Battle of Öland
Encyclopedia
The battle of Öland was a naval battle between an allied Dano-Norwegian
-Dutch
fleet and the Swedish navy in the Baltic Sea
off the east coast of the island of Öland
on 1 June 1676. The battle was a part of the Scanian War
(1675–79) that was fought for supremacy over the southern Baltic. Sweden was in an urgent need of transferring reinforcements to its north German possessions while Denmark sought to ferry an army to Scania
in southern Sweden to open up a front on Swedish soil.
Just as the battle begun the Swedish flagship Kronan
foundered and sank with a loss of almost the entire crew, including the Admiral of the Realm and commander of the Swedish Navy, Lorentz Creutz. The allied force under the leadership of the Dutch admiral Cornelis Tromp
took full advantage of the ensuing disorder on the Swedish side. The acting Swedish second-in-command after Creutz' sudden demise, admiral Claes Uggla
, was surrounded and his flagship Svärdet
battered in a drawn-out artillery duel and eventually set on fire by a fireship. Uggla himself drowned while escaping the burning ship, and after the loss of a second admiral, the rest of the Swedish fleet fled in disorder.
The battle resulted in Danish naval supremacy that was upheld throughout the war. Christian V
was able to ship troops over to Swedish soil and on 29 June 14,500 men landed at Råå
, just south of Helsingborg
. Scania became the main battleground during the war, culminating with the bloody battles of battles of Lund
, Halmstad
and Landskrona
. Danish and Dutch naval forces were left free to raze Öland and the Swedish east coast all the way up to Stockholm. The Swedish failure at Öland led to the organizing of a commission to investigate the naval fiasco at Öland, but no one was found guilty.
in the summer of 1675 at the insistence of its ally France
, at that time the most powerful nation in Europe. The Dutch Republic
was at war with France in the Franco-Dutch War
, and soon declared war on Sweden. A Swedish defeat against Brandenburg forces at the battle of Fehrbellin
on 18 June 1675, though of comparatively minor consequence tactically, became a heavy blow to the high reputation of the Swedish army. A number of German states and the Holy Roman Empire
saw the victory as a sign of weakness and joined the war on Sweden. Denmark also saw a chance to regain Scania
, Blekinge
and Halland
, which had been lost to Sweden in the Treaty of Roskilde
in 1660, and declared war on 2 September. The southern Baltic became a strategically important scene for both Denmark and Sweden. Denmark needed the sea lanes to invade Scania, while Sweden needed to reinforce its holdings in Pomerania; both stood to gain by taking control of the Baltic trade routes.
In late Fall of 1675, the Swedish fleet under Gustaf Otto Stenbock
put to sea, but only got as far as Stora Karlsö
off Gotland
before it had to turn back to Stockholm, beset by cold and stormy weather, disease and loss of vital equipment. Stenbock was held personally responsible for the failure by King Charles XI and was forced to pay the campaign out of his own pocket. The winter of 1675-76, the Swedish fleet was placed under the command of Lorentz Creutz, but was iced in by an exceptionally harsh winter.
put to sea in March 1676 and on April 29 his forces landed on Gotland, which promptly surrendered. The Swedish fleet was ordered out on May 4, but encountered adverse winds and was delayed until May 19. Juel had by then already left Visby
, the main port on Gotland, heading for Bornholm
between the southern tip of Sweden and the northern coast of Germany to join up with a smaller Danish-Dutch force. Together they intended to cruise between Scania
and the island of Rügen
to stop Swedish troops from landing on Rügen and reinforcing Swedish Pomerania
. On May 25–26 the two fleets fought a largely indecisive battle at Bornholm
. The Swedish force was superior in numbers, but was unable to inflict any serious losses and instead lost a fireship and one smaller vessel.
