This article provides details on Swedish warship losses from all causes, both combat and non-combat, during the Skånian war of 1675-1679.

by Eric Nielsen

This article provides details on Swedish warship losses from all causes, both combat and non-combat, during the Skånian war of 1675-1679.

Sweden’s 1675-1679 warship losses are particularly significant in Danish naval history because many of these Swedish warships were captured incorporated into the Danish navy. In fact, the 1675-1679 war captures of Swedish warships constitute the Danish navy’s greatest accretion of naval strength, in Danish naval history, through combat captures.

The Swedish warship losses are listed in this article in chronological order, on the basis of these ships’ individual loss dates. When numerous Swedish warships were lost on a single day, as in a major fleet battle, the individual Swedish warships are listed in the chronological sequence in which they became battle casualties.

In instances where only the year of a Swedish warship’s loss is known, but neither the month nor day in that year, the warship is listed at the end of the compilation for the year in question.

Provisional Compilation

This article’s compilation of Swedish warship wartime losses is a provisional or “preliminary” study, based upon available secondary sources, which are often defective, fragmentary, or contradictory.

Further research needs to be conducted to rectify or supplement the data contained in this list of Swedish warship losses. However, the data regarding the more important Swedish warship losses contained in this compilation is usually the most complete of the Swedish warships’ data presented – it’s expected that there will be fewer omissions of either ships or data in this category.

The Skånian War’s Antecedents

Denmark’s Skånian war had antecedents in the international power politics of its time, including the major international problems posed by (1) the French king Louis XIV’s territorial ambitions; and (2) the commercial ambitions of the sea power rivals Britain and Holland. In this larger international arena with its complicated political alliances, Sweden became allied with Louis XIV’s France. As a result, Sweden declared war on Brandenburg, a supporter of Holland which, in turn, was a perennial target of French aggrandizement.

Denmark had treaty obligations with Brandenburg, and thus became drawn into a war with Sweden once Sweden declared war on Brandenburg. However, Denmark’s real, underlying concern in declaring war with Sweden was the appallingly adversity under which the Danish population of the Skånian provinces in Sweden suffered, by a hostile and brutal Swedish rule.

The Skånian War’s Inception Date

The actual date marking the inception of the Skånian war can be debated. However, for purposes of this article, hostilities between Denmark and Sweden began on September 2, 1675. From this inception date, the Skånian war continued for exactly four years, until terminated by peace treaties signed at Fontainebleau on August 13, 1679, and at Lund on September 6, 1679.

Denmark’s Allies: Holland and Brandenburg

Not all of the Swedish navy’s combat losses in the 1675-1679 Skånian War were caused by Danish naval action. During Denmark’s Skånian War, Danish naval operations were sometimes complemented by naval operations of Denmark’s wartime allies, Holland and Brandenburg. This is reflected by the fact that a few Swedish warship losses were caused by one these two allies of Denmark during the 1675-1679 War, as is noted in the “Cause of Loss”entries in the individual Swedish warship data profiles for individual Swedish warships listed in this article’s compilation.

Notwithstanding the participation of the naval forces of Holland and Brandenburg as Denmark’s allies in the Skånian war, Denmark’s navy was the predominant naval force on either side during the war, Denmark’s naval operations caused most of Sweden’s wartime losses, and most of Denmark’s naval successes during the war were achieved while the Danish fleet was operating under Danish command.

Niels Juel’s War

The distinguishing feature of the Skånian war from the standpoint of naval operations and, therefore, the importance of this compilation of Swedish warship losses, is that the Skånian war was “Niels Juel’s war,” i.e., the war in which Denmark’s greatest admiral, Niels Juel, achieved his great naval victories.

Uniform Format – In Presenting Warship’s Data

For ease of comparison between individual warships, this article presents the Swedish warships’ individual data in a uniform format – to the extent that individual Swedish warship’s data is available.

Warship Types

As “line of battle” naval tactics were still in their infancy during the Skånian war, the largest warships noted in this article’s compilation are referred to as “battleships” rather than as “ships-of-the-line” – the latter term is only appropriate to capital warships during the age of “line of battle” naval tactics.

As a general rule, during the Skånian war, a “battleship” was a warship armed with forty or more cannon.

The term “frigate” was not widely used in the Skånian war, and “frigates” did not have the distinctive role which they had in later years. The frigate functions, as understood during the later stages of the age of sail, seem to have been performed not only by “frigates,” but also by “jachts” and other light vessels. In the Skånian war, a “frigate” was just as likely to lay herself alongside a battleship and engage as was a fireship, although the latter had less gunpower.

The “(M)” Symbol – Merchantmen Converted to Warships

In the “Warship Type” entry under the profile of ship’s data for individual Swedish warship losses, the symbol “(M)” often appears following the designated warship type. This “(M)” symbol alerts the reader to the fact that the Swedes converted the Swedish warship in question from a merchantman to a warship, on an emergency wartime basis.

Where the “Warship Type” is followed by the “(M)” symbol, the mercantile origin of individual Swedish warships is further explained in the “Notes” entry of a Swedish warship’s data profile.

One of the most remarkable features of Sweden’s warship procurement policy during the Skånian war years was Sweden’s wholesale mobilization and conversion of Swedish merchantmen to warship status. Denmark did not have a similar policy, and converted no Danish merchantmen to warship status during the war years, although Denmark did retain on Danish naval strength captured Swedish warships which were mercantile in origin.

Sweden’s remarkable wartime acquisition and conversion to warships of a large number of Swedish merchantmen, to augment the strength of the Swedish fleet, is even more noticeable when one examines the entirety of the entries on the Swedish navy’s ship lists which enumerate all warships taken on strength – rather than isolated Swedish warship losses – regarding the origins of Sweden’s available warships.

Even more remarkable, Sweden’s conversion of merchantmen to warships succeeded in producing a considerable number of battleships, some of them with considerable gunpower, rather than in simply producing lesser warship types.

Warship Armament

The number of cannon noted under the “Armament” entry in each Swedish warship’s data profile is that Swedish warship’s Swedish armament, while in Swedish naval service, at the time of the Swedish warship’s loss.

Occasionally, a Swedish warship’s total armament is referred to in terms of “guns” rather than “cannon.” This occurs where a Swedish warship’s size, type, or function indicate that a particular Swedish warship’s stated total number of armament carried may not have been comprised entirely of cannon but may have contained, for example, a large number of swivels – e.g., anti-personnel weapons – mixed in with a cannon armament.

Variations in a specific Swedish warship’s armament, or an ex-Swedish warship’s Danish armament while in Danish naval service – when known – are noted in parenthesis in the “Armament” entry in an individual Swedish warship’s data profile. Other particulars of a specific Swedish (or ex-Swedish) warship’s armament are detailed in comments contained in the “Notes” entry in an individual Swedish warship’s data profile.

Warship Dimensions

Of particular interest, regarding Swedish warships captured by the Danes, are the sometimes significant or noticeable differences between the Swedish and Danish dimensions given for the same Swedish warship – in those instances when these different sets of national dimensions are available for comparison regarding an individual Swedish warship.

For some Swedish warships, no Swedish dimensions are available, so that the Danish dimensions, made by Denmark after a Swedish warship’s capture by Denmark, are the only dimensions available – the same is also true with occasional dimension measurements which Brandenburgers made of captured Swedish warships.

Comparison of a Swedish warship’s dimensions with those of other warships in the historical records is useful in identification of particular warships, either between Danish and Swedish entries regarding a warship, or between warship entries within the Danish and Swedish ship lists themselves. Warship identification is also often complicated by frequent differences in the spelling of a warship’s name in the various historical records, and in instances where several different extant warships simultaneously had the same or similar names.

A glaring quirk of the Swedish dimensions provided for Swedish warships covered by this article is that no dimensions are available for Swedish warship drafts (i.e., the depth of a ship’s hull below the waterline) – as is immediately evident when examining Swedish ship lists for this period. In this regard, Sweden apparently did not begin to keep dimension data on Swedish warship drafts until 1678, i.e., at the very juncture when Denmark’s Skånian War of 1675-1679 was already nearing its termination.

As a general rule, in those instances where both Danish and Swedish hull dimensions are available for a particular Swedish warship, the Danish hull dimensions are usually noticeably smaller than the comparable Swedish dimensions. One explanation for this difference is that the Danish foot at this time was larger (313.8 mm) than the corresponding Swedish foot (297 mm), and therefore produced smaller aggregate Danish dimensions for the same warship.

