Nyenschantz

Coordinates: 59°56′39″N 30°24′25″E / 59.9441666767°N 30.4069444544°E / 59.9441666767; 30.4069444544
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Model reconstruction of Nyenschantz and Nyen, which shows the fortress from the west.

Nyenschantz (

annexed from the Tsardom of Russia during the Time of Troubles. The town of Nyen, which formed around Nyenschantz, became a wealthy trading center and a capital of Swedish Ingria during the 17th century. In 1702, Nyenschantz and Nyen were conquered by Russia during the Great Northern War, and the new Russian capital of Saint Petersburg was established by Peter the Great in their place the following year.[1]

History

The fortress Landskrona

During excavations in 1992–2000, the remnants of three different medieval fortresses were found at the site of the Nyenschantz fortress. The only one known historically is the Swedish fortress Landskrona, built in 1300 by

Tyrgils Knutsson, the Lord High Constable of Sweden. Landskrona was an enormous and unusually well-fortified wooden fortress with eight towers. In the spring of 1301, the Russians amassed a large army and laid siege to the fortress. The Swedes retreated to the basement when a fire broke out inside the fortress. The last of the Swedish defenders were captured, and the Russians burned down the fortress.[2]

Background

In 1609, the

De la Gardie Campaign
, effectively defeating False Dmitry II.

Nyenskans

Drawing of the seal of Nyenskans by Carl von Bonsdorff from 1891.

The

Russian, Izhorian, and Karelian
inhabitants.

In 1656, Nyenskans was attacked by Russia during an invasion led by Pyotr Potemkin. The attack was repelled, but it badly damaged Nyen, and Sweden moved the administrative centre of Swedish Ingria from Nöteborg to Narva.[4]

In 1677, the defences of Nyenskans and Nyen were enforced by a ring of new fortifications consisting of

suburban
manors were built outside the Nyen fortification ring. Most were along the Neva, some of which were located at a considerable distance from the city.

In 1700, the danger of Russian invasion increased following the beginning of the Great Northern War, which resumed formal hostilities between Sweden and Russia. Reportedly, in October 1702, Sweden feared an imminent Russian invasion of Nyen, evacuating the city's population and burning it down to prevent the Russians from taking it.[citation needed]

Saint Petersburg

On May 1, 1703, Sweden lost Nyenskans to the Russians when the fortress was taken by

boyars, who had entered Swedish service in the first decades of the 17th century. Nyenskans, under the name Schlötburg, functioned in Russian service only for some weeks before it was retired as an active military garrison
.

In 1703, Peter decided to found

, which he similarly considered to be inconveniently located. Technically, the land still officially belonged to Sweden and was occupied during fighting in the Great Northern War, but despite this, construction of the city began anyway.

The exact fate of Nyenskans is unknown, with sources ranging from its mostly demolition as early as 1704 to its repurposing and remaining intact as late as the 1760s. Other documents and maps suggest Nyenskans was gradually demolished over the following decades as Saint Petersburg expanded onto the land in the direct vicinity of the fort. By 1849, the central strengthening of Nyenskans was still known to exist, although the exact date of its demolition is also unknown.

Today, nothing above the ground remains of Nyenskans, and the site is now in Saint Petersburg's

Lakhta Center
. It may also hold public activity and leisure spaces as well as offices.

See also

References

  1. ^ Williams, Harold (1914). Russia of the Russians. Pitman & Sons. p. 33.
  2. ^ Harrison, Dick (2005). Gud vill det! Nordiska korsfarare under medeltiden, Ordfront, p. 453-458.
  3. ^ Carl v. Bonsdorffs; publikation Nyen och Nyenskans. Namn i Nyen på 1600-talet; Names in Nyen's during 1600s
  4. ^ Kurs, Ott (1994). Ingria: The broken land bridge between Estonia and Finland. GeoJournal 33.1, 107-113.

External links

Media related to Nyenschantz at Wikimedia Commons

59°56′39″N 30°24′25″E / 59.9441666767°N 30.4069444544°E / 59.9441666767; 30.4069444544