Henrik af Trolle

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Henrik af Trolle

Henrik af Trolle.jpg

Born(1730-11-24)24 November 1730
Sweden
Died 12 March 1784(1784-03-12) (aged 53)
Stockholm, Sweden
Allegiance Sweden
Service/branch Swedish Navy
Years of service 1740–1784
Rank General Admiral
Battles/wars

Pomeranian War

Henrik af Trolle (24 November 1730 – 12 March 1784) was a Swedish naval officer and commander of the Swedish Archipelago fleet. He was ennobled in 1772. He is considered to be one of the foremost administrators and developers of the Swedish Navy throughout the ages (together with Claes Larsson Fleming and Hans Wachtmeister).

Sweden constitutional monarchy in Northern Europe

Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Scandinavian Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north and Finland to the east, and is connected to Denmark in the southwest by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund, a strait at the Swedish-Danish border. At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi), Sweden is the largest country in Northern Europe, the third-largest country in the European Union and the fifth largest country in Europe by area. Sweden has a total population of 10.2 million of which 2.4 million has a foreign background. It has a low population density of 22 inhabitants per square kilometre (57/sq mi). The highest concentration is in the southern half of the country.

Archipelago fleet

The archipelago fleet, officially the Fleet of the army, was a branch of the armed forces of Sweden which existed between 1756 and 1823. Its purpose was to protect the coasts of Sweden, which was surrounded by a natural barrier of archipelagoes. Throughout its existence, it was a largely independent arm of the army, separate from the navy, with the exception of a few years in the late 1760s. In a number of respects, it was a precursor of the Swedish Coastal Artillery and it's coastal fleet.

Hans Wachtmeister Swedish admiral

Hans Wachtmeister, Count of Johannishus, was admiral general of the Swedish Navy and advisor to King Charles XI of Sweden and King Charles XII of Sweden. He served in the Scanian War of 1675–1679 and during the following twenty years of peace worked to build up the Swedish Navy. When the Great Northern War began in 1700 he was able to take his fleet to sea in good condition.

History

Henrik Trolle was born in 1730 to the Danish admiral Georg Herman von Trolle, who had entered Swedish service, and Anna Margareta Grill. At age ten his father sent him to serve in the navy, where he spent the next thirteen years, advancing to the rank of second mate. During one adventurous journey outside South America, Trolle's ship encountered four Spanish vessels and fought a four-hour-long battle, which ended with the entire Swedish crew being captured and imprisoned. Trolle was released after four months.

A second mate or second officer (2/O) is a licensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship holding a Second Mates Certificate of Competency, which is issued by the administration. The second mate is the third in command and a watchkeeping officer, customarily the ship's navigator. Other duties vary, but the second mate is often the medical officer and in charge of maintaining distress signaling equipment. On oil tankers, the second mate usually assists the chief mate with the Cargo operations.

Upon his return to Sweden one year later (1754) he was promoted to the rank of chief mate and rose to lieutenant captain in 1758. He fought in the Seven Years' War at the siege of Peenemünde and at a battle that took place at the Prussian sconce Anklamer-Fehr. There he served as a captain on Carlskrona one of the larger galleys and managed to chase away two Prussian galleys.

Chief mate profession

A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed member and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the ship's cargo and deck crew. The actual title used will vary by ship's employment, by type of ship, by nationality, and by trade: for instance, chief mate is not usually used in the Commonwealth, although chief officer and first mate are; on passenger ships, the first officer may be a separate position from that of the chief officer that is junior to the latter.

Seven Years War Global conflict between 1756 and 1763

The Seven Years' War was a global conflict fought between 1756 and 1763. It involved every European great power of the time and spanned five continents, affecting Europe, the Americas, West Africa, India, and the Philippines. The conflict split Europe into two coalitions, led by the Kingdom of Great Britain on one side and the Kingdom of France, the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Spain, and the Swedish Empire on the other. Meanwhile, in India, some regional polities within the increasingly fragmented Mughal Empire, with the support of the French, tried to crush a British attempt to conquer Bengal. The war's extent has led some historians to describe it as World War Zero, similar in scale to other world wars.

