Battle of Grengam

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Grengam


caption=The Bringing of four Swedish frigates into St. Petersburg after the victory in the Battle of Grengam.
partof=Great Northern War
date=July 27 1720
place=Near Granhamn Island [http://www.earthsearch.net/intSearch.php?show
] , Sweden
result=Disputed, both sides claim victory [p.71, Morfill, "...almost under the eyes of the English."] [http://www.sjohistoriskasamfundet.se/Forum_navale.html] Russian raids on Swedish coast ended
combatant1=
combatant2=
commander1=Vice-Admiral Eric Sjöblad
commander2=Admiral Mikhail Galitzine
strength1= Ship of the line
4 frigates
9 smaller craft
over 1,000 sailors
strength2=61 galleys
25 boats
11,000 sailors and soldiers
casualties1=103 killed,
407 taken prisoner
casualties2=Russian claims: 82 killed and 236 wounded [ [http://rusnavy.com/history/victories/vic2.htm] ] [Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Grengam]
Swedish claims: 1,000 dead [http://sfhs.eget.net/portal/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=78&Itemid=2]

The Battle of Grengam ( _ru. Гренгамское морское сражение, _sv. Slaget vid Granhamn) of 1720 was the last major naval battle in the Great Northern War that took place at Granhamn Island, near Kapellskär in Sweden. The battle marked the end of Russian need to launch operations with their galley fleet in the Baltic waters due to the conclusion of the war and the signing of the Treaty of Nystad. [p.244, Wilson, Callo] The name is based on the Russian transliteration of the island's Swedish name "Granhamn".

The Battle

On July 27, 1720, a small Swedish naval unit with vice admiral Carl Georg Siöblad in charge, sailed right into the mighty Russian fleet anchored at Granhamn, near Flisö, Föglö. A fierce battle took place, the Swedes lost four of their warships but the Russian losses became so heavy that the entire fleet quickly decided to withdraw from Åland, leaving 43 sunken ships and 1.000 dead Russians behind to be buried at Flisö on that day. The Russian losses prevented their navy from launching any further major operations until the war ended with the Peace in Nystad (Uusikaupunki) the following year.

Aftermath

Four Swedish line-of-battle ships, the 34-gun frigate "Stor Phoenix", the 30-gun "Vainqueur", the 22-gun "Kiskin" and the 18-gun "Danska Örn" were captured by the Russian Navy. 43 out of 61 Russian galleys, were either sunk by the Swedish force (One ship-of-the-line, six frigates and some smaller crafts) or burnt and abandoned after the battle. The Swedish admiral Eric Siöblad was first criticised after the battle, but when the scope of the Russian losses were discovered he was praised. Russia celebrated the battle as a victory, but their fleet was unable to launch effective operations until the end of the war in 1721.

Like the previous Battle of Gangut, the Battle of Grengam was fought on Saint Pantaleon Day. In order to commemorate the victory, a timber church to this saint was built in St. Petersburg in 1722. It was rebuilt in stone in 1735-39. The facade of the church bears (since 1914) two marble plaques listing the ships and regiments that fought at Gangut and Grengam.

References

ources

* Wilson, Alastair, Callo, Joseph F., "Who's who in Naval History: From 1550 to the Present", Routledge, 2004 ISBN 0415308283
* Morfill, William Richard, "A History of Russia: From the Birth of Peter the Great to Nicholas II", James Pott Publisher, London, 1902

Recommended readings

*ru icon [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/008/014/147.htm Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Grengam]
* George Bruce. "Harbottle's Dictionary of Battles". (Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1981) (ISBN 0-442-22336-6).
* Gunnar Unger (1923). "Illustrerad svensk sjökrigshistoria, omfattande tiden 1680-1814". Stockholm: Albert Bonniers Förlag.
* Magnus Ullman, "Rysshärjningarna på Ostkusten sommaren 1719"