Gustaf von Psilander (16 August 1669– 18 March 1738) was an admiral of the

Royal Swedish Navy The Swedish Navy ( sv, Svenska marinen) is the naval branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet () – as well as marine units, the Amphibious Corps (). In Swedish, vessels o ...

. In 1704, Psilander fought his most famous action in the Battle of Orford Ness against a superior

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

force where he was defeated, the battle coming about as a result of his refusal to salute them under strict orders from his king.

Early life

Psilander was the son of a clerk in the Royal Wardrobe, who died when Psilander was eleven years old. Raised by a friend of the father, the Stockholm Alderman Johan Hagemeister, he joined the Navy as a clerk in 1687. Two years later Psilander was promoted to Gunner's Mate, and the following year to Gunner. To gain experience, and achieve promotion, Psilander joined the Dutch Navy during the Nine Years' War, serving as rating and petty officer, fighting in the

Battle of Beachy Head (1690) The Battle of Beachy Head (''Fr''. Battle of Bévéziers) was a naval battle fought on 10 July 1690 during the Nine Years' War. The battle was the greatest French tactical naval victory over their English and Dutch opponents during the war. Th ...

. Promoted to Sub-Lieutenant in his absence, he returned to Sweden in 1695.

Wars

At the outbreak of the

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swed ...

, Captain Psilander served as

Flag Captain In the Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime en ...

, under Admiral

Cornelius Anckarstjerna Cornelius Didrikson Thijsen Anckarstierna (25 January 1655 – 19 April 1714) was a Swedish admiral of Dutch origin and a member of the Swedish House of Nobility. Early life Cornelius Anckarstierna was born on 25 January 1655 in Stockholm. His ...

, escorting King

Charles XII Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII ( sv, Karl XII) or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 O.S.), was King of Sweden (including current Finland) from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line o ...

and the Swedish Army to

Pärnu Pärnu () is the fourth largest city in Estonia. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and west of Estonia's second largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet o ...

in Estonia. After having served as Frigate Captain in the

Bay of Finland The Gulf of Finland ( fi, Suomenlahti; et, Soome laht; rus, Фи́нский зали́в, r=Finskiy zaliv, p=ˈfʲinskʲɪj zɐˈlʲif; sv, Finska viken) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland to the north and E ...

, he became Captain of the ''Öland'', a Swedish ship-of-the line escorting Swedish merchantmen during the

. During one of these expeditions, the event that made him one of Sweden's most famous sea officers occurred. Followed by a squadron of eight English ships-of-the-line and a frigate, he refused to salute the English squadron when requested to do so by

William Whetstone Sir William Whetstone (died 1711) was an officer of the Royal Navy in the later 17th and early eighteenth century. He eventually rose to the rank of rear admiral, having spent his career serving with several distinguished figures. Family and ea ...

(with Whetstone's reason being that Psilander was in English waters), being under strict orders to not lower his flags under any circumstances by his king. The ensuing

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

left his ship of the line captured with fifty-three casualties, but they were eventually released and allowed to return home. Psilander commanded a ship-of-the-line in the Battle of Køge Bay, becoming Deputy Superintendent of the Royal Navy shipyard in Karlskrona the same year. Promoted to

Schoutbynacht () is a Dutch Naval rank, with a NATO rank of OF-7. The ' was responsible for ensuring that fleet continued to sail in the prescribed order at night. The title comes from the title of the officer who replaced the admiral at night and was therefo ...

and Admiralty Commissioner in 1712, he was also

ennobled Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteristi ...

the same year. Favoured by the King's patronage since the 1704 battle, he was promoted to Vice-admiral and superintendent of Karlskrona shipyard 1714, and full Admiral in 1715. In 1716 he became governor of

Gotland Gotland (, ; ''Gutland'' in Gutnish), also historically spelled Gottland or Gothland (), is Sweden's largest island. It is also a province, county, municipality, and diocese. The province includes the islands of Fårö and Gotska Sandön to th ...

. The Swedish island in the Baltic was under increasing threats from the ascending Russian Navy, which was repeatedly launching raids upon it. Psilander's mission was to organize the local population in a homeland defence, but this proved unfeasible when the Russian galley fleet under Admiral

Fyodor Apraksin Count Fyodor Matveyevich Apraksin (also ''Apraxin''; russian: Фёдор Матве́евич Апра́ксин; 27 October 1661 10 November 1728, Moscow) was one of the first Russian admirals, governed Estonia and Karelia from 1712 to 1723, wa ...

in July 1717 carried out a week-long looting of parts of the island. He then had to devote himself to recruiting personnel and obtaining supplies and tax funds for the King's last military operations.Glete, Jan (1995-97). "Gustaf Psilander, von." ''Svensk Biografiskt Lexikon'', vol. 29, p. 510.

Later life

After the death of the King in 1718, Psilander belonged to those favoured by the new regime. He became a Baron in 1719, was suggested as Privy Councillor, and commanded a squadron that blocked the Russian Navy at Gdansk. Psilander now belonged to the political elite of the country, participating in all Parliaments from 1719 to 1732. In 1728, he was transferred to the Governorship of Kalmar Län in order to be closer to Karlskrona, the seat of the Swedish Board of Admiralty. In 1734 he was one of three naval officers proposed to be Naval Privy Counsellor, but the King chose Admiral Edvard Didrik Taube instead, and appointed Psilander president of the Admiralty Board, replacing the promoted Taube. Psilander's older brother Johan became Comptroller of the Swedish Navy and was ennobled in 1720 under the name "Psilanderhielm".H G-m (1995-1997). "Psilander, släkt." ''Svenskt biografiskt lexikon'', vol. 29, p. 505.

Legacy

Gustaf von Psilander has the following vessels named after him: * was a torpedo cruiser launched in 1899 and decommissioned in 1937 and sunk as target in 1939 * was a destroyer launched in 1926 and decommissioned in 1947

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Psilander, Gustaf von 1669 births 1738 deaths Swedish Navy admirals Governors of Gotland County Age of Liberty people Military personnel from Stockholm