Another reason for national differences in a particular warship’s hull dimensions is the widespread lack of uniformity, precision, or architectural or shipwright skill, with which measurements of warship hulls were calculated at this historical time.

As another general rule, again in those instances where both Danish and Swedish hull dimensions are available for individual Swedish warships, one gains the impression from comparing the Swedish and Danish dimensions that most Swedish hull dimensions were “rounded off” to the nearest half-a-foot, whereas the Danish hull measurements for warships are more precise, specifically articulating the precise number of inches.

Swedish Warship “Capacity” in Swedish “Læsts.”

Another indication of Swedish warship’s relative size, in addition to or in lieu of the recorded hull dimensions of an individual Swedish warship, is a Swedish warship’s “capacity” in terms of Swedish “læsts” – sometimes spelled “lasts” in English.

A “læst” was an old Scandinavian measure of either bulk or weight, which was in use during the Skånian war and in fact continued to be widely employed until into the beginning of the 19th century. A Scandinavian “læst” had differing values at different historical times, and sometimes in different localities.

A “læst” was typically a measurement of the cubic volume of a ship’s hull capacity, rather than a measure of actual weight. Data on the “capacity” in Swedish “læsts” is usually available, if at all, for only mercantile Swedish ships hired or purchased into the Swedish navy after the outbreak of hostilities with Denmark, for conversion into warships.

In the mid-1600s, a Swedish “læst” was equivalent to about 1.6 tons “burthen,” whereas toward the end of the 1600s a Swedish læst was equivalent to about 1.9 tons burthen. Therefore, it is presumed that the 1.6 ton equivalency figure is the measure employed when quoted for Swedish warships listed in this article. However, this presumption may be incorrect in individual instances.

In examining the Swedish entries for the “læst” figures for ex-mercantile Swedish warships, one notices that these are usually given in very round figures (e.g., 300, 250, 200, 170). Therefore, one suspects that these recorded measures are very general and lack precision. Nevertheless, these figures are useful in providing an additional perspective on the relative size of individual Swedish warships.

Danish Warship Losses, 1675-1679

The Danish navy suffered virtually no important warship losses, in terms of “capital” warships, during the Skånian War. Therefore, the Danish navy emerged from the Skånian War relatively unscathed, in comparison to the considerable wartime losses suffered by the Swedish navy – particularly in terms of Swedish “capital” warship losses.

The few significant Danish warship losses during the Skånian War are noted below – these Danish wartime warship losses are operational losses and, therefore, do not include Danish warships which the Danish admiralty condemned during the war as being no longer serviceable.

In July, 1676, the Danish battleship KØBENHAVN (50) accidentally ran aground while getting under way, during the approach of the Swedish fleet, and had to be burnt in order to prevent her capture under unfavorable circumstances. Three years later, on July 2, 1679, the elderly Danish battleship ENIGHEDEN (62), originally built in 1650 as the PRINS CHRISTIAN, was deliberately sunk by the Danes at Kalmar harbor as a blockship to blockade the harbor entrance.

Though not wartime combat losses, two important Danish warships were lost almost immediately after the conclusion of the peace treaty at Fotainebleau on August 13, 1679, which terminated the Skånian War. As these warships were returning from operations at the conclusion of the war, it is appropriate to consider these losses in making a final assessment of the Danish navy’s wartime losses.

While returning home to Denmark from the large Swedish island of Öland at the conclusion of hostilities, the powerful Danish battleship NORSKE LØVE (86), built in 1665, was wrecked off the Danish island of Bornholm on August 16, 1679, i.e., just days after the formal signing of the peace treaty at Fotainebleau, which terminated the Skånian war.

When the Danish fleet arrived in Copenhagen after the conclusion of hostilities, it suffered another accidental loss on September 9, 1679, when the relatively new Danish frigate LOSSEN (30), built in 1675, accidentally burned. Thus, LOSSEN was lost just days after the signing of the second peace treaty, at Lund, on September 6, 1679.

The Final Reckoning in Warship Losses Between Sweden and Denmark
Denmark emerged from the Skånian war with her fleet intact, relatively unscathed, augmented in numerical strength, and utterly transformed in both power and war experience, compared to that of Sweden.

During the war, Denmark had only lost two battleships on operations, one of which was sunk on purpose, to blockade Kalmar harbor. Conversely, Sweden’s navy had lost approximately twenty battleships on operations, the majority of which were either captured by the Danes, or were incorporated into the Danish fleet – three of the Swedish battleships had been captured by the Dutch, but were transferred to the Danish navy.

Denmark had entered the Skånian war with roughly 20 battleships, but finished the war with thirty, having only built one. Conversely, Sweden had begun the war with 36 battleships, but lost twenty, and ended the war with just over twenty.

List of Swedish Warship Losses, 1675-1679

Name:	ELEPHANTEN
Date of loss:	October 16, 1675
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Warship type:	Storeship
Armament:	20 guns
Notes:	ELEPHANTEN was acquired by the Swedish navy in 1655. Therefore, ELEPHANTEN was at least 22 years old when she was lost on October 16, 1675, because 1655 is simply the first date of this vessel’s mention in the Swedish navy’s records. However, 1655 is not necessarily the date of this ship’s building, which could be earlier than 1655, i.e., at a date prior to the date which the Swedish navy acquired her.On October 16, 1675, apparently while moored together with a large assembly of 35 Swedish warships anchored at Karl’s Islands, southwest of the Island of Gotland, and under stress of heavy weather from a gale, the ELEPHANT dragged her anchors and, while doing so, collided with the Swedish battleships MERKURIUS (68) and then DRAKEN (66), dismasting both battleships. ELEPHANT was finally driven ashore, presumably by the force of the gale, where she broke up.

Name:	SALTSÄCKEN
Date of loss:	October 16, 1675
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Warship type:	Kray or Crayer (Kreyert), a ship-rigged Baltic coaster – acting as Storeship.”
Armament:	12 guns
Notes:	Built in Medelpad, acquired by the Swedish navy in 1675. Wrecked in the same storm, on the same date and in the same location, as the storeship ELEPHANT (see immediately preceding entry).

Name:	FALKEN
Date of loss:	December 13, 1675
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes at Wismar
Warship type:	Battleship/Frigate (Fregat)
Armament:	40 cannon (carried between 36-46 cannon in Swedish naval service) (carried 40-44 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 120′ 6″ Beam – 30′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 114′ 6″ Beam – 28′ 9″ Draft – 11′ 9″
Notes:	Built at Stockholm, and acquired by the Swedish navy in 1652. Also called STORA FALKEN in Swedish naval service.After her capture, FALKEN was taken into the Danish navy under the name SVENSKE FALKEN. Although an elderly vessel when captured – FALKEN was the second oldest large warship captured by the Danes during the war – SVENSKE FALKEN was not condemned by the Danish navy until 1695.Though probably considered to be a “battleship” when acquired by the Swedish navy in 1652, the Danes rated the SVENSKE FALKEN as a “frigate” after her capture, although she had the largest dimensions of any Danish frigate until at least the end of the 17th Century.

Name:	FORTUNA
Date of loss:	1975
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Kray or Crayer (Kreyert), a ship-rigged Baltic coaster
Notes:	Danish naval records list this vessel as a Swedish prize. FORTUNA was this vessel’s name while in Danish naval service; her Swedish name is unknown. Wrecked in 1676, while in Danish naval service.

Name:	VÄSTERVIK
Date of loss:	April 4, 1676
Cause of loss:	Accidentally burnt
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	44 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 125′ 6″ Beam – 28′ 6″
Notes:	Built at Västervik, after which she was named, in 1647. She was purchased into the Swedish navy the following year, in 1648. VÄSTERVIK was a very elderly vessel when lost – in fact, it’s possible that VÄSTERVIK, which was built in 1647, may even pre-date the Swedish battleship CESAR, which was the oldest Swedish warship captured by the Danes during the war. CESAR was acquired by the Swedish navy in 1648, but her building date is not known.The 1647 VÄSTERVIK listed in this entry is to be distinguished from a second vessel named VÄSTERVIK, i.e., a “struss” – a type of vessel which cannot be defined with any accuracy – which was purchased into the Swedish navy in 1665, i.e., 17 years after the 1647 VÄSTERVIK was built, and 11 years prior to the 1676 loss of the 1647 VÄSTERVIK. Therefore, two ships named VÄSTERVIK were simultaneously carried on the Swedish naval lists.The second VÄSTERVIK (i.e., the VÄSTERVIK purchased into the Swedish navy in 1665) was not “out of lists” with the Swedish navy until 1679, or three years after the 1647 VÄSTERVIK’s reported 1676 loss. The dimensions and armament of the second, 1665, VÄSTERVIK are not known, but she was apparently a much smaller vessel than the 1647 VÄSTERVIK which was lost in 1676.

