This Sovereign, In 1540, Entered Into A Commercial Treaty With Francis I., King Of France; The Principal Article Of Which Was, That The Swedes Should Import Their Wine, Salt, &C. Directly From France, Instead Of Obtaining Them Indirectly From The Dutch.

The conquest of Revel by Sweden, and the consequent footing obtained in Livonia, in 1560, greatly increased its commerce and wealth; while important improvements were introduced into its manufactures of iron a few years afterwards by the Flemings, who fled there on the destruction of Antwerp.

Prior to their arrival, most of the Swedish iron was forged in Dantzic and Prussia; but they not only taught the Swedes how to forge it, but also how to make iron cannon, and other iron, copper, and brass articles. The Swedes had from an early period, been sensible of the real riches of their territory, and how much their timber, iron, pitch, and tar, were converted for maritime and other purposes. The pitch and tar manufacture especially had long constituted a very considerable part of their commerce. In 1647, Queen Christiana very unwisely granted a monopoly of these articles, which was productive of the usual effects, injury to commerce, without a correspondent benefit to those who held it. In the beginning of the eighteenth century, the tar company in Sweden not only put a very high price on their goods, but refused to sell them, even for ready money, unless they were exported in Swedish vessels. In consequence of this, England began at this period to encourage the importation of tar, pitch, hemp, and naval timber, from her American colonies.

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