The treatise was meant as an analysis of problems connected with the monumental work of Samuel Pufendorf on the reign of Charles X Gustav, King of Sweden. Printed in Nuremberg in 1696, it has not been systematically explored so far. The book of Pufendorf continues to surprise, allows one to re-read the great conflict, known as the Second Northern War, which influenced a large part of Europe. Many legends and myths relate to this dramatic era, some of which are supported by the data contained in the Pufendorf's book, and others may be challenged on the basis of his account. Wojciech Krawczuk's study is mainly devoted to the military history, but it also touches upon other topics, to wit the history of diplomacy and bureaucracy or the research on the early modern cultural landscape.

Wojciech Krawczuk is Associate Professor of History at the Jagiellonian University, Poland. He is a specialist in auxiliary sciences of history, translator and environmentalist. He has published numerous articles and books on the early modern Polish Crown Chancery, history of Sweden, German inscriptions of Silesia.