The Salvage of the Swedish Warship “Vesa”

On this day, after two years of complex and dangerous salvage operations, the Swedish warship Vasa, which sank in Stockholm harbour on its maiden voyage on 10th August 1628, was finally brought back to the surface 333 years later. Built on the orders of the King of Sweden Gustavus Adolphus as part of his military expansion in his war against Poland and Lithuania, the richly decorated ship, heavily armed with bronze cannons, was potentially one of the most powerful vessels in the world at that time. Vasa sank only about 120 metres from the shore and in full view of a crowd of hundreds, if not thousands, who had come to see the ship set sail. The ship is now on display in the Vasa Museum in Stockholm where it has been seen by over 45 million visitors since 1961.

Read Bob Lynn’s short story “Honest Craft”
about the sinking of the Swedish warship Vasa HERE

Author: Tony

Born and raised in Malaysia between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Educated at Wycliffe College in Stonehouse, Gloucestershire, England. Living in the foothills of Mount Etna since 1982 and teaching English at Catania University since 1987. View all posts by Tony