Battle of Lyngør

Overview

The Battle of Lyngør was fought on 6 July 1812 between the British and Dano-Norwegian navies as part of the Gunboat War. A British squadron of one ship of the line and three brig-sloops under James Stewart located the Dano-Norwegian frigate Najaden sheltering off Lyngør, and engaged and destroyed her in a fierce engagement; Najaden's captain Hans Peter Holm was wounded but survived, but 133 of his crew were killed and a further 87 wounded. The British in contrast suffered only 9 killed and 26 wounded, and the battle led to the destruction of Denmark–Norway's last major warship.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Lyngør resulted in the destruction of Denmark–Norway's last major warship, the frigate Najaden. A British squadron of one ship of the line and three brig-sloops located Najaden sheltering off Lyngør and engaged her, inflicting severe losses: 133 of her crew were killed and 87 wounded against British casualties of only 9 killed and 26 wounded. By eliminating Denmark–Norway's remaining significant naval vessel, the engagement effectively ended any meaningful Dano-Norwegian capacity for conventional fleet operations in the Gunboat War, leaving Denmark–Norway reliant on its smaller gunboat forces for the remainder of the conflict.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (2)