page_title: Battles at Göta Älv
section_title: War in Northern Bohuslän
hierarchical_section_title: Battles at Göta Älv / War in Northern Bohuslän
caption_attribution_description: Svenska: Sammanställning av fartygstyper av Fredrik Henric af Chapman som beskrivs i planschverket "Architectura Navalis Mercatoria", utgiven 1768. Originalbeskrivning: "Visar utseendet av de flere slags Taklingar, som mäst brukas på Skepp och andre fartyg; hvaraf Fartygen gemenligen få Namn. 1. Fregat 2. Snaw 3. Kitz eller Hukare 4. Brigantin eller Brigg 5. Billender 6. Scooner 7. Hållensk fisk Hukare 8. Hartlooper Galleoth 9. Galleass 10. Kreyare 11. Hukare Jagt 12. Jagt 13. Chalk 14. Hoy, Engelsk 15. Engelsk Cutter 16. Tartane 17. Spehl Jagt 18. Fransk Skjeps-båt med latins segel 19. Svensk Skjeps-båtmed Jagtsegel 20. Engelsk Deal Cutter med 3:ne sprisegel 21. Slup med 2:ne Sprisegel 22. En Britonsk Fisk-båt 23. En skjeps-Julle med sprisegel och stagfock 24. En Stockholms Lots-båt Visar allahanda Fartygs åtskillige Taklings-sätt, och är större delen af dessa Taklingar sådane, som Caracterisera fartygen, och finnas upteknade i den tabell som åtföljer Boken. Distancen emellan de små Verticala Linierne, som på N:o 1 äro teknade med a och b, utmärka Fartygets bredd. Råerne suponeras vara så brassade, at de göra en angel af 60° med Fartygets Medellinia, hvaraf följer, at Råernes värkeliga längder äro dubbelt större än hvad de synas på Ritningarne, och äro alla dessa Takel-Ritningar efter en och samma Skala, hvilken finnes upritad på samma Plåt."
context_page_description: The battles at Göta älv were a series of battles and sieges which took place in and around the Gothenburg area between 1717 and 1719, between the Swedish Empire and Denmark-Norway, during the Great Northern War.
  When Charles XII was forced to halt his assault on southern Norway in 1716, Dano-Norwegian troops, under the command of the young commander Peter Tordenskjold, attempted to blockade Gothenburg and assault its newly constructed naval base; Nya Varvet in the spring of 1717, but was unsuccessful. Tordenskold also attempted an assault on Strömstad, also without success. The attacks resulted in the Swedes rebasing their Gothenburg Squadron to Marstrand, some smaller vessels were rebased to Strömstad.
  Following Charles XII's renewed assault on Norway in the autumn of 1718, as well as the breakdown of the 1719 peace negotiations, Denmark-Norway launched yet another assault targeting Bohuslän. The goal for the Dano-Norwegian forces was to achieve a quick end of the war with a resulting territorial loss for Sweden, but also to halt the Swedes' privateering operations which were taking a toll on Denmark-Norway.
context_section_description: Following their victory against Tordenskjold in May 1717, the Swedish military deemed that Strömstad was in a vulnerable position and that it required reinforcement. Captain Nils Gyllenschruf succeeded in transporting soldiers, cannons, ammunition and grain from Gothenburg to Strömstad by June 14. The troops were part of the Halland Regiment and the previously mentioned Grenadier Battalion. The Västerbotten Regiment was also ordered to Strömstad. A major fortification project ensued, and by June 29, General Major Johan Giertta, who was responsible for the defense of the border with Norway, could report that two cannon batteries were operational and the remaining two were near completion.
  On July 8, Tordenskjold assaulted Strömstad with a squadron, and following heavy firing upon the city, an attempt was made to land soldiers escorted by galleys. The assault failed when the Swedish counterattack couldn't be stopped despite firing against them by Danish ships of the line and barges. A number of attacking galleys got stuck on rocks and were stranded. At 15 to 20 meters distance, Swedish grenadiers were able to hit with devastating musket salvos. The Danish casualties numbered 96 in addition to their 246 injured. Among the injured was Tordenskjold himself who was carried back to the ship of the line Laaland, bleeding and barely conscious. He was promptly replaced by the more careful Schoutbynacht Andreas Rosenpalm.
  Charles XII visited Strömstad and Gothenburg in September 1717. He decided that the Gothenburg Squadron was to be moved, and that its larger vessels, the frigates, were to be placed in the more strongly fortified Marstrand. The lesser vessels were to be based in Strömstad. Missing dockyards and storage facilities were to be constructed as soon as possible, by order of the King.
  One of the lessons learned from the Swedish invasion in 1716 was to not have large Swedish storage caches in occupied Norwegian territory. Almost 40 cargo ships therefore completed 150 transports of supplies from Gothenburg and Uddevalla to storages in Strömstad, between April and October 1718. The convoys were escorted by screens of the Gothenburg Squadron, since its frigates were lacking in equipment and manpower. Three of the frigates, the Varberg, Halmstad and the Fredricus had been put under the command of Gathenhielm.
  In the Ide fjord, a smaller Norwegian squadron had the ability to either assault the Swedish storage caches in Strömstad, or threaten the Swedish troops which were yet again planning to cross the border. Due to the fact that the entrance to Svinesund was blockaded by naval vessels and Norwegian cannon batteries, Charles XII decided that a number of galleys should be towed across land from Strömstad to Trångsviken in the Ide fjord, a distance of roughly 20 kilometers. The transport proved to be a difficult task across rough terrain, trickles and narrow roads. The transport of the heaviest vessel, the brigantine Luren, took two months. The roughly 40 tonne ship got stuck in a trickle and remained immobile until technical experts Christopher Polhem and Emanuel Swedenborg were called upon to remove the vessel. On September 10, under the command of Charles XII, the Swedish vessels, including brigantines and sloops, forced the Norwegian squadron to retreat to Fredrikshald during a battle in the Ide fjord. 
  Following the renewed campaign against Norway in the autumn of 1718, and the subsequent death of Charles XII at Fredriksten fortress on November 30, the Swedish army marched back across the border into Sweden. The march would result in large casualties due to a severe winter storm, an event known as the Carolean Death March. Additionally, the Swedish east coast was being threatened by Russia. This was an opportunity for Denmark-Norway to retake areas on the Swedish west coast. Intricate plans regarding a land and naval invasion on Bohuslän existed already, and were put into motion. The large supply caches that had been constructed in Strömstad in 1718 were now facing a major threat by the Dano-Norwegian counter-attack, and d
caption: Ships used by both sides in the conflict. From Fredrik Henrik af Chapman's Architectura Navalis Mercatoria.
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