Name:	CONSTANTIA
Date of loss:	April 23, 1676
Cause of loss:	Burnt to avoid capture
Warship type:	Battleship (M)
Armament:	48 guns (also listed as carrying between 12-32 cannon)
Notes:	Mercantile vessel, built in 1672, and was thus relatively new when hired into the Swedish navy in 1675, on a wartime emergency basis, and converted into a battleship. Capacity: 200 Swedish læsts.On the date of her loss, CONSTANTIA was cruising in the company of the CARITAS (32), when she and her consort were sighted off of Blekinge by the Danish fleet cruising under the command of Admiral Niels Juel. Juel sent the Danish frigates HAVMANDEN (34), HUMMER (34), and SPRAGLEDE FALK (16) to attack the two Swedish ships, which were chased into the harbor of Steenshamn.Under the Danish frigates’ attack, the trapped Swedes fired their ships in an attempt to destroy them to prevent their capture. When the Danes sought to board and take possession of the CONSTANTIA, she was found to be too far consumed by fire to be saved, but some of her guns were taken. See the next entry immediately below re fate of CONSTANTIA’s consort, the CARITAS.

Name:	CARITAS
Date of loss:	April 23, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Frigate (M)
Armament:	32 guns
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 96′ Beam – 25′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 87′ 6″ Beam – 23′ 9″ Draft – 9′ 6″
Notes:	Mercantile ship built in 1667. Hired into the Swedish navy in 1675, on a wartime emergency basis, and converted into a warship. Capacity: 160 Swedish læsts.On the date of her capture, CARITAS was cruising in the company of the CONSTANTIA (48) (see previous entry), when they were sighted by the Danish fleet commanded by Niels Juel. Juel sent three Danish frigates in pursuit of the Swedish ships, which retreated into the Swedish harbor of Steenshamn where they became cornered and trapped by the Danish frigates.The Danish frigates pressed home their attack. Although, before abandoning ship, the Swedish crews set fire to their ships in an attempt to destroy them and thus prevent their capture, the Danes were able to board and take possession of the CARITAS. CARITAS was incorporated into the Danish fleet under the name of CHARITAS, and remained in Danish naval service until she was wrecked in 1690. During the famous Danish naval victory in the Battle of Køge Bay, the CHARITAS (32) captured the Swedish battleship FLYGANDE VARGEN (54), which had grounded on Falsterbo Reef.

Name:	KONUNG DAVID
Date of loss:	May 26, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Boyer (Bøjert) – sprit rigged Dutch-type coaster
Armament:	10 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 72′ Beam – 19′ 3″ Draft – 8′ 9″
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1675. KONUNG DAVID, while acting as a storeship, had become cut off from the Swedish fleet on May 25th, 1676, and was captured by the Danes the next day. Taken into the Danish navy as KONG DAVID. Sold out of Danish naval service in 1685.R.C. Anderson’s book claims that KONUNG DAVID was captured by the Dutch and burnt, but this claim is not supported by Danish naval records, which give this vessel’s dimensions, and the fact that she remained with the Danish navy until sold out of service in 1685. Furthermore, Niels Juel was awarded prize money for her capture.

Name:	LEOPARDEN
Date of loss:	May 26, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by Brandenburgers
Warship type:	Fireship (M)
Armament:	22 guns (Brandenburger armament: 22-36 guns)
Dimensions (Brandenburger)	Length – 114′ Beam – 27′
Notes:	Mercantile ship hired into Swedish naval service in 1675, on a wartime emergency basis, and converted into a fireship. Capacity: 170 Swedish læsts.LEOPARDEN, although employed as a fireship for use in fleet actions, was apparently sailing alone and independently, when she was taken by a Brandenburg squadron of three frigates, two galiots, and six sloops.While in Brandenburger naval service, the spelling of her name was possibly altered to LEOPARD, because a frigate with a name of this spelling first appears on the Brandenburg navy’s ship list for 1676, the year of LEOPARDEN’s capture from the Swedes. The Brandenburger LEOPARD was broken up in 1679.

Name:	KRONAN
Date of loss:	June 1, 1676
Cause of loss:	Capsized and blown up in action.
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	126 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 178′ 6″ Beam – 43′ 5″
Notes:	Sweden’s only “three-decker,” having three complete gundecks. She “displaced” 2,140 tons. Built in Stockholm, KRONAN’s keel was laid on October 27, 1665. KRONAN was launched on July 31, 1668, but was not completed until 1672, after her construction had been delayed due to lack of funds. Therefore, KRONAN was a relatively new ship when lost. She was also called RIKS-KRONAN.No ship in the Danish fleet even approached the KRONAN’s great size and power. The Dutch, whose warships were traditionally smaller than those of other major powers, due to the shoal nature of Holland’s territorial waters, also possessed no ship remotely approaching KRONAN’s great size – indeed, the Dutch admiral Tromp, when reaching Denmark with the Dutch “support fleet,” utilized the largest Danish battleship in the Danish fleet, the CHRISTIANUS QUINTUS (86), as his flagship, in preference to any of his own fleet’s warships.The KRONAN was lost during the “Battle” of Øland, a fleet action which was basically in the nature of a pursuit by the Danish-Dutch fleet, rather than a stand-up fight between two fleets. The Danish-Dutch fleet held the initiative throughout the “Battle” in aggressively pursuing the Swedish fleet, despite the fact that the Swedish fleet had a much greater superiority in force. The admiral in overall command of the Swedish fleet was the sixty-year old Lorentz Creutz, who was not even a trained seaman, but who had nevertheless been appointed to command the Swedish fleet by the Swedish king. Creutz had his flag on the KRONAN, the Swedish fleet flagship. At a critical moment during the Battle of Øland, Creutz misunderstood the tactical actions of his second in command, and therefore hastily ordered the KRONAN to reverse course. However, at the time this maneuver was executed, the KRONAN’s lower gunports were not only open, but KRONAN was under full sail. Therefore, in coming about, the KRONAN heeled at such a sharp angle that her lower gunports came under water. At the very moment when KRONAN began to heel, a squall struck the KRONAN, forcing her on her beam ends, and KRONAN rapidly flooded with water. At this point, KRONAN’s main magazine exploded, ripping the KRONAN’s entire starboard side off the ship and blowing it into the air. The KRONAN quickly sank, losing 839 men of her crew, including Admiral Creutz; only three were saved. The KRONAN’s loss was a great catastrophe for the Swedish fleet, both materially and psychologically. Admiral Creutz was lost with his flagship, which simultaneously deprived the Swedish fleet of its most senior leadership. At the time of her loss, the mighty KRONAN was the most heavily armed warship in the world. In 1675, the year before her loss, KRONAN was armed with 12-36 pdr., 16-30 pdr., 40-24 pdr., 2-18 pdr., 36-12 pdr., and 20-6 pdr. cannon, all bronze cannon – a highly mixed and varied armament, with a variety of cannon calibers. It’s probable that KRONAN’s armament at the time of her loss was much the same as it was in 1675. In comparison to the KRONAN’s gunpower, the largest warship in the Danish fleet was the CHRISTIANUS QUINTUS, carried only 86 cannon, the largest of which were 24 pounders, while the KRONAN’s largest guns consisted of 28 cannon of 36 pounder or 30 pounder caliber. In the aftermath of KRONAN’s loss, in a significant feat of salvage, considering the primitive salvage technologies available at the time, 60 of KRONAN’s valuable bronze cannon, or roughly half of her armament, were salved by the Swedes in the years following her sinking. However, most of these cannon were the lighter caliber cannon of KRONAN’s upper decks. The KRONAN’s wreck site was rediscovered in 1980, after more than thirty years of research by Anders Franzén, the man who achieved international notoriety by discovering the intact hull of the now-famous Swedish battleship VASA in Stockholm harbor. Locating KRONAN’s wreck site, of this great and historically important warship, is a major archaeological find, of considerable significance. KRONAN’s wreck site has now been under continuous archaeological investigation since its discovery, conducted under the direction of Lars Einarsson of the Kalmar County Museum, where the wreck site’s archaeological finds are located. A special museum is planned to house these artificats. The archaeological investigation of KRONAN’s wreck site is continuing, and will take many more years to complete. The vast number of artifacts recovered to date include 45 bronze cannon, some of them Danish, and the ship’s bell. It’s probable that the surviving remnant of the KRONAN’s shattered hull, now lying on the seabed, will ultimately be recovered, as it should be.

