg troops returned from the war against France. During this time, three Dal soldiers had died on Brandenburg soil.

When the actual campaign began in early May 1675, the Dal Battalion had a strength of 74 officers and 516 privates. The Dal Battalion did not participate in the unfortunate Battle of Fehrbellin on 18 June, but as a consequence of this, they were forced with the rest of the army to carry out an unprepared retreat to Demmin in Swedish Pomerania where they suffered from a lack of provisions. Although the Dal Battalion had not been in combat, its losses were 45 dead, 19 deserters, 2 left behind during the march and 15 wounded or sick. On 19 July, the battalion had a strength of 62 officers and 451 privates. In October, the Dal Battalion was stationed in Greifswald. In early December and until mid-January, 185 Dal men were part of a siege corps that attempted to retake Wolgast. An unsuccessful assault on 5 January resulted in the Dal men losing 4 officers and 12 privates. On 21 February, the battalion's strength was 69 officers and 346 privates.

In the summer of 1676, the Dal men were part of a force that repelled an attempted landing on Usedom by Brandenburg troops. They then defended Anklam for six weeks before being forced to surrender. During the siege, the 413 combatants had reduced their strength by 47 men. After a period of captivity, the survivors were shipped over to Kalmar, where they arrived in October, but only about 300 men remained. A company of a little more than 100 men was left as a garrison in Kalmar. The rest joined the main army shortly after the Battle of Lund after having completed a difficult march during constant battles against Snapphans.

No recruits to replace losses had been sent to Germany in 1676, but they had instead been used to reinforce Skaraborg's regiment in October 1676 before the remaining 60-70 men could be united with their proper battalion in December.

A small group of Dal men still remained in Germany (33 men in September 1677) and they were part of the Stettin garrison that surrendered on 15 December 1677 after a six-month siege.

The home-based Colonel’s battalion had a strength of 72 officers and 466 privates on 15 February 1675. On 13 August the battalion consisted of 66 officers & drummers and 365 privates. The reduction was because some of the men had been transferred to serve as non-commissioned officers for the newly raised "Selected men" regiment which would act as home guards in Dalarna. The plan was that the Colonel’s battalion would be transferred to Germany, but the naval expedition was forced to return to Stockholm in October due to bad weather and illness. 79 recruits who were to replace the German battalion's losses were probably part of the same naval expedition and should have subsequently been part of the battalion at home instead (Pihlström, however, writes that they arrived in Wismar and speculates that they joined their correct battalion after the fall of Wismar in December).

Shortly before Christmas, the Colonel’s battalion returned to their home province, but already at the end of January 1676, it marched towards Vänersborg, where it remained for two months. The plan was for the main army to defend the western border against Norwegian attacks, but the threat of a Danish landing in Scania resulted in a move to Malmö. Once the landing was carried out on 29 June, however, the Swedish army was too inferior and a retreat north via Kristianstad was carried out under conditions that most closely resembled a rout. But when the Danish army split up, a successful Swedish counter-offensive could be carried out, resulting in the Battle of Halmstad on 17 August. The Dal Battalion's losses in the battle were no more than 5 wounded because it was in the second line, which did not see much of the fighting. The battalion was then garrisoned in Halmstad. However, the shrinking main army needed reinforcements and at the end of November one half of the battalion arrived and participated in the Battle of Lund on 4 December with 225 men (about 200 men were left in Halmstad). Now the Dal men fought in the first line and their losses were higher although it is unclear exactly how high they were. A list from 31 December shows that 27 men had died during December.

After the Battle of Lund, the army marched to Helsingborg, which was then besieged. However, the Colonel’s battalion was immediately sent back to Halmstad, while the Second Battalion was stationed in Malmö after Helsingborg surrendered on 30 December. Although 54 men from the Second Battalion remained in the main army and were probably inserted into another regiment.

The 1676 recruits formed their own company that served in the navy from April 1676 to November. It probably participated in the naval battles of Rügen and Öland that were fought in May. Of the original strength of 12 officers and 98 privates, on 29 November only 2 officers, 1 corporal, 1 drummer and 13 privates remained.

The "New" Dal Regiment

On 27 January 1677, the Dal Regiment stated that its total strength in Scania and Halland was no more than 425 officers and privates. Recruitment to complete the regiment became difficult due to a lack of fit men and was carried out in April by partly using men from the "Selected men" Regiment who functioned as a home guard. The recruits effectively constituted a newly raised regiment whose total personnel strength on 30 April was 814 men. In Malmö and Halmstad there were then only 59 and 265 Dal men respectively. This is according to Pihlström, who however states on another page that the Malmö garrison on 1 June had 75 Dal men. In any case, they repelled a Danish assault on 25 June.

The newly recruited Dal Regiment joined the main army in July and immediately participated in the Battle of Landskrona with an effective strength of 576 privates, divided into three battalions. The Swedes were victorious after a hard battle and the Danes retreated to Landskrona fortress, which was blocked by the Swedish army for a month. In the Dal Regiment, 20 men were killed during the battle. In August, the Swedish army pursued the Danish cavalry that had marched to Kristianstad. On 16 August, the Dal Regiment stormed a bridgehead that the Danes had built to protect the bridge over Helgeå, which was then burned. The pursuit of the cavalry then continued while it returned to Landskrona. The Dal Regiment then returned to Kristianstad and began a siege that resulted in the fortress once again becoming Swedish a year later.

After the Battle of Landskrona, most of the Dal men in the Malmö garrison joined its regiment, and in September the Halmstad garrison also arrived in Kristianstad. At a muster on 25 October 1677, the regiment had a strength of 144 officers and 1003 privates. Despite this, the need for new recruits was stated at 530 men on 29 December. These recruits arrived in Kristianstad on 10 May 1678 and eight days later the regiment was mustered, which then had a strength of 1038 men, of whom 891 were privates.

While the siege of Kristianstad was going on, the Dal men were also part of the punitive expedition that was to execute all men between the ages of 15 and 60 in the parish of Örkened. The vast majority managed to escape, but the villages were burned down.

After a short break during the summer to try to rescue Helsingborg, which fell to the Danes, the siege of Kristianstad was resumed, and it capitulated on 4 August. The Dal Regiment was then placed in winter quarters in Österslöv, northeast of Kristianstad, where it was mustered on 6 November 1678. The officers and drummers were then at full strength, but only 529 privates were healthy, 119 were sick. 346 had died and 27 had deserted. To fill the vacancies, 410 men were recruited during the winter, who began the march to Kristianstad in mid-March. When the regiment was mustered on 2 June 1679, it had a strength of 23 officers, 42 non-commissioned officers, 48 ​​corporals, 23 drummers and 899 privates. 70 privates were sick, 11 had deserted and 25 had died.

The 1679 campaign did not begin until mid-July when the army left Kristianstad to recapture Helsingborg where on 28 July the Dal Regiment had a strength of 25 officers, 45 non-commissioned officers, 48 ​​corporals, 24 drummers and 957 privates (of whom 47 were sick). But the threat of a Norwegian invasion meant continued marching to Halland and nothing could be accomplished before an armistice was concluded on 1 September followed by a peace treaty on 26 September. After the entire army gathered on the old Ylleshed battlefield north of Landskrona for a farewell ceremony, the Dal Regiment was shipped over to Pomerania where it was to serve as garrison in Stettin. It was not until the autumn of 1681 that it returned to Dalarna.

