The Battle of Villmanstrand, also the storming of Villmanstrand,
was fought during the
Russo-Swedish War on 23 August 1741, when
Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
forces of 10,000 men (13,000, or 16,000–18,000, according to
Swedish estimates), under the command of General
Peter von Lacy, assaulted
Villmanstrand ().
Lacy drawn up in 2 storming lines: the 1st (grenadier and 4 infantry regiments) was commanded by General , the 2nd (5 infantry regiments and all cavalry) by General .
Fighting began around 2 P.M. but the Swedes under
Carl Henrik Wrangel
Carl Henrik Wrangel, friherre Wrangel af Adinal (28 January 1681 – 23 March 1755) was an officer of the Swedish Army, attaining the rank of Field Marshal.
Biography
He was born in Haapsalu in Swedish Estonia as the son of Reinhold Wrangel.
...
, counting 3,000–4,000 men (5,256–5,600 according to Russian estimates) withdrew already at 5 P.M.
Swedish casualties amounted to between 2,000 and 2,500 men, or 3,300–4,000 killed and wounded, and 1,337 captured (among them General
Carl Henrik Wrangel
Carl Henrik Wrangel, friherre Wrangel af Adinal (28 January 1681 – 23 March 1755) was an officer of the Swedish Army, attaining the rank of Field Marshal.
Biography
He was born in Haapsalu in Swedish Estonia as the son of Reinhold Wrangel.
...
), with four colours, 12 cannons and one mortar lost according to Russian estimates. Soon after, the Swedes rallied 1,400 men from the
Södermanland
Södermanland ( ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latinisation of names, Latinized form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a Provinces of Sweden, historical province (or ) on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Österg� ...
(300),
Dalarna
Dalarna (; ), also referred to by the English exonyms Dalecarlia and the Dales, is a (historical province) in central Sweden.
Dalarna adjoins Härjedalen, Hälsingland, Gästrikland, Västmanland and Värmland. It is also bordered by Nor ...
(above 400),
Västerbotten
Västerbotten (), sometimes called West Bothnia or Westrobothnia, is a province (''landskap'') in northern Sweden, located by the Gulf of Bothnia. It borders the provinces of Ångermanland, Lapland and Norrbotten. The region is famous for Väs ...
(above 300), and Tavastehus (370) regiments (including sick or elsewhere commanded troops not present at the battle). This number does not count the Karelian Dragoons,
Savolax Regiment or the Willebrand infantry which were the first Swedish units to flee and thus suffered the least casualties.
The Russians admitted a loss of 515 killed and 1,870 wounded. After the battle, the Swedes claim to have received reports from captured Russian officers stating a loss of 8,000 Russians killed. Von Lacy did not continue his movement after the battle.
Henrik Magnus Buddenbrock
Henrik Magnus von Buddenbrock (22 July 1685 – between 16 and 27 July 1743) was a Swedish baron and Lieutenant General. He and Carl Emil Lewenhaupt were executed for negligence in the Russo-Swedish War (1741-1743), Russo-Swedish War, in the after ...
was executed for his perceived incompetence.
Swedish units
Russian Colonel Christoph Hermann Manstein's estimates of the Swedish strength, reportedly derived from Wrangel's
muster roll
In military organization, the term ''muster'' is the process or event of accounting for members in a military unit. This practice of inspections led to the coining of the English idiom , meaning being sufficient. When a unit is created, it is "mu ...
at the day of the battle. It is unknown if this also includes sick and elsewhere commanded soldiers not present at the battle. Manstein's figures does, however, include the
Kymmenegård (Kiminogon) battalion and the second
Savolax battalion, neither of which were present at the battle (these are struck through).
*
Dalarna Regiment
The Dalarna Regiment (), designation I 13, is a Swedish Army infantry unit that traced its origins back to the 16th century. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited from the province of Dalarna, where it was later garrisoned. The unit ...
—623 men (311 killed or captured, 44 wounded)
*
Södermanland Regiment—681 men
*
Västerbotten Regiment
The Västerbotten Regiment (), designations I 19, I XIX, I 20 and I 20/Fo 61, was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traced its origins back to the 16th century. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited from the province of Västerbott ...
—594 men (157 killed or captured)
*
Savolax Regiment—
876 men/one battalion
*Tavastehus Regiment—955 men
*Willebrand Regiment—432 men
*
Kymmenegård (Kiminogon) battalion—
476 men/none
*Karelian Dragoons—506 men
*Artillery personnel—113 men
Notes
References
Sources
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Russo-Swedish War (1741–1743)
Battles involving Sweden
Battles involving the Russian Empire
Conflicts in 1741
History of South Karelia
{{sweden-battle-stub