Several Swedish accounts told that Creutz was in conflict with his officers after Bornholm. Major Taube of the Mars testified that after the battle, the officers had been "scolded like boys" and that he "without regard for guilt or innocence, accused them almost all alike". The army captain Rosenberg told at a later inquiry that Creutz "almost had a paroxysm in the night" because of Bär's conduct at Bornholm, one of his flag officers, and that he swore "never to go to serve at sea with such rascals". Maritime archaeologist Lars Einarsson has concluded that the relationship between Creutz and his subordinates before the battle had hit rock bottom.
After the unsuccessful action, the Swedish fleet anchored off Trelleborg
where King Charles was waiting with new orders to recapture Gotland. The fleet was to refuse combat with the allies at least until they reached the northern tip of Öland, where they could fight in friendly waters. After the Swedish fleet left Trelleborg on May 30, the allied fleet soon came in contact with it and began pursuing the Swedes. By this time the allies had been reinforced by a small squadron and now totalled 42 vessel, with 25 large or medium ships of the line. The reinforcements also brought with them a new commander, the Dutch Admiral General Cornelis Tromp
, one of the ablest naval tacticians of his time. The two fleets sailed north and on June 1 passed the northern tip of Öland in a strong gale
. The rough winds were hard on the Swedish ships. Many lost masts and spars. The Swedes, forming a barely cohesive battle line, tried to sail ahead of Tromp's ships to get between them and the shore to get on their lee side, holding the weather gage
, and thereby gaining an advantageous tactical position. The Dutch ships of the allied fleet, however, managed to sail closer into the wind and faster than the rest of the force and slipped between the Swedes and the coast, snatching the weather gage. Later that morning the two fleets closed in on each other and were soon within firing range.
came about in the maneuver she heeled over and began to take in water. According to master gunner Anders Gyllenspak, the sails were not reefed
and the ship leaned over so hard that she took in water through the lower gunports. While the ship was leaning over, a gust of wind pushed the ship on her side, laying her masts and sails down in line with the surface of the sea. A short while later the gunpowder store in the front part of the ship exploded and ripped the forward part of the starboard side apart. Kronan quickly lost buoyancy and sank.
The sudden loss of the flagship and the fleet admiral threw the already scattered Swedish line into confusion and sapped morale. Four ships from Creutz' and Uggla's squadron immediately fled when they saw that the flagship was lost. Claes Uggla was next in command after Creutz and suddenly became the acting commander of the Swedish fleet. When the line came about, Uggla and his ship Svärdet came on a collision course with the still floating wreckage of Kronan, and was forced to jibe
(turn the stern into the wind direction) to avoid it. Svärdets second turn was interpreted by many ships as a signal to turn again while others interpreted it as the beginning of a general retreat, leading to major disorder. Uggla reduced speed in an attempt to gather his forces, but instead was separated from his subordinates.
Tromp on Christianus Quintus, Vice Admiral Jens Rodsten on Tre Løver and Niels Juel on Churprindsen took advantage of the chaos. They quickly surround and began to hammer Svärdet into submission. Several Swedish ships attempted to assist Uggla, but they were in a lee position and could not provide effective support. After about an hour-and-a-half to two hours of hard fighting Svärdets mainmast went overboard and Uggla had to strike his colors (surrender) to Tromp. Despite this, Svärdet was ignited by accident or misunderstanding by the Dutch fireship t' Hoen. The second largest Swedish ship after Kronan sank in the blaze and took with it 600 out of a crew of 650, including Admiral Uggla himself. Only Hieronymus, Neptunus and Järnvågen, an armed merchant, had tried to support Uggla. Of these only Hieronymus escaped the attempt, though badly damaged, while the others were captured by Juel and his subordinate on Anna Sophia.
Around six o'clock in the evening the Swedish force had lost two flagships along with two fleet admirals and the entire force now began a disorderly retreat. Some of the smaller ships were caught up with and captured while the rest of the ships sought shelter in friendly harbors. Most set course for Dalarö
, north of Stockholm while others tried for Kalmar Strait
, between Öland and the Swedish mainland.
south of Helsingborg
.