Great Northern War

During no other war was the Dal Regiment as succesful as during Charles XII's campaigns of 1700-1709 when it was considered an elite regiment that was ranked second only to the Guard in the infantry. With the famous Magnus Stenbock as colonel, the regiment was victorious in Narva, Düna, Kliszow and under his successor in Holowczyn. After the disaster at Poltava, the entire regiment needed to be newly recruited from scratch and its glory days were over. The new regiment would indeed be victorious at Gadebusch, but shortly afterwards it was also forced to capitulate in Tönning. The third incarnation of the Dal Regiment participated in the Norwegian campaigns of 1716 and 1718 as the defence against the Russian ravages in the Stockholm area in 1719.

The Heydays of the Dal Regiment 1700-1709

When the war broke out in 1700, the Dal Regiment was ordered to march to Scania to join the main army, where it arrived at the end of May. Once there, it had to wait two months in various locations in Scania before being transferred to Humlebæk as part of the second round of troops, which due to bad weather did not arrive until a week after Charles XII's landing. The Dal Regiment was therefore not involved in any fighting on Zealand, and when peace was concluded, they were transferred to Karlshamn for further transport to Pernau in the Baltics, where they arrived on 6 October.

Unlike the campaign in Zealand, the campaign in Estonia was more difficult with bad weather and lack of food. It was an almost complete regiment that had been shipped over, but the regiment counted 200–300 sick already in early November during a stay in Reval. During this campaign, the regiment was temporarily divided into twelve companies, but only nine of them participated in the Battle of Narva on 20 November. Rättvik Company marched between Reval and Wesenberg on 21 November, while the locations of Gagnef and Västerdal companies are unknown. The nine companies that participated in the battle had an effective strength of 594 corporals and privates on 7 November. Of these, 2 corporals and 51 privates fell in battle (along with the major, a captain and a sergeant). The wounded consisted of 9 officers (including Magnus Stenbock) and 121 non-commissioned officers, musicians and privates. A wounded captain later died. The losses had been compounded by the fact that the Dal Regiment had mistakenly fought against the Guard, believing them to be Russians. Before the regiment went into winter quarters in Laisholm outside Dorpat, they also managed to make a foray into Russian territory in such severe cold that three men froze to death on the night of 30 December.

After resting in Laisholm for six months, the regiment participated in the Battle of Düna on 9 July, where at least one corporal was killed. After the battle, the regiment was in Courland for the rest of the year, and sickness was again high, with only 740 men healthy on 30 August. The situation was somewhat better on 28 December, when 885 men were healthy (152 sick and 163 vacancies).

In early 1702, the Polish campaign began, and the Dal Regiment was part of a detached force under Mörner's command from 18 February to 8 July. It captured Vilnius where it later held out against a Polish counterattack on 6 April. Of the Dal Regiment's personnel, 2 officers, 5 non-commissioned officers, 2 corporals, 15 privates and one corporal were killed in that battle. One corporal and three privates were wounded. Shortly after reuniting with the main army, the Dal Regiment participated in the Battle of Kliszow on 9 July, during which not a single Dal soldier was killed or wounded.

A small group of Dal men participated in the Battle of Hummelshof on 19 July 1702 and suffered heavy losses. These were men who had been left behind in Livonia because of illness.

300 men under Stenbock's command (probably Dal men) took Krakow on 31 July and stayed there for two months. From 19 October, one battalion was part of a force under Stenbock's command which until February 1703 exacted war contributions from unwilling Poles in Red Russia. This force was reunited with the main army and the other Dal battalion in March in Warsaw.

As part of the main army, the Dal Regiment participated in the siege of Thorn in 1703 and the long marches through Poland until August 1705 when it was again separated from the main army and stationed in Warsaw for the rest of 1705. Just outside Warsaw, the Dal Regiment participated in the Battle of Praga on 14 October, where the Swedish troops successfully repelled an attack. The Dal Regiment's casualties consisted of 3 officers, 2 non-commissioned officers and 17 corporals and privates. The wounded were 4 officers (two mortally), 5 non-commissioned officers (1 mortally) and 53 of the privates.

The recruits that were added to the Dal Regiment annually to replace losses from battles such as the Battle of Praga as well as illnesses and natural attrition are reported in the table below. All figures come from Anton Philström's work, but the red figures, which are reported in a footnote on page 147, come from a list from the Provincial Administration archives in Falun that reports "Dal Regiment's recruitment" for each year. They differ from the figures for arriving recruits reported in Pihlström's main text. One explanation for the differences could be that not all recruits were approved upon arrival at the regiment, or that they disappeared en route or had their arrival delayed.

To illustrate the uncertainty surrounding these figures, we can look more closely at the year 1705 when the Dal Regiment's recruits amounted to 137 men according to the Provincial Administration's figures. The main text of Pihlström's book mentions that there were 140 vacancies after the 1704 campaign. 130 men (and 18 drivers) were recruited in the spring of 1705 and sent to Poland (p. 147). They arrived at the regiment on 13 August "now amounting to 120 men" and at the same time the regiment's strength was increased by enlisting 15 drummers, 1 non-commissioned officer, 3 clerks, 1 piper and 1 private (p. 149).

The 1706 contingent of recruits left Dalarna in August and Pihlström believes that they arrived at the regiment later in the autumn. But they probably stayed in Pomerania for a whole year before joining the Dal Regiment, which had once again belonged to the main army since the new year 1706. This had fought the Russian army in Grodno during the winter and then slowly moved west again and invaded Saxony in August 1706. But although the army spent a whole year in Saxony in peace and quiet, it was only after it had left Saxony and marched into Poland that the 1706 and 1707 recruit contingents joined the main army.

During the Russian campaign, the Dal Regiment participated in the Battle of Holowczyn, where one non-commissioned officer and nine privates were killed. The wounded amounted to 8 officers, 13 non-commissioned officers and 48 privates. In the Battle of Malatitze two months later, two officers were killed, and three officers were wounded, one mortally. The losses for the other categories are unknown.

On 19 October 1708, the Hälsinge Regiment was effectively disbanded when it was incorporated into the Dal Regiment. The reason was that it had left behind all its heavy equipment when it fled after the Battle of Lesnaya and could therefore no longer function as an independent unit. The Dal Regiment's eight companies thus received an addition of just over 50 Hälsinge men each.

The Russian campaign ended in June 1709 with the catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Poltava. The Dal Regiment became separated from the main force already in connection with the battles against the Russian redoubts that blocked the path of the Swedish army. The redoubt battle resulted in the death of all three regimental officers along with twelve company officers. In addition, eight officers were taken prisoner during the retreat to the Guard redoubt where the remnants of the Dal Regiment surrendered (15 officers, one of whom was mortally wounded). Eight officers had for various reasons managed to join the retreating Swedish main force and surrendered instead at Perevolochna. The losses for non-commissioned officers and men are unknown but should be similar to the officers' distribution. The entire regiment was wiped out in Ukraine and now needed to be restored from scratch.

The Second Dal Regiment 1710-1713

The new Dal Regiment was initially ordered to stay at home to defend Dalarna against a possible Norwegian attack. When this did not materialize, the Colonel’s battalion was sent to Stockholm in July 1710. The next month, this battalion was split up so that 100 men each were assigned to Vaxholm and Dalarö. In addition, 200 men were to be sent to Reval. However, the latter soldiers were unwilling to do so and mutinied because they wanted the entire regiment to be together. 75 men were sentenced to death, but the sentence was reduced to five gauntlets for seven soldiers who were selected by lot from among the condemned. On 23 August, the 200 Dal soldiers sailed for Reval, but the fortress had fallen to the Russians before they arrived. Instead, they were assigned to the fleet operating in Finland.

