''Amphion'' was the personal

pleasure craft Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, suc ...

of King

Gustav III Gustav III (29 March 1792), also called ''Gustavus III'', was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of King Adolf Frederick and Queen Louisa Ulrika of Sweden. Gustav was a vocal opponent of what he saw ...

of Sweden. She was designed by

Fredrik Henrik af Chapman Fredrik Henrik af Chapman (9 September 1721 – 19 August 1808) was a Swedish shipbuilder, scientist and naval officer. He was vice admiral in the Swedish Navy, and manager of the Karlskrona shipyard from 1782 to 1793. Chapman is credited a ...

, built at Djurgårdsvarvet in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

in the summer of 1778, and launched the same year. ''Amphion'', named after Zeus' son and culture patron in Greek mythology, served as a royal yacht and headquarters ship. The ship was essentially a modified ''

turuma A turuma (from the Finnish word "Turunmaa") 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. Th ...

'', a type of shallow-draught frigate that served in the Swedish

archipelago fleet The archipelago fleet (), officially the "fleet of the army" (), was a Navy, maritime branch of the Swedish Armed Forces which existed between 1756 and 1823. Its purpose was to protect the coasts of Sweden, which was surrounded by a natural barrie ...

. She was equipped with oars to allow her maneuverability of a

galley A galley is a type of ship optimised for propulsion by oars. Galleys were historically used for naval warfare, warfare, Maritime transport, trade, and piracy mostly in the seas surrounding Europe. It developed in the Mediterranean world during ...

while retaining a broadside of heavy guns and a full rig. She was equivalent to similar "archipelago

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

s" of the archipelago fleet, but at Gustav III's request, she was built without heavy cannons and therefore differed significantly from the other ships of the same type. ''Amphion'' turned out to be one of Chapman's few failures as a ship designer. She suffered from poor seakeeping ability and was also too heavy to row. On her maiden voyage from

Karlskrona Karlskrona (, , ) is a locality and the seat of Karlskrona Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden with a population of 66,675 in 2018. It is also the capital of Blekinge County. Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to ...

, poor weather conditions left ''Amphion'' shipwrecked in the archipelago of Stockholm, and Gustav III was required to come ashore at

Dalarö Dalarö is a locality situated in Haninge Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 1,199 inhabitants in 2010. It is situated south-east of Stockholm and is part of Metropolitan Stockholm and serves as a recreational summer spot for Stockhol ...

. Thereafter, she was used mostly for trips out on Lake

Mälaren Mälaren ( , , or ), historically referred to as Lake Malar in English, is the third-largest freshwater lake in Sweden (after Vänern and Vättern). Its area is and its greatest depth is 64 m (210 ft). Mälaren spans from east to west. The l ...

, though also she was used as the king's personal command ship during the Russo-Swedish war of 1788–1790. She later served as a barracks ship into the 19th Century. In 1884, ''Amphion'' was broken up for firewood. ''Amphion''s

figurehead In politics, a figurehead is a practice of who ''de jure'' (in name or by law) appears to hold an important and often supremely powerful title or office, yet '' de facto'' (in reality) exercises little to no actual power. This usually means that ...

and stern castle with the royal command room were spared, and can be seen at the

Maritime Museum A maritime museum (sometimes nautical museum) is a museum specializing in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water. A subcategory of maritime museums are naval museums, which focus on navy, navies and the m ...

in Stockholm. The preserved parts underwent preservation and restoration, performed by conservation studio Ateljé Catellani, between 2003 and 2006. The current stern was added in 1791 after the ship was damaged at the end of the Russian War. The former stern lacked the royal cypher, and its four windows gates were of a simpler design.

Gallery

File:AmphionLogementfartyg.JPG, ''Amphion'' as a barracks ship File:Amphion Kungl skonert ( byggt 1777-79), akterspegel.jpg, Drawing of the transom. File:Sjöhistoriska museet 2008a.jpg, The preserved stern File:Sjöhistoriska museet 2008m.jpg, Gustav III's cabin

Sources

* Harris, Daniel G, ''Fredrik Henrik af Chapman: den förste skeppsbyggnadsarkitekten och hans verk.'' (Translation by Roderick Klintebo), Literatim, Stockholm. 1998. . * Ships of Sweden 1778 ships Individual yachts {{Sweden-mil-ship-stub