The commission did not find anyone guilty of negligence or misconduct, but Bär of Nyckeln and Lieutenant Admiral Christer Boije, who later ran aground with Äpplet, were never again given a command in the navy. Hans Clerck of Solen went through the process unscathed and was promoted by the King before the commission even presented its verdict. Creutz has quite consistently been blamed for the loss of his ship by many historians and described as an incompetent sea officer and sailor who more or less single-handedly brought about the sinking through lack of naval experience. Military historians Lars Ericson Wolke and Olof Sjöblom have attempted to nuance the picture by pointing out that Creutz' task was akin to that of an administrator rather than a military commander. The practical issues of ship maneuvering should therefore have been the responsibility of his subordinates, who had experience in naval matters.
The captain of t' Hoen, the fireship that had set Svärdet ablaze after she had surrendered, was arrested and incarcerated directly after the battle and subjected to such a harsh treatment that he died within a few days. Tromp later reported that his ship Delft, which had seen some of the roughest fighting, had lost around 100 men and that most of its officers were wounded.
Second squadron
Third squadron
Second squadron
Third squadron
Fourth squadron
Denmark–Norway
Denmark–Norway is the historiographical name for a former political entity consisting of the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway, including the originally Norwegian dependencies of Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands...
-Dutch
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
fleet and the Swedish navy in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
off the east coast of the island of Öland
Öland
' is the second largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area of 1,342 km² and is located in the Baltic Sea just off the coast of Småland. The island has 25,000 inhabitants, but during Swedish Midsummer it is visited by up to 500,000 people...
on 1 June 1676. The battle was a part of the Scanian War
Scanian War
The Scanian War was a part of the Northern Wars involving the union of Denmark-Norway, Brandenburg and Sweden. It was fought mainly on Scanian soil, in the former Danish provinces along the border with Sweden and in Northern Germany...
(1675–79) that was fought for supremacy over the southern Baltic. Sweden was in an urgent need of transferring reinforcements to its north German possessions while Denmark sought to ferry an army to Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
in southern Sweden to open up a front on Swedish soil.
Just as the battle begun the Swedish flagship Kronan
Kronan (ship)
Kronan, also called Stora Kronan, was a Swedish warship that was the flagship of the Swedish navy in the Baltic Sea in the 1670s. When built, she was one of the largest seagoing vessels in the world. The construction of Kronan lasted 1668–72, delayed on account of difficulties with financing and...
foundered and sank with a loss of almost the entire crew, including the Admiral of the Realm and commander of the Swedish Navy, Lorentz Creutz. The allied force under the leadership of the Dutch admiral Cornelis Tromp
Cornelis Tromp
Sir Cornelis Maartenszoon Tromp, 1st Baronet was a Dutch naval officer. He was the son of Lieutenant Admiral Maarten Tromp. He became Lieutenant Admiral General in the Dutch Navy and briefly Admiral General in the Danish Navy...
took full advantage of the ensuing disorder on the Swedish side. The acting Swedish second-in-command after Creutz' sudden demise, admiral Claes Uggla
Claes Uggla
Claes Uggla was a Swedish Admiral of the 17th century.After serving as a soldier in the Thirty Years' War, in 1644 he entered the Navy, and served with distinction against the Dutch in the battle of Øresund in 1658...
, was surrounded and his flagship Svärdet
Svärdet
Svärdet was a Swedish warship that sank on 1 June 1676 at the Battle of Öland during the Scanian War under the command of Claes Uggla. Svärdet was surrounded early in the battle, and fought for two hours until her main mast was destroyed and the ship surrendered...
battered in a drawn-out artillery duel and eventually set on fire by a fireship. Uggla himself drowned while escaping the burning ship, and after the loss of a second admiral, the rest of the Swedish fleet fled in disorder.
The battle resulted in Danish naval supremacy that was upheld throughout the war. Christian V
Christian V of Denmark
Christian V , was king of Denmark and Norway from 1670 to 1699, the son of Frederick III of Denmark and Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
was able to ship troops over to Swedish soil and on 29 June 14,500 men landed at Råå
RAA
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, just south of Helsingborg
Helsingborg
Helsingborg is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 97,122 inhabitants in 2010. Helsingborg is the centre of an area in the Øresund region of about 320,000 inhabitants in north-west Scania, and is Sweden's closest point to Denmark, with the Danish city...
