The Swedish fleet had been notified on…

July 1788 CE

The Swedish fleet had been notified on July 7 that a state of war with Russia was in effect, and already on July 8 had surprised two unprepared Russian frigates—thirty-two gun Jaroslavets (Jarislawits) and twenty-four gun Hektor (Gektor)—which are promptly captured together with their crew of four hundred and fifty men.

The Swedish fleet meets a Russian fleet sailing under the command of Admiral Samuel Greig and fight an engagement near Hogland Island, in the Gulf of Finland, in which neither side manages to gain advantage.

Unusually for a naval battle, both sides capture one ship.

The Swedes fare slightly better in the artillery duel leaving four Russian ships dead in the water but fail to capitalize their success, while all Swedish ships are able to set sail after the battle.

The Russians suffer the worst casualties, losing three hundred and nineteen to five hundred and eighty men killed compared with between two hundred and three hundred Swedes, but the battle is a strategic victory for the Russians because Greig had done enough to prevent the Swedish landing.

One reason why the fight ends, even though Swedish battle fleet has the advantage, is that the Swedish fleet is rapidly running out of ammunition, especially for its heavier cannons, and has to depart.

Locations
Battle of Hogland View →

People
Catherine the Great View → Charles XIII of Sweden View → Gustav III of Sweden View → Samuel Greig View →

Groups
Sweden, (second) Kingdom of View → Finland, (Swedish) Grand Duchy of View → Russian Empire View →

Topics
Russo-Swedish War of 1788-90 View →

Subjects
Conflict View → Government View → Custom and Law View →

Regions

Subregions

Related Events

Active Filters
Topic: Hungarian-Venetian War of 1357-58
Location: Arnsberg Nordrhein-Westfalen Germany
Refine Results

No related events match the current filters.