Due to a plague epidemic, 225 men had died when the Colonel’s battalion was mustered on 30 January 1711 and when they returned home in July 1711, only 164 men remained of the 400 men who had been stationed in Stockholm, Dalarö and Vaxholm. Of those who were commanded on the fleet, only about 30 men survived when they returned to Sweden in early 1712. To replace the losses, 390 men were recruited in the spring of 1711.

In early June 1712, the Dal Regiment left their home province and after a long stay in Kalmar, it arrived in Karlshamn in August. There they joined the field army that was transferred to Germany under the command of Magnus Stenbock the following month. During the campaign in Germany, they participated in the Battle of Gadebusch. The Dal Regiment's fallen in the battle consisted of 5 officers, 3 non-commissioned officers and 80 of the men. Around 150-160 of the men were wounded.

Instead of marching to Poland as was the original plan, Stenbock's army advanced into Holstein at the end of December. On 7 February 1713, the Dal Regiment marched into the Tönning fortress where they were later besieged and forced to surrender. When they left Tönning on 11 May, the badly degraded Dal Regiment counted only 145 healthy men who marched into captivity. The number of sick men who remained in the fortress and who were also taken prisoner is unknown. Many prisoners of war escaped back to Sweden and in the spring of 1714 only 168 men remained in captivity. A list from November 1713 that does not include prisoners of war states that the regiment had lost 694 men since they left home in 1712.

172 Dal men had escaped the capitulation in Tönning because they were wounded or sick when the army marched into Holstein and were therefore left behind in Wismar. When they recovered, they were then part of a combined regiment that included similar contingents from other regiments. They remained in Germany until the fall of Stralsund in 1715, when they too became prisoners of war. According to the muster roll from 1718, 83 men were captured in Stralsund.

The Third Dal Regiment 1714-1721

The peasants in Dalarna now had to restore the entire regiment for the second time in just four years. To ease the burden, the government in Stockholm decided in March 1714 that 275 men would be transferred to the Dal Regiment from the Uppland 5-männing Regiment (which had been partly recruited from Dalarna). With this addition, only 114 vacancies remained at the end of April 1714. But the 5-männings did not last long because, on the orders of Charles XII, the 5-männings returned to their original regiment in February 1715 and the peasants in Dalarna had to replace these soldiers as well.

On 16 June 1714, while the 5-männings were still in the Dal Regiment, the number of vacancies had dropped to 85 and by then 80 men were also commandeered to the navy and 166 men remained in Wismar. During the late summer, the rest of the regiment was transferred to Uppland where they remained throughout 1715. Those serving with the navy, however, had to return home to Dalarna during the winter while the rest of the regiment was deployed with five companies in Stockholm, two outside Uppsala and one outside Enköping. The men were considered to be “good and capable people” but very poorly clothed.

In the summer of 1715, the Dal Regiment again contributed with men to the navy, and these participated in the Battle of Rügen on 28 July 1715. One of the ships carrying the Dal men ("Gottland") was badly damaged and the men from Dalarna had to return to their regiment in Uppsala shortly after the battle. According to the roll from 1718, 35 men died during this naval assignment.

1716 began with a few months of rest at home before it was time for this incarnation of the Dal Regiment to participate in its first campaign. They crossed the border into Norway on 30 March and arrived in Kristiania (today's Oslo) on 7 April. They left this city on the night of 19 April and arrived in Frederikshald at the end of April. There they were stationed near the Sponvika redoubt, which was taken and destroyed on 23 May. An attempt to take Fredriksten fortress by surprise failed on the night of 23 June. Of an advance party consisting of 58 Dal men, all but seven men were killed. In total, 2 officers, 4 non-commissioned officers, 7 corporals and 55 privates of the Dal Regiment were killed. The wounded consisted of 5 officers, 3 non-commissioned officers and about 80 corporals and privates. 2 officers and about 70 of the men were taken prisoner, most of whom were wounded.

On 28 June the army left Norway, and the Dal Regiment was stationed in northern Bohuslän (Nordby). It was moved to the area of ​​Uddevalla at the end of September. In early November the regiment was moved to Älvsborg County along the Göta River due to high level of sickness in the Bohuslän corps which meant that the troops had to be dispersed. In mid-December they began a march back to Dalarna. A total of 104 corporals and privates died during the period July-December 1716. At a muster in Vänersborg on 22 December 1716 the regiment had a strength of 823 men.

The Dal Regiment also participated in the 1718 campaign, but this time they were not part of the main force that besieged Fredriksten Fortress. Instead, they were part of a detachment that spent the month-long campaign blocking Blaker redoubt 120 km north of Fredrikshald. Only a few Dal men died during the campaign itself, but after the death of Charles XII, an unplanned retreat was carried out in bad weather in December, which made many sick and several of them died in January 1719.

For the rest of the Great Northern War, the Dal Regiment was alternately at home in Dalarna or stationed on the east coast to defend Sweden against Russian raids. The most memorable event during this period was the Battle of Stäket on 13 August 1719. The Dal Regiment was sent there as reinforcements but did not arrive until after the battle had already been decided. On 30 September 1721, the Dal Regiment's service in the Great Northern War ended when a general muster was held in Gävle before they were sent home to Dalarna. The muster master's assessment was: "That the regiment was well disciplined and the men were good and capable and provided with weapons, but the uniforms were completely worn out and unfit".

Dal Regiment Uniforms

Charles X Gustav's War	Scanian War	Great Northern War	Seven Years' War

The appearance of the Dal Regiment's uniforms has been known since 1655, when the oldest Swedish uniform regulation was issued. However, the regulation only applied to the mobilisation before Charles X Gustav's invasion of Poland and the red-green colour combination is only mentioned on this occasion. The Dal Regiment's traditional colours are blue and yellow, which is the colour combination that their provincial coat of arms has. The first blue-yellow uniform was issued in 1670, but during the Scanian War they temporarily changed to a blue-red uniform before they took back the blue-yellow colour combination towards the end of the war. The Dal Regiment then continued to have blue-yellow uniforms until the mid-18th century, when a transition from yellow to white was initiated and fully implemented in 1774.

Dal Regiment's Oldest Uniforms

1655

1666

1670-1676

1675-1677

1679-1690

Apart from notices of black broadcloth for stockings in 1628 and complaints in 1645 about new soldiers in peasant clothes and old soldiers who are "soon naked", it is not until 1655 that we have any information about the uniforms of the Dal Regiment. According to a uniform regulation for the Swedish army from that year, the Dal Regiment was to have red jackets and green breeches. At this time, the privates wore "storm hats" (helmets), which fell out of use after 1660 and were completely replaced by the also existing grey felt hats.

The next uniform note comes from a specification from 1666 when four of the Dal Regiment's companies were were allocated broadcloth for three different categories. The officers received 136 ells of grey broadcloth, the non-commissioned officers received 373 ells of blue and grey broadcloth, and the privates received 2429 ells of blue broadcloth. I assume that these companies formed the battalion that in 1666-1667 was stationed as a garrison first in Riga and then in Reval.