. Scania became the main battleground during the war, culminating with the bloody battles of battles of Lund
Battle of Lund
The Battle of Lund was fought on December 4, 1676 in an area north of the city of Lund in Scania in southern Sweden, between the invading Danish army and the army of Charles XI of Sweden. It was part of the Scanian War...
, Halmstad
Battle of Halmstad
The Battle of Halmstad was fought at Fyllebro, approximately five kilometers south of the town Halmstad in southwest Sweden on August 17, 1676...
and Landskrona
Battle of Landskrona
The Battle of Landskrona was fought on the Ylleshed moore, outside the town of Landskrona, in southern Sweden onJuly 14, 1677 .-Prelude:...
. Danish and Dutch naval forces were left free to raze Öland and the Swedish east coast all the way up to Stockholm. The Swedish failure at Öland led to the organizing of a commission to investigate the naval fiasco at Öland, but no one was found guilty.
Background
Sweden had attacked the German state of BrandenburgBrandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
in the summer of 1675 at the insistence of its ally France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, at that time the most powerful nation in Europe. The Dutch Republic
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
was at war with France in the Franco-Dutch War
Franco-Dutch War
The Franco-Dutch War, often called simply the Dutch War was a war fought by France, Sweden, the Bishopric of Münster, the Archbishopric of Cologne and England against the United Netherlands, which were later joined by the Austrian Habsburg lands, Brandenburg and Spain to form a quadruple alliance...
, and soon declared war on Sweden. A Swedish defeat against Brandenburg forces at the battle of Fehrbellin
Battle of Fehrbellin
The Battle of Fehrbellin was fought on June 18, 1675 between Swedish and Brandenburg-Prussian troops. The Swedes, under Count Waldemar von Wrangel , had invaded and occupied parts of Brandenburg from their possessions in Pomerania, but were repelled by the forces of Frederick William, the Great...
on 18 June 1675, though of comparatively minor consequence tactically, became a heavy blow to the high reputation of the Swedish army. A number of German states and the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
saw the victory as a sign of weakness and joined the war on Sweden. Denmark also saw a chance to regain Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
, Blekinge
Blekinge
' is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden , situated in the south of the country. It borders Småland, Scania and the Baltic Sea.The name "Blekinge" comes from the adjective bleke, which corresponds to the nautical term for "dead calm"....
and Halland
Halland
' is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden , on the western coast of Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Småland, Scania and the sea of Kattegat.-Administration:...
, which had been lost to Sweden in the Treaty of Roskilde
Treaty of Roskilde
The Treaty of Roskilde was concluded on 26 February or 8 March 1658 during the Second Northern War between Frederick III of Denmark–Norway and Charles X Gustav of Sweden in the Danish city of Roskilde...
in 1660, and declared war on 2 September. The southern Baltic became a strategically important scene for both Denmark and Sweden. Denmark needed the sea lanes to invade Scania, while Sweden needed to reinforce its holdings in Pomerania; both stood to gain by taking control of the Baltic trade routes.
In late Fall of 1675, the Swedish fleet under Gustaf Otto Stenbock
Gustaf Otto Stenbock
Count Gustaf Otto Stenbock was a Swedish soldier and politician.He was son of Friherre Gustav Eriksson Stenbock and Countess Beata Margareta Brahe , born in Torpa, Länghem parish, Tranemo Municipality, Västergötland, Sweden.He was appointed head of Kronobergs regemente in 1637, Major General in...
put to sea, but only got as far as Stora Karlsö
Stora Karlsö
Stora Karlsö is a small Swedish island in the Baltic Sea, situated about 6 km west of Gotland. It has an area of about 2.5 km² and is up to 52 meters high. Most of the island consists of a limestone plateau, bordered by steep cliffs along the shore...
off Gotland
Gotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
before it had to turn back to Stockholm, beset by cold and stormy weather, disease and loss of vital equipment. Stenbock was held personally responsible for the failure by King Charles XI and was forced to pay the campaign out of his own pocket. The winter of 1675-76, the Swedish fleet was placed under the command of Lorentz Creutz, but was iced in by an exceptionally harsh winter.