Name:	SVÄRDET
Date of loss:	June 1, 1676
Cause of loss:	Blown up in action.
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	94 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 159′ 3″ (lengthened to 165′ in 1668) Beam – 42′ 6″
Notes:	Launched at Stockholm in 1662, SVÄRDET was the second largest warship in the Swedish fleet, after the mighty KRONAN, and was the only warship in the Swedish fleet aside from the KRONAN to carry 36 pounder cannon in her main armament.SVÄRDET was, like KRONAN, larger than any warship in the combined Danish-Dutch fleet.Like the Swedish fleet flagship KRONAN, SVÄRDET was lost in the Battle of Øland, where SVÄRDET was acting as the flagship for the Swedish fleet’s second-in-command, Admiral Klas Uggla, who commanded the Swedish fleet’s van squadron. Uggla was the senior Swedish admiral in the Swedish fleet until he was superceded in command of the Swedish fleet by Lorentz Creutz, who was not even a trained seaman. After the explosion of the KRONAN at the start of the Battle of Øland, the Dutch Admiral Tromp, in command of the combined Danish-Dutch fleet, with his flag in the CHRISTIANUS QUNITUS (86), brought the larger SVÄRDET to action. Tromp was soon joined in this engagement by Niels Juel in the CHURPRINSEN (76), flagship of one of the combined Danish-Dutch fleet’s three squadrons. After an action lasting two hours, in which other Swedish warships supported the SVÄRDET for a time, the SVÄRDET was finally forced to strike to Tromp. However, at this moment of triumph, and before Tromp could take possession of SVÄRDET, a Dutch fireship came alongside the SVÄRDET and, against orders, set SVÄRDET afire. In a very short time, the fire caused SVÄRDET to blow up, with the loss of 630 men of her crew, including Admiral Klas Uggla, the Swedish fleet’s second in command. SVÄRDET blew up only a few hours after the loss of the Swedish fleet flagship, KRONAN. The extended action around the SVÄRDET constituted the only stand-up fight offered by the Swedish fleet during the Battle of Øland. The loss of the imposing SVÄRDET, the Swedish fleet’s second-largest warship with the Swedish fleet’s second-in-command on board, following so closely the loss of the mighty KRONAN with the Swedish fleet’s commander-in-chief, threw the Swedish fleet into a leaderless, coinfused, and disorganized panic. However, the combined Danish-Dutch fleet was unable to fully exploit the Swedish fleet’s lack of leadership, and could only effect a few captures in the Swedish fleet’s ensuing flight. To give an idea of the SVÄRDET’s imposing gunpower, in 1675, one year before her loss, SVÄRDET was armed with 12-36 pdr., 4-30 pdr., 14-24 pdr., 26-12 pdr., 24-8 pdr., and 6-3 pdr. cannon. SVÄRDET’s armament at the time of her loss was probably roughly the same as that which she carried in 1675. Because of her status as the second-largest warship in the Swedish fleet, it is presumed that all the cannon SVÄRDET carried at the time of her loss were bronze, as they were in the KRONAN. The SVÄRDET’s wreck site lies in much deeper waters than that of the KRONAN, and has yet to be discovered.

Name:	NEPTUNUS
Date of loss:	June 1, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Dutch, but transferred to the Danish navy
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	44 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 111′ 6″ Beam – 28′ 6″ Draft – 13′ 6″
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 104′ 9″ Beam – 26′ 9″ Draft – 12′
Notes:	Launched at Bodekull in 1673, NEPTUNUS was thus a relatively new ship when captured three years later.During the Battle of Øland on June 1, 1676, NEPTUNUS was one of the few Swedish ships which attempted to provide support and relief to the beleaguered Swedish flagship SVÄRDET, then under combined attack by several Danish warships. In attempting to render support to SVÄRDET, NEPTUNUS became so heavily engaged that she subsequently became unable to break off the action and effect her escape, for her own salvation.As a result of NEPTUNUS’ ultimately doomed action in support of SVÄRDEN, NEPTUNUS fell easy prey to Niels Juel in the CHURPINSEN (76), to which NEPTUNUS ultimately struck her flag. However, before Niels Juel could take possession of the NEPTUNUS, the Dutch battleship GIDEON (60) appeared and took possession. Nevertheless, after taking possession, the Dutch subsequently transferred NEPTUNUS to the Danish navy. NEPTUNUS was taken into the Danish navy under her original name. The relatively new NEPTUNUS had a long life in Danish naval service, and was not condemned by the Danish navy until 1716, or a half a century after her capture.

Name:	JÄRNVÅGEN
Date of loss:	June 1, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	(M)
Armament:	24 guns
Notes:	Mercantile vessel, built in 1659. Capacity: 170 Swedish læsts. Hired into the Swedish navy in 1675, on an emergency wartime basis, and converted into a warship.Captured at the conclusion of the Battle of Øland. JÄRNVÅGEN was one of the few Swedish warships to attempt to provide support and relief to the beleaguered Swedish flagship SVÄRDET, and suffered the same fate of others which did, being captured by the Danish battleship ANNA SOPHIA (56).

Name:	ENHORN
Date of loss:	June 1, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Dutch, but transferred to the Danish navy. Rated as a “small frigate” in Danish naval service.
Warship type:	Large jacht (Jagt) (M)
Armament:	16 guns (14-18 guns in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 73′ 6″ Beam – 17′ 3″ Draft – 7′ 9″
Notes:	Mercantile vessel hired by the Swedish navy in 1674, and then purchased by the Swedish navy in 1676, at the beginning of the Skånian war.Taken by the Dutch battleship DORDRECHT (46) during the combined Danish-Dutch fleet’s pursuit of the routed Swedish fleet in the aftermath of the Battle of Øland earlier that day.Transferred by the Dutch to the Danish navy following her capture. Taken into the Danish navy under the name ENHJØRNING, she was subsequently renamed ELEPHANTEN in 1678, AURORA in 1689, and FRØKEN ELSCHEN, also in 1689. Condemned by the Danish navy in 1721, 55 years after her capture from the Swedes. The Danes classed this vessel as a “small frigate” because all other regular Danish frigates of the second half of the 17th Century were between 85 feet and 114 feet in length, whereas the ENHORN was only 73′ 6″ in length. Similarly, the beams of most regular Danish frigates of this period were between 22′ 6″ and 28′ 9″, while ENHORN’s was only 17′ 3″. ENHORN’s armament was also diminutive when compared to that of a regular Danish frigate.

Name:	EKORREN
Date of loss:	June 1, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Boyer (Bøjert) – sprit rigged Dutch-type coaster
Armament:	8 cannon
Notes:	Purchased into the Swedish navy in 1674. EKORREN was captured during the combined Danish-Dutch fleet’s pursuit of the routed Swedish fleet into Dalarö following the Battle of Øland on June 1, 1676.EKORREN’s ultimate fate after her capture is not known – Danish records do not indicate she was taken into Danish naval service. However, at the Battle of Køge Bay, a vessel named EKORN (presumably the ex-EKORREN), of 12 guns, is listed as being on the strength of the Danish fleet’s 1st Squadron.

Name:	RÖDKRITA
Date of loss:	June 1, 1676
Cause of loss:	Burnt to avoid capture
Warship type:	Fireship
Armament:	2 guns
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1676.Following the twin disasters involving the Swedish fleet’s loss of their powerful and imposing flagships KRONAN and SVÄRDET earlier on June 1, 1676, during the Battle of Øland, the Swedish fleet broke formation and fled into the Swedish port of Dalarö. During this route, the Swedes had to burn RÖDKRITA to avoid the prospect of her being captured by pursuing Brandenburgers.