In 1670, a battalion again left the home province for garrison service, this time in Stettin, where it remained until the outbreak of the Scanian War. This battalion was provided with blue coats with yellow cuffs, hats with yellow lace, and probably leather breeches. Their uniforms were in poor condition throughout the time they fought in Germany. Höglund mentions a request from 1674 to receive uniform blue coats with yellow cuffs, as the soldiers were now wearing black, brown, and grey. Pihlström refers to a letter from 17 November 1674 in which the colonel complains that his battalion had not received broadcloth for a whole year and lacked both clothes and shoes. New recruits to this battalion had not received uniforms in September 1676 and were dressed in their own white "kruss jackets" due to the poverty of the peasants. However, they did not join their battalion until December when it arrived in Scania.

On 17 December 1674 the king decided that the Dal Regiment should have blue clothes with red cuffs, which was confirmed in a uniform regulation from 15 March 1675 when red edges on the uniform were also mentioned. However, an undated list from this time mentions yellow on the cuffs and edges. It is unclear whether this was a working draft of the regulation or a later proposed amendment. In any case, the battalion at home received blue coats with red cuffs & edges and pewter buttons in the early summer of 1675 as well as leather breeches and a black hat with yellow lace (according to the regulation they should actually have had a karpus). In addition, they received woollen stockings, shoes and a round-cut wadmal cloak of unknown colours. The shade of blue may have been bleumerant (pale blue) because the Dal Regiment's colours (flags) of m/1675 and m/1682 were supposed to have that shade and it is likely that it matched the uniforms.

Höglund mentions, without giving the context, that the uniform in 1675 consisted of a blue coat with yellow cuffs. And in the same way he states for 1676: "hat, blue coat with red cuffs, blue breeches". If the information from 1675 does not refers to the undated list mentioned above, Höglund's information probably refers to two different battalions and should therefore not be seen as a change in the uniform colours.

A battalion of the Dal Regiment standing behind the Livgarde (Guard) during the Battle of Halmstad on 17 August 1676.
Detail from a battle painting by Johan Philip Lemke around 1684.

A contingent of recruits that almost constituted a completely newly formed Dal Regiment (725 privates) received their uniforms during their stay in Örebro in May-June 1677. For this year, Höglund states that the Dal Regiment's uniforms consisted of a hat, blue coat with red cuffs & edges, and blue breeches.

The 1678 recruits arrived at the regiment in Kristianstad on 10 May and brought new clothes for the older men. Höglund has a note for this year that 3933 ells of broadcloth of "various colours" were delivered. Recruits also arrived in the spring of 1679 and brought clothes for the rest of their regiment. Höglund states for this year: "blue coat with yellow cuffs and lining, grey and white stockings".

The Dal Regiment received new uniforms in 1681, which was to be worn until the first Carolean uniform was issued in 1690. A list of the Swedish regiments' uniform colours from 1683 states that the Dal Regiment had blue clothes with yellow cuffs.

Before a general muster in 1687, the colonel ordered that the officers should wear blue coats with aurora-coloured cuffs and a black hat with silver lace and blue & aurora-coloured ribbons (sword knots?). The non-commissioned officers were to wear grey coats with blue cuffs and blue lining. The non-commissioned officer uniform follows a standard in the Swedish army that seems to have been in effect since at least 1666. It was only with the Carolean uniform that the non-commissioned officers' uniforms became completely blue. The officer uniform was also grey in 1666 and grey coats were used by them in regular service during the rest of the 17th century. The blue coat mentioned here was the parade coat. Björn Asker has interpreted the aurora colour on the cuffs as in line with the privates’ uniform because he perceives aurora as a golden yellow colour. According to the Swedish Academy's historical dictionary (SAOB), however, aurora is a reddish-yellow colour that resembles the colour of the sky at sunrise. And when the colour aurora appears in Danish uniforms in the 18th century, it is obvious that it is used as a synonym for orange. The colours of the officer uniform thus seem to deviate from the privates’ uniform. However, it cannot be completely ruled out that yellow, red and aurora on the Dal Regiment's uniforms may refer to the same orange colour. Orange was not a basic colour in the 17th century, and what we call orange today could then be considered a yellow or red shade.

Dal Regiment's Carolean Uniforms

The Dal Regiment's first Carolean uniform had been issued when it was mustered on 18 July 1690. The very same uniform was still in use according to a royal letter from 24 July 1701. This uniform was probably replaced in the autumn of 1702, which in its turn was replaced during the stay in Saxony in 1706-1707. For the restorations of the Dal Regiment in 1710 and 1714, new uniforms were to be issued, but lack of money meant that the delivery of these uniforms had not been completed until the campaigns of 1712 and 1716. Further partial replacements were made for the Norwegian campaign of 1718, but by the time  the Great Northern War ended, the uniforms were in a very poor condition.

First Carolean Uniform 1690-1702

The first Carolean uniform from 1690 differed from the other regiments in that the Dal Regiment's coats had four dozen buttons instead of the normal three. It also had a collar, which may have been unusual at the time. This set of uniforms also has the oldest record (1691) of grenadier caps in the Swedish army. From the same year, the Dal Regiment also has the only known record of a Swedish regiment that equipped its pikes with flags.

The description of the lieutenants' and captains' uniforms follows a cost estimate from 1688 and the regulations from 1697. However, officers were to buy their own uniforms, and it seems that these were too expensive in the difficult economic conditions that prevailed in the 1690s. They were therefore allowed in 1698 to have less expensive uniforms for the time being. This meant that the officers' coats could be without gold lace and that lieutenants and ensigns did not have to have gold buttons either but were allowed to have blue (silk) buttons. Hats, collars and gloves, however, would continue to have gold lace. The non-commissioned officers' uniform was also specified as a blue coat with silver buttonholes and silver lace on the hat, so the 1697 regulations' requirement for lace on the coat was probably also waived.

In early 1697, non-commissioned officers and men were ordered to let their moustaches grow until May, when a field surgeon assistant would travel around to shave and trim them. Officers who could grow them were urged to do the same.

Uniforms 1702-1713

At the beginning of 1701, the officers received new uniforms at the expense of the crown, which probably meant that they now met the requirements of the regulations from 1697. In any case, everyone now had gold buttons on their coats and the officers were also to obtain gilded swords themselves.

The privates' uniforms were worn out after the Battle of Narva, especially the stockings and shoes. The 270 recruits who arrived in the spring of 1701 were also dressed in grey wadmal coats. New uniforms were ordered and made in Dalarna in 1701 and were sent to the Baltics in the spring of 1702 together with that year's recruits. However, the uniforms never reached the regiment, but were left behind in Riga, where they were later issued to other regiments. It is very likely that the Dal Regiment instead received new uniforms made in Poland in the autumn of 1702. Its colonel, Magnus Stenbock, was appointed director of the General War Commissariat in August of that year. As such, he was responsible for collecting contributions from the Poles and on 25 December he sent a consignment of broadcloth to Charles XII with the request that priority be given to "the cousins of the Dal men, the Östgöta cavalry" (Östgöta cavalry and the Dal Regiment had earlier in the year fought together as part of a force under Mörner's command). It stands to reason that Stenbock had replaced his own regiment's twelve-year-old uniforms before sending off broadcloth to other regiments. These unknown uniforms probably had the same appearance as those Stenbock had ordered in 1701.

After the 1704 campaign, the Dal Regiment was placed in winter quarters in Oloboch south of Kalisz on 15 November. Worn-out equipment (shirts, breeches, stockings and shoes) was then replaced with funds raised from the local population. Later, the Dal Regiment received completely new uniforms during its stay in Saxony in 1706-1707. These uniforms are completely unknown, but a clue to their appearance is the uniforms worn by the recruits of 1707.

