The Russian occupation of Gotland took place in April and May 1808, during the Finnish War between

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

and Russia.

History

Russia had invaded Finland on 21 February 1808. An invasion force of nine Russian merchant ships left Liepāja and landed 22 April, after losing its course due to fog, at Slesviken in Grötlingbo on south

Gotland Gotland (, ; ''Gutland'' in Gutnish), also historically spelled Gottland or Gothland (), is Sweden's largest island. It is also a province, county, municipality, and diocese. The province includes the islands of Fårö and Gotska Sandön to the ...

with 1,800 men and six artillery guns under the command of Admiral Nikolai Andreevich Bodisko. After some initial confusion, beacons raised an invasion alarm which eventually reached the county governor, the retired marine officer Erik af Klint. Af Klint started organizing an armed force in Gotland following orders from Stockholm. However, Gotland had no troops ready at the time of the invasion. Instead af Klint had to raise a peasant levy. The levy encountered the Russian expeditionary force at Klinte Church and . Af Klint judged the military situation unfavorable and decided to surrender without a fight. On 23 April the surrender took place, without documents, at the Sandäskes inn in Sanda. The next day the Russian force marched into Visby and found quarters. Bodisko proclaimed himself governor of Gotland, but Swedish officials -- except for af Klint -- were allowed to remain. The two Swedish ships of the line ' and '' Manligheten'' were sent from

Karlskrona Karlskrona (, , ) is a locality and the seat of Karlskrona Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden with a population of 66,675 in 2018. It is also the capital of Blekinge County. Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to Swed ...

and blockaded the harbor of Slite beginning 12 May, hampering the possibility of Russian reinforcements. A Swedish relief expedition under the command of Admiral Rudolf Cederström was dispatched from Karlskrona on 11 May with the ships of the line ', ', ''Prins Fredrik Adolph'' and '' Äran'', the

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

''Bellona 5'', the

brigantine A brigantine is a two-masted sailing vessel with a fully square-rigged foremast and at least two sails on the main mast: a square topsail and a gaff sail mainsail (behind the mast). The main mast is the second and taller of the two masts. Older ...

s ''Svala'' and ''Disa'' and the yacht ''Fortuna''. On board were soldiers from

Småland Småland () is a historical province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means ''Small Lands''. The Latinized fo ...

commanded by the lieutenant-colonel of the Jönköping Regiment, (1757–1834). When news reached Visby that Swedish forces were on Gotland, the Russians capitulated. The Swedish force of over two thousand had by this time marched to Tule in Ganthem from Sandviken in

Gammelgarn Gammelgarn is a populated area, a socken (not to be confused with parish), on the Swedish island of Gotland. It comprises the same area as the administrative Gammelgarn District, established on 1January 2016. Geography Gammelgarn is situated i ...

, where the Swedish fleet squadrons had arrived on 14 May. The Russians evacuated Visby on 17 May and left Gotland via Slite the next day.

Losses

The only loss associated with the Russian occupation was boatsman Carl Fredrik Lindgren (1777–1808), who fell to his death from the rigging of the flagship, ''Konung Gustav IV Adolph'', at Sandviken. He was buried at .

Aftermath

Nikolai Bodisko was court-martialed and lost his commission (which he later regained). In Sweden, the occupation led to the organization of national conscription, and

Gotland National Conscription The Gotland National Conscription ( sv, Gotlands nationalbeväring) was a Swedish Army infantry unit that traced its origins back to the 19th century. It was split into two new regiments in 1887. The regiment's soldiers were recruited on the islan ...

was the first unit 1811.

Notes, citations and sources

Notes

Citations

Sources

* *{{Citation , title=Den ryska ockupationen av Gotland 1808 , url=https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:236110/FULLTEXT01.pdf , first=Åke , last=Sandström , language=sv , year=2008
Ingemund Hägg: ''Graven på Sysneudd'', 2013
* Gunnar Unger: ''Illustrerad svensk sjökrigshistoria: afsedd för undervisningen vid k. sjökrigsskolan. Del 1, omfattande tiden intill 1680'', Bonniers, Stockholm 1909, pp 228-32
Mika Koskelainen: ''I spåren efter den ryska invasionen av Gotland 1808'' på Sveriges Radios webbplats 22 mars 2008
viewed 2014-08-28 1808 in Sweden Finnish War Conflicts in 1808 Gotland Russian military occupations