Sweden had just lost one third of its population, as Russia had conquered the eastern part and created the Grand Duchy of Finland out of it during the Finnish War in 1808–1809. Shortly after, in 1814, the west flank had been secured by the personal union with Norway, and after the Napoleonic Wars, the former main enemy of Sweden in the south, Denmark, was no longer any threat. The only threat left was Russia, which now stood just across the border in the north, and had possession of the Åland Islands less than 150 km from the Swedish capital Stockholm. The Swedish Navy was considered superior to the Russian in the Gulf of Bothnia, so a seaborne invasion against the coast of Norrland was not likely. And even though the Russians had invaded northern Sweden via Finland in the previous war, the general opinion was that in case of a new war, their main attack would be conducted towards Stockholm and southern Sweden.