After the Battle of Poltava, the regiment was restored in its entirety. But as of 1712, not all the equipment ordered in 1710 had been paid for and nothing could be obtained on credit. In addition, the Colonel’s battalion had suffered such heavy losses during its year-long service outside Dalarna in 1710-1711 that it practically had to be restored again. At the last moment, the Dal Regiment was granted funds so that it could be made ready for the upcoming campaign in Germany in 1712, where it unfortunately was lost once again.

Uniforms 1714-1727

When the regiment was once again restored in 1714, lack of money meant that it would take two years before it received proper uniforms. The 275 five-männings that were part of the regiment until February 1715 did indeed have new blue-yellow uniforms (even their hats had blue-yellow lace). But according to the government, the newly recruited men did not need to be "as neatly and properly dressed as they were before", but had to make do with good wadmal coats and wadmal piecoats so that they were protected against the cold. It was not until the Norwegian campaign in 1716 that the uniforms, which had long been ready and waiting for payment, could be delivered by the manufacturers. This uniform would then be worn for the rest of the war, although replacement items were delivered between the Norwegian campaigns so that the uniforms were still in good condition in 1718. Towards the end of the war, however, the uniforms became increasingly worn out and the assessment at the muster on 30 September 1721 was that "the uniforms were completely worn out and useless". However, it would be another six years before they were replaced.

The officers acquired new uniforms in 1717 which were originally supposed to have had silver lace and solid silver buttons. But since these would be too expensive and also resembled the non-commissioned officers of the Guard, this was changed to gold lace and gilded brass buttons. The idea was also that they would have yellow fabric ("chamoij") for lining, cuffs, waistcoat and breeches. But a lack of such fabric meant that the uniforms became completely blue.

Höglund also mentions descriptions of three runaway recruits in May 1718: 1) Black hat, light grey wadmal coat with pewter buttons, red waistcoat, leather breeches and white wool stockings. 2) Black hat, light grey wadmal coat with pewter buttons, striped bodice, leather breeches and white wool stockings. 3) Black hat with brass button, black wadmal coat with hooks, leather breeches and grey wadmal stockings.

Liberty Age Uniforms

Except for the cloaks, the uniform from 1716-1718 was replaced by a new uniform in 1727-1728. This was largely identical to the previous uniform. However, the hat is stated to have had white lace with yellow stripes. It is unclear whether this type of hat lace was a new thing or whether the older uniform also had such lace. Information about the Dal Regiment's hats from 1757 and 1770, however, only mentions white colour on the lace.

The next set of uniform was issued in 1740-1741 before the Russian War of the Hats (again no new cloaks). These uniforms were tight and of poor quality, so they wore out quickly. Already in 1743 many of them were discarded. Wadmal coats, waistcoats and leather breeches were therefore issued as replacements together with new cloaks so that the equipment was complete. The following year, stockings, shoes, shirts and neckclothes were considered worn out. Discarded clothes continued to be used, however, and at the general muster in 1748 all uniforms were discarded so that new uniforms had to be procured. In connection with this, a decision was made in 1749 that the corporals' coats would look the same as the privates' and no longer have decorative buttonholes. The money thus saved would instead be used for better hat lace "with a little silver in them".

During this time, the officers still wore the all-blue uniform that had been established in 1717. This changed when in 1754 they requested uniform colours similar to the privates' uniform (yellow or "chamoij") and buttons with the provincial coat of arms. The Royal Majesty approved their proposal in 1755 but determined that all personnel in the regiment would have white waistcoats and breeches. The collar and cuffs of the coat would, however, be in the traditional yellow colour. The white waistcoats and breeches were issued to the rank-and-file already the same year because their uniforms had been worn out while building fortifications in Finland. It was this uniform that was then worn during the Seven Years’ War, even though m/1756 stipulated that all infantry regiments should have the same blue-yellow uniform. During the war that lasted 1756-1762, replacements for worn-out uniform items and equipment were issued.

The development towards white facing colour for the Dal Regiment was completed when the m/1765 was introduced and the collar, cuffs and lining of the coat also became white. The old uniforms were discarded at the general muster in 1767 (the grenadier caps were in good condition, however) but they were not replaced until 1774 when the first and only m/1765 uniform was issued to the Dal Regiment. At that time the old grenadier caps were unusable.

	Uniforms issued in 1728
	Rank-and-File Ordered in 1724, issued in 1727-1728.	Drummers Ordered & issued in 1728	NCOs Ordered & issued in 1728	Officers Description from 1733
Hat:	Hat with lace and pewter button. The lace was white with yellow stripes. In addition, a white woollen band ran around the hat and a black leather sweatband.	Hat with lace and pewter button and hat band.	Hat with silver lace.	Hat with gold lace.
Coat:	Blue broadcloth with collar and cuffs of yellow broadcloth. Yellow lining of baize and fabric (“väv”) in the sleeves. Pewter buttons. The corporals had embroidered buttonholes of cut out yellow broadcloth and sewn on with camel yarn.	Blue broadcloth with lace, yellow lining of baize and pewter buttons.	Blue broadcloth with chamois-coloured lining of double “friserad” (= surface made uneven) baize and pewter buttons.	Fine blue broadcloth and gilded brass buttons. Blue lining.
Waistcoat:	Yellow broadcloth with pewter buttons and lined with fabric.	Yellow broadcloth with lace on the front, pewter buttons and lined with fabric.	Chamois-coloured broadcloth with pewter buttons. Lined with chamois-coloured baize under the skirt and fabric under the body.	Camisole made of fine blue broadcloth and gilded brass buttons. Blue lining.
Waist belt:	Ox leather belt with buckles.	Ox leather belt with lace and drum belt with lace.	Whole-cut elkskin belt with silver-plated buckles.	Whole-cut elkskin belt.
Breeches:	Two pairs of leather breeches made of buckskin and reindeer skin.	Leather breeches.	Buckskin breeches.	Fine blue broadcloth.
Stockings:	Yellow with leather knee straps (ordered in 1728 according to Pihlström, Ericson gives the impression that yellow wool stockings were ordered in 1724).			Gaiters of fine white ticking. (everything except the gaiters is said to have been "made in our Swedish manner”).
Shoes:	"Leverie” shoes". Regular shoes March 1727.
Cloak:	Old blue cloaks from 1716 that were repaired in 1725.
Gloves:	Ox leather collar with buckskin grip.	Ox leather collar with buckskin grip.	Elkskin collar with a grip of reindeer leather.	"Appropriate gloves".
Other:	1197 sets of musket belts with black iron buckles, grease horns, powder horns and 3-pronged vent pick. 1101 bandoleers. 96 grenadier bandoleers with brass rings and grenadier bags with fuse rings.	The uniform procured for the provosts was the same as that of the drummers, except that the coat, waistcoat and waist belt did not have “snören”, instead, their coat had "Litzor" (both are types of lace).		Sword with gilt brass hilt and gilt silver grip. All officers of the rank of captain or above were to be armed with two short muskets each. Lieutenants and ensigns were to have one short musket each.
Sources: black and blue text = Anton Pihlström, purple text = Lars Ericson.

During the winter of 1739-1740, five companies stationed in Finland were provided with new breeches made of wadmal from the storehouse in Fredrikshamn, as well as stockings, shoes and gloves to protect themselves from the cold.

