On This Day In History: Battle Of Visby, Gotland Was Fought – On July 27, 1361

MessageToEagle.com – On July 27, 1361, the Battle of Visby was fought near the town of Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland, between the forces of the Danish king and the Gotland peasants.

The Danish force was victorious.

A few days earlier, the enemy fleet was clearly seen. The armada consisted of thirty ships, and large cogs, smaller shells. The rumor of the Danish attack was spreading rapidly across the island; soon all church bells rang across the island – the danger was imminent.

Soon, the Danish king, Valdemar IV Atterdag and his soldiers appeared on the horizon outside Visby’s thick city walls.

See also:

Battle Of Visby – Death Came With King Atterdag’s Ships

 They landed on the coast of Eksta Parish, Gotland and the Danish troops moved towards Visby. The clashes began and they culminated on July 27 just outside the city walls.

The main battle was fought within 300 meters of the city of Visby’s fortifications. The extent of the incident was not finished until the day after the battle. Roughly 1,800 Gotlanders had been killed, that is, up to half of the participants – an exceptionally high loss ratio.

Following the devastating battle, the citizens of Visby decided to surrender to avoid further losses.

To save the city from sacking, the inhabitants paid a large amount of their wealth to King Valdemar. Despite the payment, the Danes still plundered the city.

The cruel plundering of the island by the King Valdemar definitely ended the island’s prosperity.

After the Gotlanders surrendered, the island became a part of the Danish kingdom for a short period of time, until the Swedish crown reclaimed it in the early 15^th century.

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