As Almbjär is an expert on 18th century Swedish #consuls in Spanish port towns, it does not come as a surprise that he contributes with his expertise on the development of #earlymodern Scandinavian #diplomacy for the #emdiplomacy handbook. He thus presents the first ever comprehensive summary of the development of #emdiplomacy in #Scandinavia (4/5)
His project on Swedish #consuls points to something that seems to be a characteristic of Scandinavian #emdiplomacy: the very close connection between #diplomatic activities and (maritime) #trade interests, commercial #diplomacy in other words.
Permanent #embassies in #Scandinavia developed relatively slowly. It was not before the 1600s that #resident#diplomats became a feature of Scandinavian #diplomacy. We know much more about the foreign #envoys in the North than about Scandinavian diplomats at foreign places. Writing about #earlymodern Danish and Swedish #diplomacy is not easy, as Scandinavia seems to be a blind spot in the historiography on #earlymodern#diplomacy and for #NewDiplomaticHistory. But Martin manages to cover a wide time span from the end of the #MiddleAges to the 18th century. (5/5)