Model 1756

After the new uniform regulations were established on 12 July 1756, model uniforms were made for each regiment. These were to be kept in a chest at the colonel's home and used as a model when the regiments acquired new uniforms. The model uniform sent to the Dal Regiment the following year was described as follows:

Cloak of the middle type or No. 2 of blue broadcloth, yellow collar and yellow lining and a pair of large and a pair of small brass buckles.
Coat, also of No. 2: of blue broadcloth, yellow collar and cuffs, pewter buttons. Lining of yellow baize, with fabric in the sleeves.
Waistcoat:, also of No. 2: of yellow broadcloth with fabric lining and pewter buttons. The waistcoats that were issued were white.
Breeches of yellow broadcloth, fabric lining and pewter buttons. The breeches that were issued were white.
Hat, with white thread lace and pewter button.
Shirts: two of them – one of Hälsinge and one of Västgöta fabric.
Stockings: One pair of white wool.
Neckcloth of black wool crepe.
Shoes: one pair made of Swedish waxed leather with round brass buckles
Sword belt of yellow leather with a brass buckle and pin. Waist belt m/1757 was made of white leather.
Deer catcher belt made of the same leather with a large brass buckle on the back for both grenadiers and musketeers.
Black leather strap for the drinking bottle fitted with iron buckles.
Knap sack of furry calfskin lined with fabric ("väv").
Musket belt of black leather with loose straps at the ends.
Bandoleer of yellow leather with a large brass buckle on the back for both grenadiers and musketeers.
Cartridge box: made of black leather, for both grenadiers and musketeers, with a cartridge case of tinned iron sheet for six cartridges inside, and room at one end for the powder horn and at the other end for the grease horn along with the bundle of bent picks, which three items are also found in the box.
Drum belt of yellow leather with a large brass buckle and a carbine hook for the drum.

The hairstyle was also to be uniform and in 1753 it had been decided that the soldiers would have long hair in the shape of a pig tail and curls around the ears. The hair was also to be powdered, and the men were ordered, under threat of flogging, not to shave their moustaches.

The belts, as described above, consisted mostly of yellow leather. However, a regimental order from 1770 urges officers to ensure, among other things, that the men's belts and hat lace were always white and chalked. This order also confirms the earlier regulations regarding the men's hairstyle.

In the summer of 1758, 400 men were transferred to Pomerania together with recruits to the battalion already there. The troop contingent's equipment consisted of new, and old worn, cloaks, old coats, new white breeches and waistcoats (from 1755), worn neckcloths and shirts, stockings, shoes, gloves, repaired belts and bandoleers, mostly new knapsacks, old-model muskets and old swords. At the end of 1758, the regiment was issued new shoes, stockings and breeches as well as one shirt per man and some new coats. Additional breeches and coats were issued in May and July 1759. At the general muster in November 1759, coats and breeches were assessed to be serviceable, cloaks to be repairable, while waistcoats, shoes, stockings and shirts were unusable. According to Pihlström, the belts and weapons were in fairly good condition at this general muster, but Markelius mentions that most soldiers lacked swords at a muster in 1759 (and that they were still lacking them in 1767). When the regiment was mustered in November 1760, the uniforms were considered to be almost completely worn out. However, new shoes and stockings were issued as early as December, and in the spring of 1761 the regiment was issued new coats and hats. These were the last uniforms issued before a new uniform regulation came into force in 1765. They were still worn at the general muster in 1767 when, except for the grenadier caps, they were deemed unusable. However, this did not apply to the officers who had been ordered to acquire new uniforms (which included white gaiters) prior to the muster.

Captain Arvid von Göben who served in the Dal Regiment 1764-1765.	Anders Ihlström, lieutenant in the Dal Regiment 1765-1769. He was the father of Per Samuel.	Per Samuel Ihlström, volunteer in the Dal Regiment 1763-1772.

When the 1765 uniform regulation came into effect, most regiments were to have double-breasted coats, and the Dal Regiment was one of them. But the portrait of Arvid von Göben suggests that at least the officers may have had double-breasted coats even before m/1765 was introduced. All three portraits above also have the Dalarna coat of arms on the buttons, which the Dal Regiment was allowed to have from 1755.

The literature disagrees about the date for the first m/1765 uniforms (see the model drawings below). According to Pihlström, new uniforms of this model were issued to the rank-and-file during the spring and in August 1769. Markelius, on the other hand, writes that it was not until the general muster in 1774 that the first m/1765 uniform was issued. Pihlström might perhaps have misunderstood replacements to the existing uniform as a new uniform.

The pictures above show two variations of gaiters. The black ones were used in the field while the white ones were intended for parades. Also note the differences in the hats, which show how fashion changed during the 1770s. The front of the tricorne hats became flatter as part of a development towards the bicorne hat. During the 1770s, a yellow plume was also added to the hat as a characteristic of the Swedish army.

Gustavian Uniforms

Jacket belonging to Adjutant General Gustaf Wachtmeister (with the rank of colonel) who was shot in the arm at the Battle of Valkeala in 1790 (AM.008811)

However, the re-sewn uniforms were deemed to be unusable condition at the muster in 1783 and were replaced by a completely new set of m/1779 uniforms in September 1785. These were still in good condition at the outbreak of war in 1788 and were supplemented with new belts before the departure for Finland in the summer. However, the war increased wear and tear, and at the general muster in January 1789 the breeches were considered worn out while the jackets and waistcoats needed repair. After the peace in 1790 the regiment received replacements for worn out equipment and at the general muster in 1792 the uniforms were complete except for shoes and cloaks that had not been issued. Only half the regiment had received cloaks in 1788 and the previous cloaks issued during the Seven Years' War had been completely worn out already in 1778.

A new uniform regulation came into force in 1792, but no new jackets would be issued until 1803, by which time the new regulation had been replaced by another uniform regulation in 1802. The only change that was made to the privates' uniforms was therefore the legwear. Instead of the charivades and boots of the m/1779 uniform, the shoes and gaiters that had been part of the m/1765 uniform were reintroduced. However, the officers added epaulettes with rank insignia to their old jackets, which replaced the gorgets. They were also allowed to wear the new longer m/1792 jackets when they were not on duty. All officers also received blue-yellow sashes.

Classic Gustavian Uniform 1780-1803

A completely new set of uniforms was issued in 1803. The colours of the Dal Regiment were slightly changed with this m/1802 uniform by making the collar and cuffs red. This uniform was then adjusted when m/1806 came into effect by removing the lapels and issuing completely new grey waistcoats and trousers. The grenadiers were abolished the same year and replaced by jägers who received green uniforms.

Another uniform regulation was introduced in 1807, but no such uniforms were issued to the Dal Regiment before it was repealed in 1809. However, the Dal Regiment's old uniforms from 1803 were completely worn out after the Finnish War of 1808-1809, and the soldiers were therefore forced to wear their släpmundering (= work clothes) before a new regular uniform was issued in 1811. This was similar to m/1802 and became the last uniform that the Dal Regiment wore during wartime.

Late Gustavian Uniforms 1803-1815

With m/1802, company badges were introduced on the hats. The colours on these were in 1805 white for the colonel’s company, red for the lieutenant colonel's, blue for the first major's, yellow for the second major's (old Gagnef), red-white for Västerdal, blue-yellow for Rättvik, red-yellow for Mora and blue-red for Orsa company. The company badges used during the war of 1814 consisted of tin plates that were white for the colonel’s battalion, red for the second battalion and red-white for the third battalion, and had painted numbers to distinguish the individual companies.

When jägers were introduced in 1806, they were given a green plume on their hats as a distinguishing feature in addition to green uniforms. Non-commissioned officers and corporals also had hat cords with green lace and buttons.

The Dal Regiment's m/1810 uniform depicted in Pihlström's regimental history work.

