''Król Dawid'' ( English: "King David") was a 31-gun

galleon Galleons were large, multi-decked sailing ships developed in Spain and Portugal. They were first used as armed cargo carriers by Europe, Europeans from the 16th to 18th centuries during the Age of Sail, and they were the principal vessels dr ...

of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Navy Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Navy was the navy of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and existed from 1627 to 1643. History The Commonwealth Navy was small and played a relatively minor role in the history of the Commonwealth. Juliusz Ba ...

that fought in the

Battle of Oliwa The Battle of Oliwa, also known as the Battle of Oliva or the Battle of Gdańsk Roadstead, was a naval battle that took place on 28 November, 1627, slightly north of the port of Gdańsk off of the coast of the village of Oliva during the Polish ...

. She was launched as ''König David'' at

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

in 1623 as a

merchant ship A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are ...

. During the Polish-Lithuanian wars with Sweden, it was drafted into the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth navy along with ''Wodnik'' and '' Arka Noego''. They fought in the

Battle of Hel The Battle of Hel (, literally "the Defense of Hel") was a World War II engagement fought from 1 September to 2 October 1939 on the Hel Peninsula, of the Baltic Sea coast, between invading German forces and defending Polish units during the Ge ...

on 17 May 1627. After a short artillery duel the skirmish was over. The following day the escadrille met a convoy of 24 Swedish vessels off the coast of Biała Góra, near

Łeba Łeba (, ; ) is a seaside town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of northern Poland. It is located in the region of Gdańsk Pomerania ( Pomerelia), near Łebsko Lake and the mouth of the river Łeba on the Slovincian Coast of the Baltic Sea. History ...

. After a short artillery barrage, the Commonwealth's ships managed to evade the enemy and headed for Kolberg (Kołobrzeg). Several days afterwards the escadre managed to break through the Swedish blockade and returned to Wisłoujście, one of two main bases of the Polish-Lithuanian Navy.Georg Wislicenus, Willy Stöwer: ''Deutschlands Seemacht nebst einem Überblick über die Geschichte der Seefahrt aller Völker.'' p. 44, 2007, Under the command of a Scottish captain and shipbuilder Jakub Murray, the ship took part in the victorious

battle of Oliwa The Battle of Oliwa, also known as the Battle of Oliva or the Battle of Gdańsk Roadstead, was a naval battle that took place on 28 November, 1627, slightly north of the port of Gdańsk off of the coast of the village of Oliva during the Polish ...

of 28 November 1627. However, the ship played only a minor role and failed to support '' Wodnik'' in her attack on Swedish galleon '' Solen'' yet received some damage. After the battle the command was given to Gregor Fentross, who also became the admiral of the Polish-Lithuanian fleet. Thus ''König David'' became the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

of the entire Polish-Lithuanian Navy. However, during the Swedish assault on Wisłoujście of 6 July 1628, admiral Fentross was killed and the ship received some damage due to artillery fire. All Commonwealth's ships were withdrawn up the

Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...

river. In January 1629, the ship was rented by king

Sigismund III Vasa Sigismund III Vasa (, ; 20 June 1566 – 30 April 1632 N.S.) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1587 to 1632 and, as Sigismund, King of Sweden from 1592 to 1599. He was the first Polish sovereign from the House of Vasa. Re ...

to the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

-led Catholic League and served during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

. Stationed in

Wismar Wismar (; ), officially the Hanseatic City of Wismar () is, with around 43,000 inhabitants, the sixth-largest city of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and the fourth-largest city of Mecklenburg after Rostock, Schwerin and ...

, the ship fought against Danish and Swedish fleets at the Baltic Sea and the Northern Sea. In November 1630, however, chased by a Swedish pursuit escadre, ''König David'' was forced to seek refuge in

Lübeck Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...

and was then interned by the locals. The further fate of the ship remains unknown.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krol Dawid Tall ships of Poland Ships built in Gdańsk 1620s ships Galleons of Poland