Prelude
A Danish fleet of 20 ships under admiral Niels JuelNiels Juel
Niels Juel was a Dano–Norwegian admiral. He was the brother of the diplomat Jens Juel.-Biography:Niels Juel was born the son of Erik Juel and Sophie Clausdatter Sehested, both were descendant of Danish nobility, who lived in Jutland where the father had a career as a local functionary and judge...
put to sea in March 1676 and on April 29 his forces landed on Gotland, which promptly surrendered. The Swedish fleet was ordered out on May 4, but encountered adverse winds and was delayed until May 19. Juel had by then already left Visby
Visby
-See also:* Battle of Visby* Gotland University College* List of governors of Gotland County-External links:* - Visby*...
, the main port on Gotland, heading for Bornholm
Bornholm
Bornholm is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea located to the east of the rest of Denmark, the south of Sweden, and the north of Poland. The main industries on the island include fishing, arts and crafts like glass making and pottery using locally worked clay, and dairy farming. Tourism is...
between the southern tip of Sweden and the northern coast of Germany to join up with a smaller Danish-Dutch force. Together they intended to cruise between Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
and the island of Rügen
Rügen
Rügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
to stop Swedish troops from landing on Rügen and reinforcing Swedish Pomerania
Swedish Pomerania
Swedish Pomerania was a Dominion under the Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815, situated on what is now the Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish War and the Thirty Years' War, Sweden held extensive control over the lands on the southern Baltic coast, including Pomerania and parts...
. On May 25–26 the two fleets fought a largely indecisive battle at Bornholm
Battle of Bornholm (1676)
The battle of Bornholm was a naval battle between a superior Swedish and a smaller Danish-Dutch fleet that was fought 25–26 May 1676 as a part of the Scanian War. The objective for both sides was naval supremacy in the southern Baltic Sea...
. The Swedish force was superior in numbers, but was unable to inflict any serious losses and instead lost a fireship and one smaller vessel.
Several Swedish accounts told that Creutz was in conflict with his officers after Bornholm. Major Taube of the Mars testified that after the battle, the officers had been "scolded like boys" and that he "without regard for guilt or innocence, accused them almost all alike". The army captain Rosenberg told at a later inquiry that Creutz "almost had a paroxysm in the night" because of Bär's conduct at Bornholm, one of his flag officers, and that he swore "never to go to serve at sea with such rascals". Maritime archaeologist Lars Einarsson has concluded that the relationship between Creutz and his subordinates before the battle had hit rock bottom.
After the unsuccessful action, the Swedish fleet anchored off Trelleborg
Trelleborg
Trelleborg is a locality and the seat of Trelleborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 25,643 inhabitants in 2005. It is the southernmost town in Sweden.-History:...
where King Charles was waiting with new orders to recapture Gotland. The fleet was to refuse combat with the allies at least until they reached the northern tip of Öland, where they could fight in friendly waters. After the Swedish fleet left Trelleborg on May 30, the allied fleet soon came in contact with it and began pursuing the Swedes. By this time the allies had been reinforced by a small squadron and now totalled 42 vessel, with 25 large or medium ships of the line. The reinforcements also brought with them a new commander, the Dutch Admiral General Cornelis Tromp
Cornelis Tromp
Sir Cornelis Maartenszoon Tromp, 1st Baronet was a Dutch naval officer. He was the son of Lieutenant Admiral Maarten Tromp. He became Lieutenant Admiral General in the Dutch Navy and briefly Admiral General in the Danish Navy...
, one of the ablest naval tacticians of his time. The two fleets sailed north and on June 1 passed the northern tip of Öland in a strong gale
Beaufort scale
The Beaufort Scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort Wind Force Scale.-History:...
