Johan Eberhard von Schantz (; 29 October 1802 – 3 January 1880) was a Finnish-born

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

in the

Russian Imperial Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

, ship designer and

explorer Exploration is the process of exploring, an activity which has some Expectation (epistemic), expectation of Discovery (observation), discovery. Organised exploration is largely a human activity, but exploratory activity is common to most organis ...

Life

Schantz was born in the Western Finnish coastal town of Pori, which at the time was a part of

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, the son of the lieutenant general Johan Eberhard von Schantz and Johanna Sofia Didron. Through his father, Schantz was a member of the noble Schantz family, which had its roots in western Germany. In 1814 he enlisted the Russian merchant navy and later took

chief mate A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the ship ...

classes in

Vyborg Vyborg (; , ; , ; , ) is a town and the administrative center of Vyborgsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of Vyborg Bay, northwest of St. Petersburg, east of the Finnish capital H ...

. Schantz served 1821–1828 as a

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

in the 26th naval equipage of the

Baltic Fleet The Baltic Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Baltic Sea. Established 18 May 1703, under Tsar Peter the Great as part of the Imperial Russian Navy, the Baltic Fleet is the oldest Russian fleet. In 1918, the fleet w ...

, 1828–1830 as a lieutenant in the 8th naval equipage, 1830–1832 in the 27th naval equipage and 1832 in the 5th naval equipage. During the

Russo-Turkish War (1828–29) The Russo-Turkish wars ( ), or the Russo-Ottoman wars (), began in 1568 and continued intermittently until 1918. They consisted of twelve conflicts in total, making them one of the longest series of wars in the history of Europe. All but four of ...

, Schantz served in the

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactics in the Age of Sail, naval tactic known as the line of battl ...

''Fère Champenoise'' which took part of the blockade of the

Dardanelles The Dardanelles ( ; ; ), also known as the Strait of Gallipoli (after the Gallipoli peninsula) and in classical antiquity as the Hellespont ( ; ), is a narrow, natural strait and internationally significant waterway in northwestern Turkey th ...

. In 1833–1838, he was the adjutant of the admiral

Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov Prince Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov (; 26 August 17872 May 1869) was a Russian nobleman, military commander and statesman. He was made adjutant general in 1817 and admiral in 1833. A great-grandson of Alexander Danilovich Menshikov, Duke ...

. In 1834–1836, Schantz circumnavigated the globe as the commander of the Russian Imperial Navy ship ''America''. In 1835 he rediscovered the

Wotho Atoll Wotho Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) is a coral atoll of 13 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ralik Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its total land area is only , but it encloses a lagoon of . The name "Wotho" means ...

,MARSHALLS
Foreign Ships in Micronesia. Retrieved 6 March 2016. originally discovered by the Spanish expedition of

Ruy López de Villalobos Ruy López de Villalobos (; – 23 April 1546) was a Spanish explorer who led a failed attempt to colonize the Philippines in 1544, attempting to assert Spanish control there under the terms of the treaties of Tordesillas and Zaragoza. U ...

in the 1540s. The atoll was later also known as the ''Schantz Islands''. In 1841, Schantz sailed the frigate ''

Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...

'' from

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Kronstadt Kronstadt (, ) is a Russian administrative divisions of Saint Petersburg, port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal cities of Russia, federal city of Saint Petersburg, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg, near the head ...

and commanded the ship until 1847. He was promoted to

counter admiral Counter admiral is a military rank used for high-ranking officers in several navies around the world, though the rank is not used in the English-speaking world, where its equivalent rank is rear admiral. The term derives from the French . Dependi ...

in 1848. In the 1850s Schantz designed several

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

s built in the Finnish docks of Pori,

Turku Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...

and

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

. He also designed the frigate ''

Rurik Rurik (also spelled Rorik, Riurik or Ryurik; ; ; died 879) was a Varangians, Varangian chieftain of the Rus' people, Rus' who, according to tradition, was invited to reign in Veliky Novgorod, Novgorod in the year 862. The ''Primary Chronicle' ...

'' (1851) and the corvette ''

Kalevala The ''Kalevala'' () is a 19th-century compilation of epic poetry, compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Karelian and Finnish oral folklore and mythology, telling a story about the Creation of the Earth, describing the controversies and retaliatory ...

'' (1858), both built at the Turku Old Shipyard. During the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

, Schantz served in the Baltic Fleet. He was promoted to

vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

in 1855 and admiral in 1866. Schantz was a member of the Russian Board of Admiralty from February 1863 to his death. Schantz published his Swedish language memoirs under the pen name ''En gammal sjöman'' (An Old Sailor) in 1870–1871.

Decorations

*1846:

Order of St Vladimir The Imperial Order of Saint Prince Vladimir () was an Imperial Russian order established on by Empress Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptizer of the Kievan Rus'. Grades The order had four ...

3rd degree *1847:

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George () is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. It was originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commiss ...

4th degree *1854: Order of Saint Stanislaus Ribbon

Order of Saint Stanislaus The Order of Saint Stanislaus (, ), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Poniatowski of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It remained under the Congress Poland, Kingdom of Pola ...

1st degree *1858: Order of Saint Anna ribbon bar

Order of St. Anne 1st degree *1864:

2nd degree *1868: Order of the White Eagle *1871: Band to Order St Alexander Nevsky

Order of St. Alexander Nevsky The Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was an order of chivalry of the Russian Empire first awarded on by Empress Catherine I of Russia. History The introduction of the Imperial Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky was envisioned by Emperor ...

*1876:

, with diamonds

Bibliography

*''Mitt första steg på sjömannabanan'', G. W. Wilén & Co, Turku, 1870. *''Mina första steg på örlogsmannabanan'', G. W. Wilén & Co, Turku, 1871.

Sources

von Schantz, Johan Eberhard
Finnish Literature Society

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schantz, Johan Eberhard von 1802 births 1880 deaths People from Pori Swedish-speaking Finns Imperial Russian Navy admirals Russian military personnel of the Crimean War Engineers from the Russian Empire 19th-century explorers from the Russian Empire Russian explorers of the Pacific Circumnavigators of the globe Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd class Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Russia) Finnish people from the Russian Empire