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Swedish frigate 32 Guns 'Birger Jarl', +/-1813 (With Plans)


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 'Birger Jarl' 


 


Source:


https://www.abc.se/~pa/uwa/birg_jarl.htm


 


It could be noted at first that there was no entry in the journal in 1813 for a vessel known as the Billard. However, the entries for May and the early summer contain a great deal of information on a sunken frigate known as the Birger Jarl. Furthermore, this naval frigate had sunk in the Bay of Fakse close to Danish waters, which suggested further research to determine whether the names had been confused. It could be seen that so many of the circumstances concerning the frigate Birger Jarl corresponded to the data on the loss of the ship as supplied by Danish researchers that this confusion of names appeared almost certain. The only incorrect information was the name of the frigate and those of the second-in-command and the major of the Naval Survey Corps who had been on board. These are given in the Danish documents as Billard, Nyeberg and Hagelström instead of Birger Jarl, Nyström and Hagelstam. The date of the incident, the name of the commander and the site all corresponded, and the mistakes were easily corrected with reference to information from the Swedish War Records Office.


On 6 November 1974 Danish researchers had found on the bottom of the Bay of Fakse a large wreck of the same dimensions and armament as the sunken Swedish frigate (Schou-Hansen 1976, pp. 6 & 60). When the frigate sank it was armed with twenty-two 36-pound cannons and ten 24-pound carronades, as also indicated in the plans of the vessel in the Swedish War Records Office. In this connection it was also possible to solve the problem of the vessel's draught, which appeared to be too small in relation to the length of the sternpost. The Birger Jarl was an artillery-bearing vessel of shallow draught of the hemmema type, a construction which had originally been designed by F. H. af Chapman but which had been rebuilt and modernized after his death. An archipelago frigate of this kind had to have the least possible draught in order to manoeuvre with ease in shallow waters. The problem of the short sternpost originally discovered by the trawler, the shallow draught, appeared to find its solution.


The vessel belonged to a series of four types of naval vessels, each named after a Finnish province: Hämeenmaa (Hemmema), Turunniaa (Turuma), Pohjanmaa (Pojama) and Uusirnaa (Udema). In daily parlance (and also in writing) these types were referred to with corruptions of the names of the landscapes, given here in parentheses. The hemmema Birger Jarl was one of these archipelago frigates. They were all equipped with heavy artillery and they were also oared, which was thought to be of military significance when becalmed.


It appears that the hemmema-vessels were, however, too large and heavy to be manoeuvred even slowly with oars, and the type gradually went out of use (Each oar was worked by 4-5 men. When becalmed, rowing was intended to provide a speed of 2-3 knots, corresponding to 3-5 km/h. Oral communication by Professor Christoffer H. Ericsson of Helsinki).


A study of the reports in Swedish archives (covering the period 1758-1824 in the archives of the Stockholm squadron, Archival register no. 529 b, FSÄ, War Records Office) the following facts could be established:


  1. The correct name of the Swedish frigate was Birger Jarl, not Billard.
  2. The commanding officer was, as assumed by the Danish researchers, Hjelmstierna.
  3. The second-in-command was Lieutenant Nyberg.
  4. The third officer who was saved in the dinghy was Major Hagelstam (not Hagelström as given in the Danish documents).

 


bj_rigg.jpg


 


bj_skrov.jpg


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For a bit of info on who the ship was named after.  ^_^

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birger_Jarl

 Birger Jarl (c. 1200 – 21 October 1266), or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland

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May I admit that the hull lines look rather.. low draft.

This ship looks like it was designed for coastal patrol duties.

Just like the dutch designs: get lighter/less draft and in return youll add a lot of leeway to her.

So she would be a terrible sailor compared to shipbesigns coming from the brits or french, spanish.. youi know what I mean ;)

 

Still.. She would totally crush any same sized frigate.. thats one impressive armament

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May I admit that the hull lines look rather.. low draft.

This ship looks like it was designed for coastal patrol duties.

Just like the dutch designs: get lighter/less draft and in return youll add a lot of leeway to her.

So she would be a terrible sailor compared to shipbesigns coming from the brits or french, spanish.. youi know what I mean ;)

 

Still.. She would totally crush any same sized frigate.. thats one impressive armament

 

Chapman's archipelago frigates provided better protection for their crew than the galleys they replaced, and up to three times the capacity for stores and provisions. They could operate in the narrow, shallow waters around skerries in all weathers and in open water in all but the worst storms. They had a deeper draft than galleys, but considerably shallower draft than traditional sailing warships. The new ship types also increased the archipelago fleet's firepower, provided it with better defensive capabilities, and made possible more efficient fire support in amphibious operations.

 

Hemmemas served in the Finnish squadrons during the war of 1788–1790. They supported amphibious operations and conducted raids on the Russian archipelago fleet, while at the same time acting as sea-borne flank support for the Swedish army on the Finnish mainland. Hemmemas fought in the first and second Battles of Svensksund. During the first battle in 1789, one hemmema complemented the similar turumas, and in the second battle in July 1790, two hemmemas made up the defensive center and provided a considerable percentage of the firepower.

 

Like the other specialized archipelago vessels, the hemmema had specific strengths and weaknesses. Although it had superior firepower relative to galleys, its sailing qualities were somewhat mediocre and while highly manoeuvrable under oars, it was still difficult to propel while rowed. A hemmema had the potential to be an effective weapon against galleys, matching their forward firepower and severely outgunning them with its broadside armament. Inside an enemy galley formation, it could wreak considerable havoc, but such a maneuver was never achieved in an actual battle, leaving that tactical role untested.

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For a bit of info on who the ship was named after. ^_^

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birger_Jarl

Birger Jarl (c. 1200 – 21 October 1266), or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland.

Which they held until 1809 when russia took us away from our swedish brothers :'(

Hemmema is also a ship I would like to try out in this game. While I probably wont be using it most of the time becuase of it's mediocre sailing capabilities (i'll be an explorer), it's still an awesome ship design.

Btw, Wind or Eyeless, have you posted this in this: http://forum.game-labs.net/index.php?/topic/4389-list-of-ships-and-plans-presented-so-far/ thread? Seems it would be a nice place to get some more recognition for this Swedish design?

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