Peenemünde Place in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany

Peenemünde is a municipality on the Baltic Sea island of Usedom in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is part of the Amt of Usedom-Nord. The community is known for the Peenemünde Army Research Center, where the world's first functional large-scale liquid-propellant rocket, the V-2, was developed.

In 1759 he organized the transport of the Swedish army to Rügen and served as an aide-de-camp to Count Axel von Fersen who was commander of the Swedish army. The same year he also participated in the victorious battle at Frisches Haff. He was given command of the naval and army units that guarded the waters around the islands of Usedom and Wollin. He rose quickly through the ranks and became a major in 1762, the final year of Sweden's involvement in the Seven Years' War.

<i>Aide-de-camp</i> personal assistant or secretary to a person of high rank

An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant or secretary to a person of high rank, usually a senior military, police or government officer, or to a member of a royal family or a head of state.

Axel von Fersen the Elder lantmarskalk or marshal of the diet

Count Fredrik Axel von Fersen was a Swedish statesman and soldier.

Battle of Frisches Haff

The Battle of Frisches Haff or Battle of Stettiner Haff was a naval battle between Sweden and Prussia that took place 10 September 1759 as part of the ongoing Seven Years' War. The battle took place in the Szczecin Lagoon between Neuwarp and Usedom, and is named after an ambiguous earlier name for the Lagoon, Frisches Haff, which later exclusively denoted the Vistula Lagoon.

In 1766, after years that had seen the Swedish Navy being reduced, he travelled on his own expense to Brest, Flanders and Amsterdam, where he observed shipbuilding and fortress construction techniques. In 1769 he married Carolina Carleson, daughter of politician Edvard Carleson.

Brest, France Subprefecture and commune in Brittany, France

Brest is a city in the Finistère département in Brittany. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon. The city is located on the western edge of continental Europe. With 142,722 inhabitants in a 2007 census, Brest is at the centre of Western Brittany's largest metropolitan area, ranking third behind only Nantes and Rennes in the whole of historic Brittany, and the 19th most populous city in France; moreover, Brest provides services to the one million inhabitants of Western Brittany. Although Brest is by far the largest city in Finistère, the préfecture of the department is the much smaller Quimper.

Flanders Community and region of Belgium

Flanders is the Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, language, politics and history, and sometimes involving neighbouring countries. The demonym associated with Flanders is Fleming, while the corresponding adjective is Flemish. The official capital of Flanders is Brussels, although the Brussels Capital Region has an independent regional government, and the government of Flanders only oversees the community aspects of Flanders life in Brussels such as (Flemish) culture and education.

Amsterdam Capital city of the Netherlands and municipality

Amsterdam is the capital city and most populous municipality of the Netherlands. Its status as the capital is mandated by the Constitution of the Netherlands, although it is not the seat of the government, which is The Hague. Amsterdam has a population of 854,047 within the city proper, 1,357,675 in the urban area and 2,410,960 in the metropolitan area. The city is located in the province of North Holland in the west of the country but is not its capital, which is Haarlem. The Amsterdam metropolitan area comprises much of the northern part of the Randstad, one of the larger conurbations in Europe, which has a population of approximately 8.1 million.

In 1770, he was given a high position in the Swedish Archipelago fleet, at the time officially referred to as the "fleet of the army" (arméns flotta), a branch of the military specializing in coastal warfare and amphibious operations. He became the right-hand man of its commander, Augustin Ehrensvärd, and together they supervised the expansion, administration and training of the fleet. As a reward for his support in the royal revolution of king Gustav III in 1772, he was given command of the Archipelago fleet and was ennobled, thus being allowed to attach the prefix "af" to his family name. During the following years, Trolle came into conflict with traditionalist supporters of the blue water navy who were against the very existence of a naval unit under army command. Trolle and the naval architect Fredrik Henrik af Chapman had both come to the conclusion that small, fast and maneuverable vessels with 60-70 guns were of more use than big, slow, depth-craving ships with 100 guns. With the help of powerful allies and support from the court he managed to aide af Chapman become chief naval architect, further developing and renewing the army fleet according to their visions.