Name:	ÄPPLET
Date of loss:	June 5, 1676
Cause of loss:	Wrecked at Dalarö
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	86 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 158′ Beam – 37′ 6″
Notes:	Launched at Göteborg in 1661. Though not new when lost, ÄPPLET was the third largest and most powerful warship in the Swedish fleet. Also called RIKS-ÄPPLET.Following the Battle of Øland on June 1, 1676, in which the Swedish flagships KRONAN and SVÄRDET and other Swedish warships were lost, the Swedish fleet fled into the Swedish port of Dalarö, hotly pursued by the combined Danish-Dutch fleet. Here at Dalarö, just a mere four days subsequent to the disastrous Battle of Øland on June 1, 1676, the ÄPPLET dragged her anchors, struck a reef, and sank.Being the third largest warship in the Swedish fleet, the ÄPPLET’s loss, coming a mere four days after the Swedish fleet’s capital losses of the KRONAN and SVÄRDET, seriously aggravated these earlier losses, as in just five days the Swedish fleet had lost its three largest warships. However, little life was lost during ÄPPLET’s sinking, unlike the cases in the huge loss of life in the two Swedish flagships during the Battle of Øland. ÄPPLET’s firepower is indicated by the fact that in 1675, the year before her loss, ÄPPLET was armed with 18-24 pdr., 8-18 pdr., 28-12 pdr., 20-6 pdr., and 10-3 pdr. cannon, which gives an idea of what might have constituted her armament on the date of her loss.

Name:	GRÖNA JÄGAREN
Date of loss:	August 21, 1676
Cause of loss:	Accidentally burnt
Warship type:	Scout; Listed as a Boyer (Bøjert) by the Danes – a sprit-rigged, Dutch-type coaster
Armament:	12 cannon
Notes:	Purchased into the Swedish navy in 1675. Also referred to simply as JÄGAREN. After capture, she was taken into the Danish navy under the name GRØNNE JAEGER. In Danish naval service, also called UNGE JAEGER. Last mentioned in Danish naval records in 1679.

Name:	SUNDSVALL
Date of loss:	October, 1676
Cause of loss:	Wrecked, off the Latvian port of Riga
Warship type:	Ship
Armament:	32 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 125′ Beam – 29′ 6″
Notes:	Built at Medelpad. Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1674.

Name:	MARIA
Date of loss:	November 12, 1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Brandenburgers
Warship type:	Boyer (Bøjert) – a sprit-rigged, Dutch-type coaster – or Galiot
Armament:	4 cannon (4-12 cannon in Brandenburger service)
Dimensions (Brandenburger)	Length – 66′ Beam – 16′
Notes:	Originally acquired by the Swedish navy in 1675. After her capture, she was taken into Brandenburger service under her Swedish name. No longer mentioned in Brandenburger ship lists in 1685.

Name:	VICTORIA
Date of loss:	1676
Cause of loss:	Captured, while building, by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	38-44 cannon, in Danish service
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 105′ Beam – 27′ 7″ Draft – 12′ 6″
Notes:	Taken from the Swedes at Karlshamn while under construction, and completed at Copenhagen. Wrecked in 1688. Her original Swedish name, if she had one and if this differed from VICTORIA, is not known.

Name:	JÄGAREN
Date of loss:	1676
Cause of loss:	Accidentally blown up
Warship type:	Scout
Armament:	18-26 guns
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 90′ 6″ Beam – 22′ 6″
Notes:	Also called STORA JÄGEREN. Built at Stockholm. Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1652, so was a very elderly vessel when lost – possibly the second oldest naval vessel lost, by any cause, by the Swedish navy during the Skånian war. In this regard, smaller naval vessels typically did not have as long a service life as some of a navy’s capital ships.Her dimensions indicate she was a moderately sized vessel, though probably not large enough to carry a complete outfit of 18-26 cannon; some of her artillery weapons must have been swivels – based on either her hull dimensions or her armament, she was large enough to qualify as being classed as a frigate.As often happened with vessels of this period, this vessel’s “name” may simply be a description of a generic type of naval vessel, e.g., a “hunter,” or scout.

Name:	JÄGAREN
Date of loss:	1676
Cause of loss:	Boyer (Bøjert) – sprit rigged, Dutch-type coaster
Warship type:	“Lost”
Armament:	4
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1657, so was a very elderly vessel when lost. Also called HOLLANDS JÄGAREN. This JÄGAREN’s armament is considerably smaller than the similarly-named vessel in the previous entry, so could not have been the same vessel.As often happened with smaller vessels of this period, this vessel’s “name” may simply be a description of a generic type of naval vessel, e.g., a “hunter,” or scout.

Name:	KARLSHAVN
Date of loss:	1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Frigate
Armament:	18-24 cannon (in Danish naval service)
Notes:	Recaptured by the Swedes in 1677.Danish records list this ship as having been captured in 1676, presumably from the Swedes, a presumption reinforced by the record’s notation that she was later “recaptured” by the Swedes – indicating previous Swedish ownership. KARLSHAVN is this vessel’s name in Danish naval service. KARLSHAVN was only in Danish hands for perhaps one year, before the Swedes recaptured her in 1677.The Danish name KARLSHAVN may be a Danish spelling of the Swedish KARLSHAMN. The Danish KARLSHAVN may have been the Swedish KARLSHAMN, a struss of 18 cannon built at Karlshamn and acquired by the Swedish navy in 1669. KARLSHAMN is listed by the Swedes as having been wrecked in 1685, i.e., after the termination of the war. Swedish sources do not record KARLSHAMN’s capture by the Danes, either in 1676 or later, or her recapture by the Swedes in 1677.

Name:	SJÖHÄSTEN
Date of loss:	1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Jacht (Jagt)
Armament:	4-6 cannon (in Danish service)
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 56′ Beam – 14′ 6″ Draft – 7′ 9″
Notes:	Originally acquired by the Swedish navy in 1675. After her capture, she was taken into Danish naval service as the SØHESTEN. Condemned by the Danish navy in 1693.

Name:	ANNA MARGARETA
Date of loss:	1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Boyer (Bøjert)
Armament:	6 cannon
Notes:	Purchased into the Swedish navy in 1676. Her capture by the Danes is noted in Swedish records, but Danish naval records do not indicate she was ever taken into the Danish navy after her capture.

Name:	DIDERICH
Date of loss:	1676
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Fireship
Armament:	4 guns
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1676.Danish naval records list a vessel, named in Danish naval records as the SVENSKE DIDERICH, as being captured from the Swedes, but Danish records list the year of her capture as 1677 rather than 1676. The SVENSKE DIDERICH carried 6 guns in Danish naval service, roughly the same as the Swedish DIDERICH.It’s highly probable that the Swedish DIDERICH and the Danish SVENSKE DIEDERICH are the same vessel, and that the date of loss was misstated in either the Swedish or the Danish records. The Danish SVENSKE DIDERICH was sunk as a breakwater, in 1685.

Name:	WRANGELS PALAIS
Date of loss:	May 31, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	44 cannon (In Danish service, she carried up to 46 cannon)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 125′ Beam – 37′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 107′ Beam – 25′ 6″ Draft – 11′ 6″
Notes:	Originally built in Holland in 1662, WRANGLES PALAIS was purchased into the Swedish navy in 1669. WRANGLES PALAIS was named after a famous Swedish palace located in the old town in Stockholm, then owned by the Swedish Field Marshal Gustaf Wrangle.WRANGLES PALAIS was captured by the Danes on the eve of the Battle of Møen. Admiral Nies Juel, in command of the Danish fleet, had located the Swedish fleet, which then attempted to elude the Danes. Just before nightfall, the Danish battleship ENIGHED (62) managed to capture the WRANGLEL PALAIS, the only Danish success on that day. Niels Juel was awarded a considerable sum of prize money for her capture.After her capture, WRANGLES PALAIS was taken into the Danish navy under the same name. WRANGLES PALAIS, while in Danish naval service, was lost on July 23, 1687, after running aground on a submerged rock formation, in the Outer Skerries of the Shetland Islands, while in pursuit of Barbary pirates in a dense fog. In 1990, what is presumed to be the WRANGLES PALAIS’ wreck site was discovered in the Shetlands. If this is in fact the WRANGLES PALAIS’ wreck site, it is one of the very rare known wreck sites of a Danish warship during the age of sail. When originally discovered, 18 cannon were observed on the wreck sited at the wreck site. Two of these cannon are bronze, and the rest are iron. The bronze cannon have been recovered by a private Scottish salvor, and are still believed to be in his possession. After the date these two bronze cannon were recovered, the WRANGLES PALAIS’ wreck site became a “designated” historical wreck site, and is therefore protected under law. A website which briefly discusses this designated wreck site is located at www.at-and.ac.uk/institutessimsAdu/deswrck4.htm More information about this wreck site is contained in Bounde and Sharpe (1995), The Wreck of the Danish man-of-war Wrangles Palais, in Bound (ed.) The Archeology of Ships of War, Vol. 1.