. The rough winds were hard on the Swedish ships. Many lost masts and spars. The Swedes, forming a barely cohesive battle line, tried to sail ahead of Tromp's ships to get between them and the shore to get on their lee side, holding the weather gage
Weather gage
The weather gage is a nautical term used to describe the advantageous position of a fighting sailing vessel, relative to another. The term is from the Age of Sail, and is now antiquated. A ship is said to possess the weather gage if it is in any position, at sea, upwind of the other vessel...
, and thereby gaining an advantageous tactical position. The Dutch ships of the allied fleet, however, managed to sail closer into the wind and faster than the rest of the force and slipped between the Swedes and the coast, snatching the weather gage. Later that morning the two fleets closed in on each other and were soon within firing range.
Battle
Around noon, as a result of poor communication and signaling, the Swedish line unexpectedly turned toward the allied fleet. But when the flagship KronanKronan (ship)
Kronan, also called Stora Kronan, was a Swedish warship that was the flagship of the Swedish navy in the Baltic Sea in the 1670s. When built, she was one of the largest seagoing vessels in the world. The construction of Kronan lasted 1668–72, delayed on account of difficulties with financing and...
came about in the maneuver she heeled over and began to take in water. According to master gunner Anders Gyllenspak, the sails were not reefed
Reefing
Reefing is a sailing manoeuvre intended to reduce the area of a sail on a sailboat or sailing ship, which can improve the ship's stability and reduce the risk of capsizing, broaching, or damaging sails or boat hardware in a strong wind...
and the ship leaned over so hard that she took in water through the lower gunports. While the ship was leaning over, a gust of wind pushed the ship on her side, laying her masts and sails down in line with the surface of the sea. A short while later the gunpowder store in the front part of the ship exploded and ripped the forward part of the starboard side apart. Kronan quickly lost buoyancy and sank.
The sudden loss of the flagship and the fleet admiral threw the already scattered Swedish line into confusion and sapped morale. Four ships from Creutz' and Uggla's squadron immediately fled when they saw that the flagship was lost. Claes Uggla was next in command after Creutz and suddenly became the acting commander of the Swedish fleet. When the line came about, Uggla and his ship Svärdet came on a collision course with the still floating wreckage of Kronan, and was forced to jibe
Jibe
A jibe or gybe is a sailing maneuver where a sailing vessel turns its stern through the wind, such that the wind direction changes from one side of the boat to the other...
(turn the stern into the wind direction) to avoid it. Svärdets second turn was interpreted by many ships as a signal to turn again while others interpreted it as the beginning of a general retreat, leading to major disorder. Uggla reduced speed in an attempt to gather his forces, but instead was separated from his subordinates.
Tromp on Christianus Quintus, Vice Admiral Jens Rodsten on Tre Løver and Niels Juel on Churprindsen took advantage of the chaos. They quickly surround and began to hammer Svärdet into submission. Several Swedish ships attempted to assist Uggla, but they were in a lee position and could not provide effective support. After about an hour-and-a-half to two hours of hard fighting Svärdets mainmast went overboard and Uggla had to strike his colors (surrender) to Tromp. Despite this, Svärdet was ignited by accident or misunderstanding by the Dutch fireship t' Hoen. The second largest Swedish ship after Kronan sank in the blaze and took with it 600 out of a crew of 650, including Admiral Uggla himself. Only Hieronymus, Neptunus and Järnvågen, an armed merchant, had tried to support Uggla. Of these only Hieronymus escaped the attempt, though badly damaged, while the others were captured by Juel and his subordinate on Anna Sophia.
Around six o'clock in the evening the Swedish force had lost two flagships along with two fleet admirals and the entire force now began a disorderly retreat. Some of the smaller ships were caught up with and captured while the rest of the ships sought shelter in friendly harbors. Most set course for Dalarö
Dalarö
Dalarö is a locality situated in Haninge Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 1,190 inhabitants in 2005.It is situated south-east of Stockholm and is part of Metropolitan Stockholm and serves as a recreational summer spot for Stockholmers...
