On This Day In History: Dramatic Battle Of Öland – On June 1, 1676

| June 1, 2016 | On This Day In History | No Comments

MessageToEagle.com – On June 1, 1676, dramatic naval Battle of Öland was fought between Swedish navy in the Baltic Sea and an allied Danish-Dutch fleet.

Just as the battle began, the Swedish flagship Kronan sank, taking with it almost the entire crew.

In the centre the flagship “Kronan” (The Crown) is sinking, while being shelled by the “Christianus Quintus” (Christian V). To the right the “Svärdet” (The Sword) surrenders and to the left “Äpplet” (The Orb) runs ground.
In the centre the flagship “Kronan” (The Crown) is sinking, while being shelled by the “Christianus Quintus” (Christian V). To the right the “Svärdet” (The Sword) surrenders and to the left “Äpplet” (The Orb) runs ground. Credits: Kongernes Samling Rosenborg

The above tapestry depicts only the Danish victories during the Scanian War, even though Christian V did not succeed in reconquering the recently lost Danish provinces of Scania, Halland and Blekinge. These were only some of the provinces lost by Frederik III after the swift Swedish invasions of 1658-59.

However, they were considered to be Danish central provinces. The major forces of Europe at the time had no interest in a Swedish great power, and thus prevented the total annexation of Denmark through both military and financial support.

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 commander after Creutz’s sudden demise, Admiral Claes Uggla, was surrounded and his flagship Svärdet battered in a drawn-out artillery duel, then set ablaze by a fire ship.

Admiral Claes Uggla, was surrounded and his flagship The Sword (Svärdet) battered in a drawn-out artillery duel, then set ablaze by a fire ship. Uggla drowned while escaping the burning ship, and with the loss of a second supreme commander, the rest of the Swedish fleet fled in disorder.
Admiral Claes Uggla, was surrounded and his flagship The Sword (Svärdet) battered in a drawn-out artillery duel, then set ablaze by a fire ship. Uggla drowned while escaping the burning ship, and with the loss of a second supreme commander, the rest of the Swedish fleet fled in disorder.

Uggla drowned while escaping the burning ship, and with the loss of a second supreme commander, the rest of the Swedish fleet fled in disorder.

The battle resulted in Danish naval dominance, which was maintained throughout the war. The Danish King Christian V was able to ship troops over to the Swedish side to Scania and on 29 June a force of 14,500 men landed at Råå, just south of Helsingborg in southernmost Sweden. Scania became the main battleground of the war, culminating with the bloody 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 also prompted King Charles XI to order a commission to investigate the fiasco, but in the end no one was found responsible.

Some provinces, such as Scania, Halland and Blekinge, remained in Swedish hands and are today an integral part of Sweden.

In this battle several other ships were also lost during the war of 1675-1679.

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