Augustin Ehrensvärd Swedish military officer, military architect, and artist

Field marshal count Augustin Ehrensvärd was a Swedish military officer, military architect, artist, creator of the Suomenlinna (Sveaborg) fortress and the Swedish archipelago fleet. He was born in Fullerö Castle, Barkarö and died in the village of Saris, Mynämäki.

Gustav III of Sweden King of Sweden from 1771 to 1792

Gustav III was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of Adolf Frederick, King of Sweden and Queen Louise Ulrika, and a first cousin of Empress Catherine the Great of Russia by reason of their common descent from Christian August of Holstein-Gottorp, Prince of Eutin, and his wife Albertina Frederica of Baden-Durlach.

Fredrik Henrik af Chapman Swedish admiral and shipbuilder

Fredrik Henrik af Chapman was a Swedish shipbuilder, scientist and officer in the Swedish navy. He was also manager of the Karlskrona shipyard 1782-1793. Chapman is credited as the worlds first person to apply scientific methods to shipbuilding and is considered to be the first naval architect.

While remaining an officer in the Archipelago fleet he then went on to command the Nyland Regiment and the Swedish squadron of the Archipelago fleet. In June 1780 he was appointed the rank of General Admiral. He died in Stockholm on 12 March 1784.

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Peter Tordenskjold Norwegian sea officer

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General admiral

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Admiral (Sweden) Wikimedia list article

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Battle of Vyborg Bay (1790) 1790 battle

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Clas Fleming (admiral) Swedish admiral

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Count Ivan Fedoseevich Botsis was a Russian admiral and one of the founders of the Imperial Russian Navy under Peter the Great.

Rudolf Cederström Swedish naval commander

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Olof Strömstierna Swedish admiral

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Pojama

A pojama or pojema was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was developed for warfare in the Archipelago Sea and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland against the Russian navy. The pojama was designed by the prolific naval architect Fredrik Henrik af Chapman for use in an area of mostly shallow waters and groups of islands and islets that extend from Stockholm all the way to the Gulf of Finland.

Udema

An udema was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was developed for warfare in the Archipelago Sea in the Baltic and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland against the Russian navy. The udema was designed by the prolific naval architect Fredrik Henrik af Chapman for use in an area of mostly shallow waters and groups of islands and islets that extend from Stockholm all the way to the Gulf of Finland.

Turuma A minor warship built for operation in the archipelagoes of the Baltic Sea

A turuma was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet in the late 18th century. It was specifically developed for warfare in the Archipelago Sea and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland. The turuma was designed by the prolific naval architect Fredrik Henrik af Chapman for use in an area of mostly shallow waters and groups of islands and islets that extend from Stockholm all the way to the Gulf of Finland.

Hemmema type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet and the Russian Baltic navy

A hemmema was a type of warship built for the Swedish archipelago fleet and the Russian Baltic navy in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The hemmema was initially developed for use against the Russian Navy in the Archipelago Sea and along the coasts of Svealand and Finland. It was designed by the prolific and innovative Swedish naval architect Fredrik Henrik af Chapman (1721–1808) in collaboration with Augustin Ehrensvärd (1710–1772), an artillery officer and later commander of the Swedish archipelago fleet. The hemmema was a specialized vessel for use in the shallow waters and narrow passages that surround the thousands of islands and islets extending from the Swedish capital of Stockholm into the Gulf of Finland.

Salomon von Rajalin Swedish Navy admiral

Baron Salomon Maurits von Rajalin was a Swedish Navy admiral and civil servant.

Måns von Rosenstein

Magnus (Måns) Rosén von RosensteinAurivillius was a Swedish Navy rear admiral. After having served in the Fleet of the Army, Rosenstein joined the Royal Navy in the American Revolutionary War against the French. He then joined the French Navy and took part in the Battle of the Saintes where he was taken prisoner by his former commander Admiral Sir Peter Parker and was imprisoned in England. He was quit immediately released, returned to Sweden and would later distinguished himself in the Battle of Svensksund. Rosenstein retired with the rank of rear admiral in the Swedish Navy in 1797 and died in his hometown of Uppsala in 1801.

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