The uniform issued in 1803 had hats that were too small and were therefore discarded the next year, after which they were replaced with new ones. The jackets, however, were worn until 1809, albeit with adjustments made to make them comply with the new uniform regulation from 1806, which abolished the lapels and had a single row of buttons. In accordance with m/1806, the white small clothes (waistcoat & trousers) were also replaced with a grey one, but white linen/leather trousers were still worn in the summer. The grey m/1807 jackets were never issued to the Dal Regimen and after campaigns in Pomerania and Norway, the old jackets were worn out. After the coup d'état in 1809, the Dal Regiment was paraded in Stockholm in the spring. To look good, they were issued with new grey trousers, and repairs were made to the jackets (new red collars, among other things). But the condition of the uniform was still so bad that the regiment wore the “släpmundering” from 1809 to 1811. The appearance of the släpmundering was the same as in 1802, but with white trousers and short gaiters.

A completely new uniform model was established in November 1810, which was again to be blue with red distinction and have double rows of buttons. However, the trousers remained grey, and the privates were only allowed to use white trousers purchased by themselves during the summer. The new uniform was ready for the regimental meetings in 1811 and further uniforms of this type were issued to the reinforcements of the Dal Regiment in 1812 and 1813. However, at the muster in the latter year, 930 of the regular soldiers' jackets and 305 of the reinforcements' jackets were discarded. The regular soldiers’ trousers were also in very poor condition. Despite this, the Dal Regiment participated in the Norwegian campaign of 1814. During the campaign, however, 621 “kapotter” (cloaks), 1146 trousers and about 1400 sets of shirts, stockings and shoes were delivered. Immediately before the regiment returned to Sweden, another 1000 sets of shirts, stockings and shoes were taken from the storehouse in Fredrikstad, Norway.

The uniform that replaced the m/1810 was the m/1816 and it introduced the shako, so characteristic of the armies of the Napoleonic era, as a new headgear (equipped with the provincial coat of arms). The so-called "Swedish hat", which was the last remnant of Gustav III's uniform regulation, was thus history.

Dal Regiment Colours

Olof Hoffman's model drawings of the Dal Regiment's m/1686 colonel's and company colours

The oldest known colours of the Dal Regiment were issued 14 May 1622. According to Pihlström, the appearance of these eight colours are unknown and we only know how much material was used to make them. Namely white and blue taffeta (worth 16 dalers each) as well as yellow taffeta (worth 10 dalers) and 8 lots of silk. However, Höglund has in his book from 2012 (page 71) a depiction of its colour which consists of a yellow saltire on a field with six horizontal white-blue stripes. Höglund also has information about blue-white colours for a fänika from Dalarna in 1617 and for "Västmanlanders-Dal men" in 1621 (page 78). In a description of the Swedish army's order of march on 3 September, 1631, the colours of unnamed regiments are described, and Höglund has identified a set of one white and seven blue colours as belonging to the Dal Regiment (pages 79 & 108).

After that, it was not until the war preparations in 1655 that we have more information about the colours of the Dal Regiment. At that time, eight colours were made for the Dal Regiment and Pihlström believes that one of these could be a colour that was kept in Stora Tuna Church in 1740. It was then almost decayed and was "of mixed red and white silk fabric in four sections with olive branches and a gilded key in the middle, decorated, and surrounded with an incomplete Latin inscription on both sides: Stationen in qvo ... suam qva Miles locatus est armatus". The colour was also stated to include Dalarna’s provincial coat of arms and to have been brought back from Stettin "some time ago". A newly raised company received a blue colour on 24 June 1656 and three more newly raised companies that were to serve on the fleet received blue and yellow colours in 1657.

After peace was concluded in 1660, it was not until 1670 before new colours were issued. Then the battalion being sent to Stettin received four crimson colours. This information also comes from Pihlström, who obviously does not believe that the colour in Stora Tuna belong to this set.

The uncertainty surrounding the appearance of Dal Regiment colours disappeared in 1673 when Sweden received its first colour regulation, which determined what each regiment's colours would look like. According to this, the regular company colours were to have the same appearance as the provincial coat of arms, which for Dalarna was a blue field with two crossed arrows and a crown in gold. The colour of the colonel’s company was to be white with the same symbol surrounded by palm leaves or a laurel wreath.

In 1674 the entire Dal Regiment received a set of eight m/1673 colours. The seven company colours were then bleumerant (pale blue) and all colours had only the Dalarna provincial coat of arms as a motif. But whether the colonel's colour had palm leaves or a laurel wreath around the provincial coat of arms is not mentioned in the painter Baltzar Friedrich's liquidation. Another blue colour was made by him in the spring of 1676 for a newly formed company that would serve in the navy. No details about the motif are mentioned, but if it followed the new regulation from 1675, the provincial coat of arms would be surrounded by a laurel wreath and each corner would have a flaming grenade. During the Battle of Lund three colours were lost, but two of them were recaptured during the same battle and only one was permanently lost to the Danes.

On 12 May 1677, a set of eight m/1675 colours, painted by Baltzar Friedrich, was issued. The finials were made of silver-plated iron. The company colours should have had both a laurel wreath around the coat of arms and flaming grenade in the corners, but only the laurel wreath is mentioned in the liquidation. The regulation from 1675 was replaced by a new regulation in 1686. According to this, the seven company colours would no longer have grenades in the corners and the motif would now only consist of the provincial coat of arms surrounded by a green laurel wreath. The Colonel's colour would have the Swedish national coat of arms in the middle and the coat of arms of Dalarna in the upper inner corner. As an aid to the acquisition of new colours, a series of model drawings were made (see images above).

The regulation from 1675 was replaced by a new regulation in 1686. According to this, the seven company colours would no longer have grenades in the corners and the motif would now only consist of the provincial coat of arms surrounded by a green laurel wreath. The Colonel's colour would have the Swedish national coat of arms in the middle and the coat of arms of Dalarna in the upper inner corner. As an aid to the acquisition of new colours, a series of model drawings were made (see images above).

The first m/1686 colours were issued in 1690 and were painted by the same Olof Hoffman who had made the model drawings for m/1686. These colours are said to have been carried until the Battle of Poltava when four or possibly five of them were taken by the Russians. What happened to the other colours is unclear. However, an ensign in the Dal Regiment, Isac Pommerijn, said that he tore off his colour and hid it under his coat upon surrender. He was probably not alone in doing so, as this would explain why only half of the Dal Regiment's colours were reported as trophies by the Russians. A year later, Pommerijn burned his colour because he was afraid of being discovered. The same fate happened to the colours taken by the Russians when the Kremlin burned down in 1737. In the Russian descriptions, the colours had a spruce staff and a gilded iron finial.

Colonel's and company colour in use 1710-1713

When the Swedish army was restored in 1709-1710, Daniel Stawert and Johan Wikman were commissioned to paint the regiments' colours. The division of labour between them is not known, but the style of the Dal Regiment's colours suggests that they were made by Wikman. The colonel's colour's crowns have red outlines and the knot on the company colours' laurel wreaths has only one loop, which are details that are characteristic of him. However, this set of colours did not last long, as the capitulation in Tönning meant that the Russians once again captured four of the Dal Regiment's colours. The colonel's colour and two company colours fell to the Danes. The last colour was probably awarded to the Saxons, but none of the colours they took have survived today.

