Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven (c. 1580 - April 4, 1661 in Balgonie, Fife, Scotland), was a Scottish soldier, in Swedish service from 1605 until 1638, where he rose to the rank of Field Marshal. Alexander was the son of captain George Leslie, and a member of the family of Leslie of Balquhain. He married in 1637 to Agnes Renton (died June 29, 1651, daughter of David Renton of Billie), and in due course his eldest son, Gustav Leslie became a colonel in the Swedish Army. 

Alexander Leslie

Events March 1 - Michel de Montaigne signs the preface to his most significant work, Essays. ... April 4 is the 94th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (95th in leap years). ... Events January 6 - The fifth monarchy men unsuccessfully attempt to seize control of London. ... Balgonie is a town in southeastern Canada, 23 km east of Regina beside the Trans_Canada Highway. ... Fife (Fìobh in Gaelic) is a unitary council region of Scotland situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth. ... ... ... Events April 13 - Tsar Boris Godunow dies - Feodor II accedes to the throne May 16 - Paul V becomes Pope June 1 - Russian troops in Moscow imprison Feodor II and his mother. ... Events March 29 - Swedish colonists establish first settlement in Delaware, called New Sweden. ... This is a list of the 77 Field Marshals of Sweden, with their respective years of appointment, from the 16th to the 19th century. ... Swedish Army - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Alexander Leslie http://www. ...

In Swedish service

Alexander Leslie joined the Swedish army in 1605 and distinguished himself several times during the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) serving in the Swedish army for about 33 years. By 1626 Alexander Leslie had risen to the rank of lieutenant-general, and had been knighted by the Swedish monarch, Gustavus Adolphus. The victory of Gustavus Adolphus at the Battle of Breitenfeld (1631) The Thirty Years War was a conflict fought between the years 1618 and 1648, principally in the central European territory of the Holy Roman Empire, but also involving most of the major continental powers. ... Events March 8 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion (he soon rejects the idea after some initial calculations were made but on May 15 confirms the discovery). ... // Events Peace treaty signed at Westphalia ends the Thirty Years War. ... This is a list of Swedish monarchs, that is, the Kings and ruling Queens of Sweden with Regents and Viceroys of the Kalmar Union up until the present time. ... Gustav II Adolph Gustav II Adolph (December 9, 1594 - November 6, 1632) (also known as Gustav Adolph the Great, under the Latin name Gustavus Adolphus or the Swedish form Gustav II Adolf) was a King of Sweden. ...

Sir Alexander Leslie was badly wounded in the winter of 1632, but in 1636 he was appointed Field Marshal. He was one of the commanders at the Battle of Wittstock in 1636, where he was subordinate to Johan Banér. Events February 24 - King Christian of Denmark gives an order that all beggars that are able to work must be sent to Brinholmen Island to build ships or as galley rowers March 26 - Utrecht University founded in The Netherlands. ... This is a list of the 77 Field Marshals of Sweden, with their respective years of appointment, from the 16th to the 19th century. ... The Holy Roman Emperor in Vienna, with his Saxon and Catholic allies, was contesting Northern Germany with the Protestant princes, championed by the Swedes. ... Johan Banér (June 23, 1596 - May 10, 1641) was a Swedish soldier in the Thirty Years War. ...

Return to Scotland

In 1638 events in England compelled him to return to Scotland to lead the army of the Covenanters in the Bishops Wars. Scottish regiments were generally called into service by the lairds and clan chieftains obliging their tenants with feudal duty or coercion to send their kin to follow the Covenanters? banner into battle. The flag bore the motto 'For Christ's Crown and Covenant' and appeared in 1639 before the Covenanter army commanded by General Alexander Leslie, an ardent Covenanter. ...

His reputation, guile and discretion, brought even the rebellious Scottish lords to his subordination. Having amassed a considerable fortune abroad he was able to bring from Sweden his arrears of pay in the form of cannon and muskets which he no doubt put to use in taking the castle of Edinburgh by surprise, without the loss of a single man, for the king and against Parliament. Edinburgh (pronounced ), Dùn Èideann () in Scottish Gaelic, is the second-largest city in Scotland and its capital city. ...

In 1641 King Charles bestowed upon him at Holyrood, the title of earl of Leven and Lord Balgonie, and made him captain of Edinburgh Castle and a privy councillor. A 19th century view of Holyrood Palace from Calton Hill. ... This article concerns the British Sovereigns Privy Council. ...

Leven eventually accepted command of the forces raised for the invasion of England, and was in consequence accused of having broken his personal oath to Charles. He rose in stead to become a commander of the Scottish army from 1644 to 1646 and fought on the side of Parliament.

In 1644 Leven commanded an army which he marched to England to take part in the battle of Marston Moor, a crushing defeat for the king. When Charles surrendered to the Scottish army again in 1646, he was placed under the charge of General Lord Leven and was returned to the English in 1647. The Battle of Marston Moor, which took place on July 2, 1644, was the largest battle of the English Civil War, and one of the most decisive. ...

Although over seventy years of age, and still active Leven passed active command of the army to his nephew David Leslie in whom he had complete confidence, before the Scottish Covenanters (then royalist) were defeated (1650) at the battle of Dunbar. See also David Leslie the Scottish rugby player. ... Cromwell at Dunbar, Andrew Carrick Gow The Battle of Dunbar (3 September 1650) was a battle of the Third English Civil War. ...

"In the new war, and in the disastrous campaign of Dunbar, Leven took but a nominal part, though attempts were afterwards made to hold him responsible".

In August, 1651 Leven had the misfortune to be captured by a group of English dragoons, and was sent to London. He was confined to the Tower of London for some time, until he was released on providing a bond of £20,000, whereupon he retired to Northumberland. Again sometime later in London he was arrested a second time, but through negotiations with the queen of Sweden he again obtained his liberty. A light dragoon from the American Revolution Statue of a dragoon on the Triumph Arc of the Louvres in Paris During the late 17th and early 18th centuries a dragoon was traditionally a soldier trained to fight on foot, but transport himself on horseback. ... London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... The Tower of London, seen from the river, with a view of the water gate called Traitors Gate. ... For other places with this name, see Northumberland (disambiguation) Northumberland is a traditional, ceremonial and administrative county in northern England. ...

External link

• Leslie Family history