Name:	AMARANTE
Date of loss:	June 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	44 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 125′ 6″ Beam – 28′ 6″
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 117′ 3″ Beam – 28′ 9″ Draft – 10′ 9″
Notes:	Launched at Stockholm in 1653, and so was a very elderly ship when captured – in fact, AMARANTE was the third oldest Swedish battleship captured by the Danes during the war.Captured early in the Battle of Møen, while she was acting as the flagship of the Swedish admiral Sjøblad. AMARANTE was only taken after several hours of combat with Danish warships, during which AMARANTE sustained considerable combat damage, particularly to her masts and rigging. AMARANTE also surrendered because, during her final combat, she was basically unsupported by other Swedish warships.After her capture, she was taken into the Danish navy with the spelling of her name altered to ADMIRANTE. Because of her considerable age when captured, ADMIRANTE did not have along service life in the Danish navy and was broken up relatively early in comparison to other Swedish warships captured by the Danes during the war: she was broken up in 1686. An excellent period ship model of the AMARANTE is located in the Swedish naval museum in Stockholm, and an excellent contemporary copy of the Stockholm musuem’s model is in the Swedish naval museum in Gothenborg.

Name:	KALMAR KASTELL
Date of loss:	June 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes and burnt
Warship type:	Battleship (M)
Armament:	72 cannon
Notes:	Mercantile vessel hired into the Swedish navy in 1676, on an emergency wartime basis, and converted into a warship.Captured during the Battle of Møen, which was one of Niels Juel’s major naval victories in a fleet action. KALMAR KASTELL had received serious combat damage earlier in the battle, and at 4 p.m. was finally forced to strike her flag to the Danish Admiral Christian Bjelke, who had closed on KALMAR KASTELL with two Danish warships.After taking possession of the KALMAR KASTELL, the Danes discovered that the Swedes had used their ship’s cannon to shoot holes in the bottom of the KALMAR KASTELL’s hull, in an effort to sink her and, thus, to deny her use to the enemy. Therefore, the Danes were forced to run the KALMAR KASTELL aground on the island of FALSTER in an effort to save her or salve her contents and equipment. However, despite these efforts the ship was ultimately lost. The Danish commander, Bjelke, was enraged over his loss of the prospective prize money he would have been awarded if the KALMAR KASTELL had been incorporated into the Danish fleet.

Name:	ÄNGELN GABRIEL
Date of loss:	June 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship (M)
Armament:	32 cannon (42-50 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 120′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 114′ 3″ Beam – 24′ 6″ Draft – 11′ 9″
Notes:	Mercantile vessel hired into Swedish naval service in 1675, on an emergency wartime basis, and converted into a warship. Capacity: 200 Swedish læsts.Captured during the Battle of Møen, as the third ship taken by the Danes that day. ÄNGELEN GABRIEL struck to Niels Juel’s ship.After her capture, she was taken into the Danish navy with her Swedish name altered to Danish spelling, ENGEL GABRIEL. Although she was originally built as a mercantile vessel rather than as a warship, the Danish navy retained her in naval service after the Skånian War’s conclusion. The Danish navy did not condemn ENGEL GABRIEL until 1716, i.e., until 39 years after her capture from the Swedes.

Name:	HAVFRUN
Date of loss:	June 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship (M)
Armament:	46 cannon (40-44 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 135′ Beam – 30′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 126′ 3″ Beam – 28′ Draft – 11′ 9″
Notes:	Mercantile vessel hired into the Swedish navy in 1676, on an emergency wartime basis, and converted into a warship.Captured during the Battle of Møen, striking her flag to the Danish battleship LINDORMEN (50), captained by the Dutchmen Cornelius de Witt.After her capture, she was taken into the Danish navy with her Swedish name altered to Danish spelling, SVENSKE HAVFRUEN. Although originally a mercantile vessel, SVENSKE HAVFRUEN was retained by the Danish navy after the conclusion of the war. Hulked by the Danish navy in 1686, but not broken up until 1708.

Name:	DIANA
Date of loss:	June 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes.
Warship type:	Jacht (Jagt) – dispatch vessel
Armament:	6 cannon
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 50′ 3″ Beam – 12′ 3″ Draft – 5′ 6″
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1676.Captured by the Danes while attempting to escape following the Battle of Møen, apparently striking her flag to the Danish frigate SVENSKE FALK (40). It’s surprising that this smaller Swedish dispatch vessel, rated as a jacht for supposedly fine lines designed for speed, could not outsail the larger Danish warship.DIANA was taken into the Danish navy under the same name, and was subsequently present with the Danish fleet at the great Danish naval victory at the Battle of Køge Bay. Condemned by the Danish navy in 1685.

Name:	VENUS
Date of loss:	June 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Jacht (Jagt) – dispatch vessel
Armament:	4 cannon
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 50′ 3″ Beam – 12′ 3″ Draft – 5′ 6″
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1675.Captured by the Danes while attempting to escape following the Battle of Møen, apparently striking her flag to the Danish frigate SVENSKE FALK (40). It’s surprising that this smaller Swedish dispatch vessel, supposedly a fine-lined jacht designed for speed, could not outsail the larger Danish warship.VENUS was taken into the Danish navy under the same name, and was subsequently present with the Danish fleet at the famous Danish naval victory at the Battle of Køge Bay. Condemned by the Danish navy in 1695.

Name:	DRAKEN
Date of loss:	July 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	64 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 139’/140′ Beam – 37′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 130′ Beam – 34′ 9″ Draft – 14′ 4″(DRAKEN may have been rebuilt during her tenure with the Swedish fleet, as later data indicates her length had been increased to 140′ and her beam to 37′)
Notes:	Launched at Stockholm in 1655, and thus was 22 years old at the time of her capture – the fourth oldest Swedish battleship captured by the Danes during the war..DRAKEN was captured at the Battle of Køge Bay, Niels Juel’s greatest victory. In fact, DRAKEN’s grounding near Stevns Klint, i.e., off Esketi, under the cliffs near Sigerslev beach, is the decisive event that set in train the course of events that determined the character and decisive outcome of this great Danish victory.Niels Juel himself, in the CHRISTIANUS QUNITUS (84), was personally responsible for fighting the DRAKEN into submission, and DRAKEN ultimately struck to Niels Juel. In 1675, two years before her loss, DRAKEN was armed with 12-24 pdr., 14-18 pdr.,18-12 pdr., 6-8 pdr., 12-6 pdr., and 2-3 pdr. cannon, which indicates how DRAKEN may have been armed at the time of her capture by the Danes. At the time of her capture, DRAKEN was armed with 38 bronze and 26 iron cannon. The Danish admiralty appraised these cannon in value, as a basis for awarding prize money, as 11,168 rigsdaler, 3 marks, 9 skilling for the bronze cannon, and 1,575 rigsdaler, 2 marks, 10 skilling for the iron cannon. After her capture, DRAKEN was taken into the Danish navy as the DRAGEN. Despite her age when captured, DRAKEN was not hulked by the Danish navy until 1699. She was broken up in 1708.

Name:	MARS
Date of loss:	July 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	72 cannon (70-80 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 145′ Beam – 38′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 136′ 4″ Beam – 37′ Draft – 14′ 9″
Notes:	Built at the German Hanseatic town of Lubeck, and acquired by the Swedish navy in 1665.Captured during the Battle of Køge Bay. MARS was one of the Swedish battleships detailed to support the grounded Swedish battleship DRAKEN at Stevns Klint. Here MARS became heavily engaged by Danish warships, most prominently by the Danish battleship TRE LØVER (58), which herself was badly mauled by the MARS during this combat. However, MARS ultimately struck her flag to the TRE LØVER.To give an idea of her firepower, in 1675, or two years prior to her capture, MARS was armed with 16-24 pdr., 10-18 pdr., 22-12 pdr., 2-8 pdr., 8-6 pdr., 13-4 pdr., and 2-3 pdr. cannon, a highly mixed and varied armament. MARS was probably similarly armed at the time of her capture. At the time of her capture by the Danes, the MARS was armed with 22 bronze and 49 iron cannon. The Danish admiralty appraised the value of these cannon, as a basis for awarding prize money, as 6,940 rigsdaler, 1 mark, and 14 skilling for the bronze cannon, and 2,997 rigsdaler, 1 mark, and 5 skilling for the iron cannon. After her capture, MARS was taken into the Danish navy under the same name. In 1717, MARS was sunk to provide a foundation for the stationary Tre Kroner earthwork harbor battery in Copenhagen harbor – forty years after her capture from the Swedes, and 52 years after MARS was originally acquired by the Swedish navy.

