The battle of Fredrikshamn was an attack by the Swedish archipelago fleet on their Russian counterparts near the town of Fredrikshamn during the

Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790) The Russo-Swedish War of 1788–1790 was fought between Sweden and Russia from June 1788 to August 1790. The war was ended by the Treaty of Värälä on 14 August 1790 and took place concomitantly with both the Austro-Turkish War (1788–1791) ...

Order of battle

Swedish coastal fleet was commanded by

Gustav III Gustav III (29 March 1792), also called ''Gustavus III'', was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of Adolf Frederick of Sweden and Queen Louisa Ulrika of Prussia. Gustav was a vocal opponent of what ...

. It consisted of 1

turuma A turuma (from the Finnish word "Turunmaa") was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet in the late 18th century. It was specifically developed for warfare in the Archipelago Sea and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland. Th ...

, 1

pojama A or (also ) was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was developed for warfare in the Archipelago Sea and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland against the Russian navy. Th ...

and 2

udema An udema (), also udenma, was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was developed for warfare in the Archipelago Sea in the Baltic and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland ...

type archipelago frigates, 1

xebec A xebec ( or ), also spelled zebec, was a Mediterranean sailing ship that was used mostly for trading. Xebecs had a long overhanging bowsprit and aft-set mizzen mast. The term can also refer to a small, fast vessel of the sixteenth to nineteenth ...

, 18

galley A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be used ...

s, 40 gun sloops (kanonslup), 30 gun yawls (kanonjolle), 9 cannon longboats (kanonbarkass) and 4 mortar longboats (mörsarbarkass). Russian coastal naval unit was led by Pjotr Slisoff. It consisted of 1

type archipelago frigate (''Sällan Värre''), 1

, 10 half-galleys, 59 gun sloops and 2 gun prams ''Tiger'' and ''Leopard''. In addition to the naval units the Russians had an artillery battery on the shore supporting them.

Battle

The battle started in the early morning of May 15, 1790 when the Swedish fleet approached Fredrikshamn. The Russian fleet at Fredrikshamn hastily scrambled and sailed to face them and a several-hour-long firefight commenced with devastating result for the Russians. The battle cost the Russians 26 ships sunk or captured including the

type archipelago frigate ''Sällan Värre'' that for the second time entered Swedish service after it originally had been captured by the Russians in the

First battle of Svensksund The First Battle of Svensksund, also known as the First Battle of Rochensalm from the Russian version of the Finnish: ''Ruotsinsalmi'', was a naval battle fought in the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea, outside the present-day city of Kotka, o ...

. Defenders heaviest vessels were unable to navigate to the shallow waters in the bay and were easily captured by the attacker. After the battle the Swedish ships entered Fredrikshamn harbor and demanded the commander of the town fortifications to surrender along with the remainder of the Russian fleet. Any surprise initiative the Swedes had after the battle was lost when Gustav III allowed the Russian commander request of an hour of respite to value the demands of surrender. When the attack on the town resumed later that day the garrison was reinforced and ready. Any further Swedish attacks proved fruitless and in the evening of May 15 the Swedish fleet withdrew back to Svensksund.

Aftermath and analysis

According to several historians the Swedish archipelago fleet under King

lost golden opportunity when instead of attacking 14 May 1790 they chose to delay until 15 May. At the time neither the Russian coastal fleet squadron nor the fort had been properly manned and would have likely been both lost under determined attack by the archipelago fleet alone. Final chance to capture the fort was lost on 15 May when king allowed an hour of respite which made it possible for the Russians to gather reinforcements and prepare their defenses.

References

Bibliography

* *{{cite book , last1=Mattila , first1=Tapani , title=Meri maamme turvana , trans-title=Sea safeguarding our country , year=1983 , publisher=K. J. Gummerus Osakeyhtiö , location=Jyväskylä , language=Finnish , isbn=951-99487-0-8 *Ulf Sundberg, Hjalmarson and Högberg (1998). Svenska krig 1521-1814 Fredrikshamn Hamina Fredrikshamn Fredrikshamn History of Kymenlaakso