In 1636 his great victory over Saxon and imperial forces at the Battle of Wittstock restored both Sweden’s morale and (for a time) its paramount influence in central Germany. In 1637, hard pressed by the enemy’s armies and almost surrounded, he made a strategic retreat into northern Germany that provoked the contemporary comment that “the enemy had put him in the sack but had forgotten to tie it.” By the end of 1638, however, Banér had collected reinforcements, with which he began a new offensive toward central and southern Germany.
At Chemnitz (April 1639), he defeated the imperial forces. Reinforced by French troops, he advanced toward southern Germany during the summer and autumn of 1640 but could not force the enemy to a battle. After a dangerous march through Bohemia in the winter, he died at Halberstadt of a pulmonary disease contracted during the winter campaign. Since the development of the office of prime minister, holders of the position have typically concentrated on the most high-profile or strategic aspects of government, particularly top-level foreign relations, major defense decisions, macroeconomic policy, and the government’s legislative timetable and priorities.