Name:	CESAR
Date of loss:	July 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes.
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	60 cannon (54-58 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 132′ Beam – 33′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 126′ Beam – 31′ 3″ Draft – 12′ 2″
Notes:	Built at Wismar. This ship is first mentioned in Swedish naval records in 1648, and was therefore a very elderly ship when she was captured – the oldest Swedish warship captured by the Danes during the Skånian war.Captured at the Battle of Køge Bay, after having been detailed as one of the Swedish warships sent to support the grounded Swedish battleship DRAKEN at Stevns Klint. CESAR was boarded and taken by Vice-Admiral Christian Bjelke of the Danish battleship CHURPRINSEN (74).At the time of her capture, the CESAR was armed with 32 bronze and 26 iron cannon. The Danish admiralty appraised the value of these cannon, as a basis for awarding prize money, as 8,784 rigsdaler and 6 skilling for the bronze cannon, and 1,455 rigsdaler, 1 mark, 12 skilling for the iron cannon. After her capture, she was taken into the Danish navy under the name JULIUS CAESAR. Even though an elderly ship when captured in 1677, she was not condemned by the Danish navy until 1688, and was not broken up by the Danish navy until 1691.

Name:	FLYGANDE VARGEN
Date of loss:	July 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship (M)
Armament:	54 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 120′ Beam – 27′ Draft – 12′ 3″
Notes:	Mercantile vessel, built in 1670. Capacity: 250 Swedish læsts. Hired into Swedish naval service in 1675, as a wartime expedient, and converted into a warship.Captured during the Battle of Køge Bay. While the Swedish fleet was in the process of withdrawing from the action around the grounded Swedish battleship DRAKEN at Stevns Klint, FLYGANDE VARGEN went aground on Falsterbo Reef, where she was captured by the Danish frigate CHARITAS (32), herself a prize taken from the Swedes in 1676. CHARITAS had just arrived from Copenhagen to join the Danish fleet after the inception of the Battle of Køge Bay.When captured, FLYGANDE VARGEN was armed with 4 bronze cannon and 50 iron cannon. The Danish admiralty appraised the value of these cannon, for purposes of awarding prize money, as 921 rigsdaler, 2 marks, 7 skilling for the bronze cannon, and 1,979 rigsdaler, 4 marks, 2 skilling for the iron cannon. After her capture, FLYGANDE VARGEN was taken into Danish naval service as the FLYVENDE ULV, and armed in Danish naval service with between 44-52 cannon. Reverted to her original mercantile status when given to the Danish East India Company in 1685, one of the most interesting fates of any Swedish warship captured by the Danes during the Skånian war. Wrecked in 1691.

Name:	SVENSKA LEJONET
Date of loss:	July 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	52 cannon (44-48 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 124′ 6″ Beam – 29′ 9″ Draft – 11′ 9″
Notes:	Built at Västervik in 1656, as a mercantile vessel, and so was an elderly vessel when lost. A large vessel, with a capacity of 350 Swedish læsts. Hired by the Swedish navy in 1658, during an earlier war against Denmark. Formally purchased by the Swedish navy in 1662.Captured in the Battle of Køge Bay, during the Swedish fleet’s withdrawal from the vicinity of Stevns Klint following the grounding there of the Swedish battleship DRAKEN. After the battle, the Swedish Admiral Horn reported that, during the Swedish fleet’s withdrawal, the SVENSKA LEJONET suddenly reversed course to turn upon the pursuing Danish warships, whereupon she was easily captured by the Danish battleship ENIGHED (62), apparently without offering much resistance.When captured, SVENSKA LEJONET was armed with 8 bronze cannon and 40 iron cannon. The Danish admiralty appraised the value of these cannon, for purposes of awarding prize money, as 1,519 rigsdaler, 3 marks, 3 skilling for the bronze cannon, and 1,853 rigsdaler, 4 marks, 10 skilling for the iron cannon. After her capture, SVENSKA LEJONET was taken into the Danish navy under the name SVENSKE LØVE. Wrecked in 1681.

Name:	GRÖNA DRAKEN
Date of loss:	July 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Boyer (Bøjert) – a sprit-rigged, Dutch-type coaster; rated as a jacht (jagt) in Danish naval service
Armament:	8 cannon (9 cannon in Danish naval service)
Notes:	Hired into the Swedish navy in 1677. Sometimes simply called DRAKEN in Swedish naval service. Captured during the Battle of Køge Bay. Taken into the Danish navy as the GRØNNE DRAGE. Expended as a fireship by the Danish navy in 1679.

Name:	GRIPEN
Date of loss:	July 1, 1677
Cause of loss:	Burnt in action.
Warship type:	Jacht (Jagt)
Armament:	8 cannon
Notes:	Burnt in action during the Battle of Køge Bay.

Name:	MERKURIUS
Date of loss:	July 2, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Dutch, but later transferred by the Dutch to the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	66 cannon (68-74 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 144′ Beam – 36′ 8″
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 137′ 9″ Beam – 35′ 6″ Draft – 15′ 10″
Notes:	Launched at the Swedish port of Karlshamn in 1671.During the Battle of Køge Bay, MERKURIUS was one of the Swedish battleships detailed by the Swedish Admiral to provide support to the Swedish battleship DRAKEN grounded off of Stevns Klint. When the action around the DRAKEN went against the Swedes, several Swedish ships, including the MERKURIUS, escaped to the port of Malmø.The fugitive Swedish warships from the Battle of Køge Bay were discovered the following day by the Dutch “support fleet” which was just arriving in Danish territorial waters from Holland. The Dutch immediately attacked the Swedish ships. In doing so, a Dutch fireship went alongside the MERKURIUS, prompting the Swedish crew to desert their ship. Thereupon the Dutch battleship CAMPEN (40) ordered the fireship off and captured the MERKURIUS. Following her capture, the Dutch transferred MERKURIUS to the Danish navy. Taken into the Danish navy with the spelling of her name altered to MERCURIUS. Sunk in 1720 to provide a foundation for the Tre Kroner earthwork harbor battery in Copenhagen harbor, 53 years after her capture from the Swedes, and nearly a half a century after she was launched.

Name:	SANKT HIERONUMUS
Date of loss:	July 2, 1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Dutch, but transferred to the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	72 cannon (64-72 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 140′ Beam – 36′ Draft – 17′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 131′ 9″ Beam – 31′ Draft – 11′
Notes:	Built in Gotland in 1675, and was purchased into the Swedish navy in the same year in which she was built, i.e., in 1675. Therefore, SANKT HIERONUMUS was a relatively new ship when captured on July 2, 1677. She was also known as, simply, HIERONUMUS – this is how she is frequently referred to in Danish sources, even in contexts while she was still in Swedish naval service.During the Battle of Køge Bay, SANKT HIERONUMUS was one of the Swedish battleships detailed by the Swedish admiral to provide support for the grounded Swedish battleship DRAKEN. When the action around the DRAKEN went against the Swedes, several Swedish ships, including the SANKT HIERONUMUS, escaped to Malmø.The fugitive Swedish warships from the Battle of Køge Bay were found the following day by the Dutch “support fleet” which was just arriving in Danish territorial waters from Holland. The Dutch fleet spotted the Swedish ships off of Malmø, and attacked them. HIERONYMUS was engaged by the Dutch battleship CAMPEN (40), and captured following an engagement lasting two hours. After her capture, the Dutch transferred HIERONYMUS to the Danish navy. Taken into the Danish naval service under the spelling of her original warship’s name as HIERONIMUS. Condemned by the Danish navy in 1684.

