The Battle of Suomenlinna (also known as the Battle of Viapori or the Bombardment of Sweaborg) was fought on 9–11 August 1855 between Russian defenders and a joint British/French fleet during the Åland War. It was a part of the Crimean War.
Constructed during the Swedish rule of Finland in the 18th century, the fortress of Viapori (sv:Sveaborg, renamed in Finnish in 1918 as fi:Suomenlinna) was the main defensive installation in the Grand Duchy of Finland. After the capital of the Grand Duchy of Finland was moved from Turku to Helsinki in 1812 the value of Viapori only increased. However, by the Crimean War the artillery of the fortress had already become obsolete. After the engagements of 1854 Russians (and Finns) expected an attack on Viapori in 1855. The small skirmishes that had been fought along the coast between Russian and British/French forces in the early summer of 1855 only worsened the fear while bulk of the Russian fleet had become isolated and surrounded in the port and fortress of Kronstadt off Saint Petersburg.
Battleedit
A map of the positions of the attacking ships
British and French naval forces consisting of 77 ships arrayed for the long-expected battle on 6 August 1855. They formed into a battle line more than 3 km off shore beyond the range of the defenders' obsolete artillery. Three days later the bombardment commenced. It continued for 47–48 hours, with 18,500 rounds fired. All the while, the attacker sat beyond the range of the defenders' guns. The British and French bombarded only the fortress of Viapori and avoided firing at the town of Helsinki directly. While the bombardment caused damage to the structures above ground, including to several gunpowder magazines which exploded, the bulk of the defending forces survived unscathed with their weaponry intact, leading to a stalemate with the attackers guns being unable to defeat the defender and defenders guns being unable to reach the attacker. Once the guns had become silenced, the ships remained in the same offshore position, leading to growing fears of a landing. However British and French forces landed troops neither at Viapori nor Helsinki, and eventually withdrew.
Lambert, Andrew D. (1990). The Crimean war : British grand strategy, 1853–56. Manchester: Manchester University Press. ISBN0-7190-2978-3. Retrieved 16 August 2015.
Nolan, Edward Henry (1855). The History of the War Against Russia, Volume 7. London: Virtue. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
Rantatupa, Heikki; Rautiainen, Matti; Jokinen, Jukka (2006). Atlas: History of Finland. Iisalmi: IS-Vet. ISBN952-5312-80-1.
This article about a battle in Finnish history is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
battle, suomenlinna, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, septem. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Battle of Suomenlinna news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2014 Learn how and when to remove this template message Battle of SuomenlinnaPart of the Aland War and the Crimean WarA British illustration of the attackDate9 11 August 1855 1 LocationSuomenlinna Grand Duchy of Finland60 8 53 N 24 59 11 E 60 14806 N 24 98639 E 60 14806 24 98639ResultIndecisiveBelligerentsRussian Empire Grand Duchy of FinlandFrench Empire United KingdomCommanders and leadersAleksei Sorokin ru Richard Dundas 2 Charles PenaudStrength15 000 soldiers1 500 cannons 3 80 ships 3 Casualties and losses260 killed or wounded 3 Unknown The Battle of Suomenlinna also known as the Battle of Viapori or the Bombardment of Sweaborg was fought on 9 11 August 1855 between Russian defenders and a joint British French fleet during the Aland War It was a part of the Crimean War Contents 1 Background 2 Battle 3 Citations 4 ReferencesBackground editConstructed during the Swedish rule of Finland in the 18th century the fortress of Viapori sv Sveaborg renamed in Finnish in 1918 as fi Suomenlinna was the main defensive installation in the Grand Duchy of Finland After the capital of the Grand Duchy of Finland was moved from Turku to Helsinki in 1812 the value of Viapori only increased However by the Crimean War the artillery of the fortress had already become obsolete After the engagements of 1854 Russians and Finns expected an attack on Viapori in 1855 The small skirmishes that had been fought along the coast between Russian and British French forces in the early summer of 1855 only worsened the fear while bulk of the Russian fleet had become isolated and surrounded in the port and fortress of Kronstadt off Saint Petersburg Battle edit nbsp A map of the positions of the attacking shipsBritish and French naval forces consisting of 77 ships arrayed for the long expected battle on 6 August 1855 They formed into a battle line more than 3 km off shore beyond the range of the defenders obsolete artillery Three days later the bombardment commenced It continued for 47 48 hours with 18 500 rounds fired All the while the attacker sat beyond the range of the defenders guns The British and French bombarded only the fortress of Viapori and avoided firing at the town of Helsinki directly While the bombardment caused damage to the structures above ground including to several gunpowder magazines which exploded the bulk of the defending forces survived unscathed with their weaponry intact leading to a stalemate with the attackers guns being unable to defeat the defender and defenders guns being unable to reach the attacker Once the guns had become silenced the ships remained in the same offshore position leading to growing fears of a landing However British and French forces landed troops neither at Viapori nor Helsinki and eventually withdrew Citations edit Nolan 1855 pp 397 399 Lambert 1990 pp 291 297 a b c Rantatupa 2006 References editLambert Andrew D 1990 The Crimean war British grand strategy 1853 56 Manchester Manchester University Press ISBN 0 7190 2978 3 Retrieved 16 August 2015 Nolan Edward Henry 1855 The History of the War Against Russia Volume 7 London Virtue Retrieved 1 April 2021 Rantatupa Heikki Rautiainen Matti Jokinen Jukka 2006 Atlas History of Finland Iisalmi IS Vet ISBN 952 5312 80 1 nbsp This article about a battle in Finnish history is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Battle of Suomenlinna amp oldid 1217532247, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