Company colour in use 1714-1728

When the Dal Regiment was to be restored for the second time in 1713, cost-saving measures were taken. The number of colours per regiment was reduced from eight to four and the storages were searched to find older colours that could be used. For the Dal Regiment, there were four company colours in storage that Olof Hoffman had made in 1700-1701. These had been intended for a reorganisation of the Dal Regiment from eight to twelve companies that was very short-lived. But in 1714, three of these were issued to the Dal Regiment together with a newly made colonel's colour by Johan Wikman that had actually been intended for the Uppland 3-männing Regiment. The colonel's colour for this 3-männing regiment, which was also recruited in Dalarna and Västmanland, should have been white with Charles XII's cipher as the central motif and small images of the provincial coat of arms in the corners.

Hoffman's colours appear to have had an original height of about 196 cm and a width of 220 cm. The staffs were 356 cm long of blue-grey painted pine.

Company colour in use 1728-1741

It was not until 1728 that the Dal Regiment once again received a full set of eight colours. This time painted by Johan Wikman. But it would also be the last time each company received its own colour, as from 1733 only four colours were issued per regiment. The preserved company colours' staffs are made of brown-painted pine and the colours themselves were originally 170 cm high and 216 cm wide.

Colonel's colour in use 1741 and Company colour in use 1741-1766

The next set consisting of only four colours was embroidered by Tobias Leij the Elder in 1741. The change in manufacturing technique from painting to embroidery resulted in the motif being made smaller so that the colour would not be too heavy. The brand new colonel's colour was lost to the Russians already in the Battle of Villmanstrand on 23 August 1741. Tobias Leij was therefore commissioned to embroider a new colonel's colour in 1742. This was the last m/1686 set for the Dal Regiment as the next set issued in 1766 was of the short-lived m/1761. During this time the colonel's colours had crowns in the corners. The colonel's colour kept in Russia is said to have a white-painted staff while the company colours' staffs are painted brown.

Colonel's colour in use 1766-1814

Model drawing of the Dal Regiment's m/1761 company colour (colours like this were in use 1766-1814

In 1761, the appearance of Swedish company colours was changed so that the laurel wreath was replaced with a frame consisting of seashells and a crown in gold. However, this change was not popular, and the frame was described as "wooden", so already in 1766 the seashells were replaced with palm leaves. But even though m/1761 was short-lived, the Dal Regiment's colours of this type were long-lived. Christoffer Sergel embroidered four colours in 1766, one of which was a colonel's colour that unusually had the provincial coat of arms in a crowned shield. These colours were still considered in good enough condition in 1808 to be repairable.

Unknown colonel's colour from the reign of Charles XIII All regiments' colonel's colours were identical at that time

Company colour in use 1814-1820

The Dal Regiment finally received its first m/1766 colours in 1814. The colonel's colour was then made by Anette Berger and the company colours by Abigael Ulrika Rahmn. At this time, the colonels colours no longer had the provincial coat of arms in the upper inner corner and instead had closed crowns in each corner, which meant that all regiments had identical colonel's colours. This set was replaced by m/1819 colours already in 1820.

Other Equipment

In 1696, it was decided that the regiments would store their uniforms in leather bags instead of chests.

According to the regulations from 1697, all officers were to have five ell long half-pikes with brown shafts. They were also to have a musket ("glatt bössa") for field use of the same calibre as the musketeers. The non-commissioned officers were to have 3 ½ ell long halberd with unpainted shafts.

At the outbreak of war, the men's weapons were old and in poor condition. The muskets that had been issued in 1683 were two-thirds matchlock muskets (only the senior and junior filemaster in each file had a flintlock musket) and the musket barrels were so bad that they could not withstand a full charge. But during the march to Scania, the old muskets were replaced in Örebro so that all musketeers had a flintlock musket and bayonet.

The pikes were provided with flags in 1691, which may have been unique to the Dal Regiment. These flags were in use until at least 1699.

When the regiment was restored in 1709-10, as usual, one third of the men were armed with pikes. However, since it was to remain in Dalarna and defend the Falu mine against possible Norwegian attacks, colonel Magnus Julius De la Gardie requested that the pikes be replaced with muskets, with the following justification:

"as the defence will seem much better than with pikes in these mountainous places, especially since the regiment then has a third more shot and also bayonets instead of pikes for counter-attack, which by experience have had better effect on many occasions."

The War College granted this request and the Dal Regiment first received 400 dragoon muskets in 1710 before exchanging them for regular flintlock muskets the same year. This armament was retained during Stenbock's campaign in 1712-13 and was also issued when the regiment was restored in 1714. However, Charles XII was a supporter of the pike and after his return to Sweden he decided that one third of the men in each regiment should once again be armed with pikes. It did not help that De la Gardie emphasized how effective muskets with bayonets had been in the Battle of Gadebusch. When the Dal Regiment participated in the Norwegian campaigns of 1716 and 1718 it was therefore armed with pikes.

After the death of Charles XII, however, the pikes were exchanged for muskets again when the regiment passed Stockholm in July 1719. Although, already on 24 November 1719, a royal resolution was issued that determined that all infantry regiments should have pikes. But now the proportion of pikemen would only be a quarter. Despite the resolution, it was not until early 1722 that the Dal Regiment was again provided with pikes. In order to be able to practice the men until they received real pikes, the company commanders had been ordered in 1720 to procure wooden pikes (only the shafts?).

No tents were brought to the Norwegian campaign in 1716, as these had been left behind in Wismar in 1712. Instead, they had to sleep in “cabin camps”. New tents were delivered in 1717. Overall, the regiment’s equipment was in good condition for the Norwegian campaign in 1718, thanks to the emergency coins. New baggage trains had been purchased in the spring of 1718.

An inventory of the colonel’s company's equipment from 1699 mentions that each soldier had a copper drinking bottle. In 1709, copper bottles with three half-stops volume (1.95 litres) each are mentioned. In 1714, a copper bottle with a strap is mentioned. In 1718, the same company had wooden bottles (33), copper bottles (27) and bottles made of tin (90).

Asker, Björn. Om svenska fotfolkets nybeklädnad (article in MAM 40). Stockholm (1983)
Asker, Björn. Svenska uniformsförteckningar 1655-1683 (article in MAM 37). Stockholm (1978)
Bellander, Erik. Dräkt och uniform. Stockholm (1973)
Cederström, Rudolf. Svenska kungliga hufvudbanér. Stockholm (1900)
Ericson, Lars. Fastställda uniformsmodeller för svenska armén under 1720-talet (article in MAM 45-46). Stockholm (1986)
Grill, C. Statistiskt sammandrag af svenska indelningsverket. (Facsimile edition 1988)
Höglund, Lars-Eric. Skånska kriget1675-79 - Fanor och uniformer. Karlstad (1999)
Höglund, Lars-Eric – Sallnäs, Åke. Stora nordiska kriget 1700-1721 - Fanor och uniformer. Karlstad (2000)
Larsson, Anders. Karolinska uniformer och munderingar åren 1700-1721. Östersund (2022)
Markelius, Martin. Gustav III:s armé. Stockholm (2020)
Pihlström, Anton. Kungl. Dalregementets historia. Stockholm (1902-1911)
Törnquist, Leif. Infanteriets fanor m/1686 (article in SVSS-NS XXX). Stockholm (2015)
Törnquist, Leif. Infanteriets fanor 1761-1900 (article in SVSS-NS XXXIII). Stockholm (2018)
Wennerholm, J Bertil R. Emporterade troféer. Bohus (2000)
Wernstedt, Folke. Svenska standar och fanor 1654-1686 (article in Meddelanden från Riksheraldikerämbetet X). Malmö (1945)