Name:	KALMAR
Date of loss:	July 2, 1677
Cause of loss:	Burnt in action, with the Dutch fleet
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	12 guns (in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 121′ Beam – 30′
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 68′ 8″ Beam – 16′ 11″ Draft – 6′ 11″
Notes:	Built at Kalmar, as the ENDRACHT, in 1677. Purchased into the Swedish navy the year she was built, and named after the place where she was built. Capacity: 240 Swedish læsts.The brand new KALMAR joined the Swedish fleet on August 13, 1677, while lying off the island of Øland, just two weeks before the Battle of Køge Bay. After the grounding of the Swedish battleship DRAKEN off Stevns Klimt – the pivotal event of the Battle of Køge Bay – KALMAR was one of the Swedish battleships detached by the Swedish admiral to support the DRAKEN while the rest of the Swedish fleet fled, with the Danish and Dutch fleets in hot pursuit.In the action around the grounded DRAKEN, which was going against he Swedes, KALMAR was ultimately able to elude the numerically thin force of Danish warships attacking DRAKEN and her consorts, and escaped to the Swedish port of Malmø. The fugitive Swedish warships from the Battle of Køge Bay, including the KALMAR, were located at Malmø the following day by the Dutch “support fleet,” which was just arriving in Danish territorial waters from Holland. The Dutch immediately attacked KALMAR and her consorts. During this action, the KALMAR was burnt, either by a Dutch fireship or, more likely, by her own crew to prevent her capture by the Dutch. The KALMAR’s captain supposedly set fire to the KALMAR before the KALMAR’s crew abandoned her.

Name:	EKORREN
Date of loss:	1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Brandenburgers
Warship type:	Boyer (Bøjert) – a sprit-rigged, Dutch-type coaster
Armament:	12 cannon
Notes:	Purchased into the Swedish navy in 1674. Brandenburger naval records do not indicate whether EKORREN was taken into the fledgling Brandenburger naval service, but she presumably was. However, if she was taken into Brandenburger naval service, she most likely was not, as was the typical Danish naval practice (but apparently not with Brandenberger practice), taken into the Brandenburger navy under a name similar to her original Swedish name.

Name:	UNGE JAEGER
Date of loss:	1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Jacht (Jagt)
Notes:	Danish naval records list this vessel as a Swedish prize. UNGE JAEGER is this vessel’s name in Danish naval service; her Swedish name is not known, but may have been simply “Jaeger.” The Danish navy condemned this jacht in 1679.

Name:	ROSEN
Date of loss:	November, 1677
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Warship type:	Skuta (Skuder) – Scandinavian coaster
Armament:	44 guns
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1674. This ship was very heavily armed for a vessel that might be classed as a “coaster.”

Name:	KATTAN
Date of loss:	1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Jacht (Jagt)
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 48′ 6″ Beam – 11′ 3″ Draft – 4′
Notes:	Taken into the Danish navy under the name NATTERGALEN. Sold out of Danish naval service in 1682. Not listed in the Swedish naval list, so may have been a mercantile vessel when captured and taken into Danish naval service.

Name:	SANKT PETER
Date of loss:	1677
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Skuta (Skuder) – Scandinavian coaster
Notes:	Originally acquired by the Swedish Navy in 1675. This vessel’s fate after her capture is not known. Danish naval records do not indicate that this vessel was taken into Danish naval service, although this doesn’t mean that she wasn’t.

Name:	BJÖRNEN
Date of loss:	1677
Cause of loss:	Expended as a fireship
Warship type:	Pram
Armament:	10 cannon
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1675. There is a possibility that this vessel is the same as the BJÖRN, listed in the next ship’s data profile below.

Name:	BJÖRN
Date of loss:	1677
Cause of loss:	Expended as a fireship
Warship type:	Boyer (Bøjert) – a sprit-rigged, Dutch-type coaster
Armament:	10 cannon
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1677. There is a possibility that this vessel is the same as the BJÖRNEN listed in the immediately preceding ship’s data profile, above.

Name:	SPES
Date of loss:	April 1, 1678
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	46 guns

Name:	BANÉR
Date of loss:	July 1, 1678
Cause of loss:	Burnt to avoid capture
Notes:	Possibly an ex-mercantile ship. Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1676, as a wartime acquisition.

Name:	KRONHOLM
Date of loss:	October 3, 1678
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Notes:	Launched at Kronoby in 1678, the year in which she was acquired by the Swedish navy.

Name:	BODEKULL
Date of loss:	October, 1678
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Warship type:	Struss
Notes:	Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1661. Built at Bodekull, for which she is named. A “struss” was a type of vessel that cannot be defined with accuracy.

Name:	KRONOLUND
Date of loss:	October, 1678
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Warship type:	Skuta – Scandinavian coaster
Notes:	Built at Kronoby, for which location she was apparently named. Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1673.

Name:	POLLUX
Date of loss:	January, 1679
Cause of loss:	Wrecked
Warship type:	Scout
Notes:	Built at Kalmar. Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1678. A “scout” is more indicative of a naval vessel’s operational role than of a vessel type.

Name:	LAXEN
Date of loss:	June 25, 1679
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	50 cannon (52-56 cannon in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 130′ Beam – 32′ 6″
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 123′ 9″ Beam – 28′ 6″ Draft – 12′ 6″
Notes:	Built at Medelpad, and acquired by the Swedish navy in 1675.While acting as part of a rearguard defending the Swedish battlefleet being pursued by the Danish fleet, LAXEN was cut off and captured off Kalmar by the Danish battleships NORSKE LØVE (86) and ANNA SOPHIA (58). LAXEN was taken into the Danish navy under her Swedish name. Sold out of Danish naval service in 1688.

Name:	NYCKELN
Date of loss:	July 20, 1679
Cause of loss:	Caught fire in action and exploded
Warship type:	Battleship
Armament:	84 cannon
Dimensions (Swedish):	Length – 154′ Beam – 37′ 6″ (39′ 6″ – as rebuilt?)
Notes:	Also called RIKS-NYCKELN. Built at Bodekull. Acquired by the Swedish navy in 1664.NYCKELN was the fourth largest Swedish warship at the start of the Skånian war, after KRONAN, SVÄRDET, and ÄPPLET.In 1675, four years before her loss, NYCKELN was armed with 26-24 pdr., 30-12 pdr., 10-8 pdr., 12-6 pdr., 2-4 pdr., and 6-3 pdr. cannon, a highly mixed armament, which gives an idea what might have comprised her armament on the date of her loss. In the last major action of the war, the Danish admiral Niels Juel sent Vice-Admiral Span with a detachment of ten warships and three fireships to attack a force of six Swedish warships at the northern end of Kalmar Sound. When the Swedish force retired, the NYCKELN ran aground at the harbor entrance, where she was attacked by the Danish VICTORIA (46), CHRISTIANUS QUARTUS (54), NEPTUNUS (44), and FLYVENDE HJORT (44). After three hours of cannonading, the NYCKELN caught fire and finally exploded. Just a few weeks after the NYCKELN’s loss, peace was concluded, by two separate peace treaties, signed on August 13th and September 6th, 1679.

Name:	FALKEN
Date of loss:	1679
Cause of loss:	Captured by the Danes
Warship type:	Small frigate (M)
Armament:	12 guns (in Danish naval service)
Dimensions (Danish):	Length – 68′ 8″ Beam – 16′ 11″ Draft – 6′ 11″
Notes:	Swedish records list FALKEN as being hired by the Swedish navy in 1677, and that she was also called STRALSUNDS-FALKEN.Danish naval records indicate that Danish naval forces captured a small frigate, named FLYVENDE FALK while in Danish naval service, from the Swedes in 1679. It is probable that FLYVENDE FALK is the same vessel as the Swedish FALKEN indicated in the foregoing Swedish warship’s profile.The entries for “Armament” and “Dimensions (Danish):” in the foregoing Swedish warship data profile are for the Danish FLYVENDE FALK. This vessel is classed as a “small” frigate because all other Danish frigates of the second half of the 17th Century were between 85 feet and 114 feet in length, whereas FLYVENDE FALK was only 68′ 8″ in length; the beams of most Danish frigates of this period were between 22′ 6′ and 28′ 9″, while FLYVENDE FALK’s was 16′ 11″. The FLYVENDE FALK’s armament was only nominal, compared to other Danish frigates of the day. FLYVENDE FALK was even smaller than the Danish ENHJØRNING (ex-Swedish ENHORN), captured from the Swedes in 1676 and also classed as a small frigate.

Further reading