, north of Stockholm while others tried for Kalmar Strait
Kalmar Strait
The Kalmar Strait, Kalmarsund, is a strait in the Baltic Sea, located between the Swedish island of Öland and the province of Småland of the Swedish mainland...
, between Öland and the Swedish mainland.
Aftermath
The Swedish fleet had suffered a stinging blow by losing its two largest ships, its commander-in-chief and one of its most experienced admirals. Even after the battle, the misfortunes continued. Äpplet came off its moorings at Dalarö, went aground and sank. Around fifty survivors were picked up by pursuing Danish ships and taken as prisoners to Copenhagen. The battle gave Denmark undisputed naval supremacy and the Swedish fleet did not dare to venture out for the rest of the year. The army that had been amassed in Denmark could now be shipped to Scania to take the war to Swedish soil and on June 29, 1676, 14,500 troops were landed at RååRAA
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south of Helsingborg
Helsingborg
Helsingborg is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 97,122 inhabitants in 2010. Helsingborg is the centre of an area in the Øresund region of about 320,000 inhabitants in north-west Scania, and is Sweden's closest point to Denmark, with the Danish city...
.
The Swedish commission
Within a week, the news of the failure at Bornholm and the complete fiasco at Öland reached King Charles, who immediately ordered that a commission be set up to investigate what had happened. Charles wanted to see if Bär and other officers were guilty of cowardice or incompetence. On June 13 the King wrote "some of our sea officers have shown such cowardly and carelessly behavior" that they "have placed the safety, welfare and defense of the kingdom at great peril" and that "such a serious crime should be severely punished". The commission began its work on June 7, 1676. At the hearings, strong criticism surfaced and was directed against individual officers as well as the Swedish conduct in general. Anders Homman, one of the officers on board Svärdet were among those who chastised his colleagues the hardest. In his testimony he said that that Admiral Uggla had exclaimed "look how those dog cunts run" when he was surrounded, fighting the allied flagships. Homman himself described the actions of his colleagues as that of "chickens running about the yard, each in his own direction", and added that he "had been in seven battles, but never seen our people fight so poorly".The commission did not find anyone guilty of negligence or misconduct, but Bär of Nyckeln and Lieutenant Admiral Christer Boije, who later ran aground with Äpplet, were never again given a command in the navy. Hans Clerck of Solen went through the process unscathed and was promoted by the King before the commission even presented its verdict. Creutz has quite consistently been blamed for the loss of his ship by many historians and described as an incompetent sea officer and sailor who more or less single-handedly brought about the sinking through lack of naval experience. Military historians Lars Ericson Wolke and Olof Sjöblom have attempted to nuance the picture by pointing out that Creutz' task was akin to that of an administrator rather than a military commander. The practical issues of ship maneuvering should therefore have been the responsibility of his subordinates, who had experience in naval matters.
Disputes among the allied officers
Despite the astounding success, several allied officers were unhappy about the conduct of their forces. Naval historian Jørgen Barfod explains that the battle was fought "in a disorganized manner from beginning to end" since Tromp had given the order for each commander to attack the enemy ship closest to them. Since most of the Danes were unable to keep pace with the faster Dutch ships, the race towards Swedish home waters and the advantageous position along the coast also contributed to spreading out the allied fleet. Juel later complained in a letter to the Danish Admiral of the Realm that the Dutch had not assisted him in the pursuing the fleeing Swedes. He claimed that if he had gotten proper support, they could have "brought [the Swedes] such a fever on their throats that it would take years for all the doctors in Stockholm to cure it". When Tromp sent a report of the battle to the Danish King, he reproached his subordinates but refused to name names and asked that no punishment be dealt out.The captain of t' Hoen, the fireship that had set Svärdet ablaze after she had surrendered, was arrested and incarcerated directly after the battle and subjected to such a harsh treatment that he died within a few days. Tromp later reported that his ship Delft, which had seen some of the roughest fighting, had lost around 100 men and that most of its officers were wounded.
Allied fleet
First squadron- Flagship: Churprindsen (68), Niels JuelNiels JuelNiels Juel was a Dano–Norwegian admiral. He was the brother of the diplomat Jens Juel.-Biography:Niels Juel was born the son of Erik Juel and Sophie Clausdatter Sehested, both were descendant of Danish nobility, who lived in Jutland where the father had a career as a local functionary and judge...
- Christianus IV (58)
- Gyldenløve (56)
- Anna Sophia (62)
- Delmenhorst (44)
- Nellebladet (54)
- Lindormen (46)
- København (36)
- Hommeren (32)
- Anthonette (26)
- Caritas (34)
- Fire Kronede Lillier (4)
- Stokfisken, Abrahams Offer (fireships)
Second squadron
- Flagship: Christianus V (80), Cornelis TrompCornelis TrompSir Cornelis Maartenszoon Tromp, 1st Baronet was a Dutch naval officer. He was the son of Lieutenant Admiral Maarten Tromp. He became Lieutenant Admiral General in the Dutch Navy and briefly Admiral General in the Danish Navy...
- Tre Løver (64)
- Oostergoo (60)
- Charlotta Amalie (64)
- Enighed (66)
- Fridericus III (64)
- Campen (44)
- Havmanden (36)
- Havfruen (26)
- Spraglede Falk (18)
- Louys, t' Hoen (fireships)
Third squadron
- Flagship: Delft (62), Philip van Almonde
- Waesdorp (68)
- Dordrecht (46)
- Ackerboom (60)
- Gideon (60)
- Justina (64)
- Noortholland (44)
- Caleb (40)
- Utrecht (38)
- Hvide Falk (26)
- Delft (28)
- Perlen (8)
- Leonora (fireship)
Swedish fleet
First squadron- Flagship: KronanKronan (ship)Kronan, also called Stora Kronan, was a Swedish warship that was the flagship of the Swedish navy in the Baltic Sea in the 1670s. When built, she was one of the largest seagoing vessels in the world. The construction of Kronan lasted 1668–72, delayed on account of difficulties with financing and...
(124), Lorentz Creutz- Solen (74)
- Wrangel (60)
- Draken (66)
- Herkules (56)
- Neptunus (44)
- Maria (44)
- Fenix (36)
- Sundsvall (32)
- Enhorn (16)
- Pärlan (28, armed merchant)
- Tre Bröder (12)
- Mjöhund (10)
- Sjöhästen (8)
- Jakob, Svan (fireship)
Second squadron
- Flagship: Svärdet (94), Claes UgglaClaes UgglaClaes Uggla was a Swedish Admiral of the 17th century.After serving as a soldier in the Thirty Years' War, in 1644 he entered the Navy, and served with distinction against the Dutch in the battle of Øresund in 1658...
- Mars (72)
- Merkurius (64)
- Hieronymus (64)
- Svenska Lejonet (48)
- Göteborg (48)
- Fredrika Amalia (34)
- Uttern (24)
- Flygande Vargen (44, armed merchan)
- Järnvågen (24, armed merchant)
- Ekorren (8)
- Posthornet (8)
- Råbocken (8)
- Rödkritan, Duvan (fireships)
Third squadron
- Flagship: Nyckeln (84), Johan Bär
- Äpplet (86)
- Saturnus (64)
- Caesar (60)
- Wismar (54)
- Riga (54)
- Hjorten (36)
- Solen (54, armed merchant)
- Salvator (30)
- Gripen (8)
- Sjöman (8)
- Postiljon (fireship)
Fourth squadron
- Victoria (80)
- Venus (64)
- Jupiter (70)
- Carolus (60)
- Spes (48)
- Abraham (44)
- Nordstjärnan (28)
- Trumslagaren (34, armed merchant)
- Konung David (32, armed merchant)
- Elisabeth (12, armed merchant)
- Fortuna (12)
- Måsen (8)
- Jägaren (fireship)