The unique fragment discovered by archaeologists is part of one of two ships: Portsmouth or London. Despite the “non-Russian” names, both of them faithfully served Peter I. The founder of modern Russian military underwater archeology, Rear Admiral Konstantin Shopotov, told the newspaper VZGLYAD that these are the oldest Russian ships ever found at the bottom of the Baltic. Our fleet is a little over 300 years old, and theirs is a little less.

The remains of the sunken ship were discovered by members of the expedition led by Rear Admiral and President of the Baltic Memory Society Konstantin Shopotov in the London Shoal near Kronstadt. Researchers have no doubt: this is either the Portsmouth or the London, which sank three hundred years ago.

It is known that both of these ships were caught in a storm in these places in October 1719 and sank.

Portsmouth was built according to our design in Amsterdam, Holland in 1714. At one time, she was considered one of the fastest ships in the Baltic. The Russian government bought “London” from England that same year. Five years later they sank, but before that they managed to serve Russia and Peter I. Portsmouth especially distinguished itself.

In 1719 he took part in the famous Battle of Ezel against the Swedes. On the night of May 24 (July 4, new style), a group of Russian ships under the command of captain of the second rank Senyavin between the islands of Ezel and Gotska Sande came across a detachment of Swedish ships. The 55-gun flagship Russian ship Portsmouth hit with grapeshot and forced the enemy's frigate and brigantine to surrender. This was the first victory of Russian sailing ships on the high seas without boarding. Peter the Great called it a good start for our fleet.

As the head of the underwater archaeological expedition, Konstantin Shopotov, told the correspondent of the newspaper VZGLYAD, archaeologists found a rather large fragment of the bow of the ship. It is well preserved, but still worse than the remains of Swedish ships found earlier.

“Our vessel has more damage because it lies at a shallow depth - about 11 m and because it is located near the city. Over three centuries, so much has happened here. I can say that the ship found is extremely unique. This is probably the oldest Russian ship found by underwater archaeologists. Russia reached the Baltic in 1703, and it sank in 1719. It is almost the same age as the Russian fleet.”

Searches for sunken ships in London Bay are carried out as underwater archaeological supervision of work to expand the fairway.

Now underwater archaeologists are located in Dalnyaya Bay, live in tents, and travel “to work” on a rubber boat.

The work is being carried out at depths that are limiting for scuba divers - up to 30 m. Visibility there is zero, the temperature is plus 8 degrees. The main core of the expedition - about 15 people - together with Konstantin Shopotov, search for sunken ships from year to year. But usually at least 30–40 people work here. Many researchers come for several days from Moscow and other cities. In general, the expedition lasts from March to the end of September.

The rear admiral admits that during such work, researchers did not recover large treasures from the bottom of the sea. There were silver and copper coins, but in small quantities. However, scientists have a different concept of treasures. Konstantin Shopotov is very proud of the anchor found in London Bay, calling it one of the most valuable underwater archaeological finds that he has ever seen.

There is no need to retrieve ancient ships from the bottom, the archaeologist believes, especially in the condition in which they are now, it is almost impossible. But the found fragments, after appropriate research, must definitely end up in a museum, people must see them - this is the principled position of the Baltic Memory society. However, Konstantin Shopotov admitted that it took him great effort to convince officials from various departments so that the anchor found here would end up in the Kronstadt Museum.

The work at the site of the latest finds will not end soon; it will probably continue for many more years. For comparison, “Memory of the Baltic” has been working on the site of the Vyborg naval battle for the 17th year. In total, over almost 20 years of the organization’s existence, 25 sea ships were found.

15:36 2017

The sea is in no hurry to share its secrets, and the recovery on May 5 from the bottom of the Gulf of Finland of two artifacts (a ship's cannon and a fragment of a frame) was the result of many years of work by the Center for Underwater Research of the Russian Geographical Society - divers, historians, and oceanologists. On the same day, an agreement was signed, the purpose of which is to create a museum of underwater archeology at Fort Constantine, surrounded by ancient fortifications, that is not inferior to its world analogues. It is here that, after restoration and research, the found artifacts, finds collected over many years and presented in a separate exhibition of the Kronstadt History Museum, as well as new trophies of marine archaeologists will receive registration.

It so happened that the decree of Emperor Peter the Great began to be carried out almost 300 years later. On September 30, 1719, not far from Kronstadt, Peter's frigates London and Portsmouth, recently built in Holland and England for the Russian fleet, ran aground, damaging their bottoms. Later, during a storm, the Portsmouth was driven aground and sank. "London", which stood on the sandbank, was used as a lighthouse for many years, and the sandbank received the name London.
In August 1722, Peter the Great issued a decree addressed to the Admiralty Board on the speedy search and recovery of the Portsmouth, which could pose a threat to military and merchant ships sailing to Kronstadt. “This ship should be looked for in the depths near that place,” wrote the emperor.
However, the decree was not carried out - apparently, the ship could not be found. Divers and historians began to explore the site of the wreck of two ships in 2008, and in the fall of 2015, fragments of the ship’s hull and cannon were found, the size and design data of which suggest with a high probability that this is the Portsmouth.

Journalists dressed in bright orange vests take their places on the deck of a small speedboat. In accordance with the original plan, the boat was supposed to go to the place where the artifacts were lifted a few kilometers from Kronstadt, so that media representatives could capture the moment of the phenomenon from the depths of the sea of ​​the gun and a fragment of the frame. However, the wind and waves made their own adjustments. A compromise decision was made - a boat with journalists would meet the auxiliary warship SMK-2079 with the finds on board at the entrance to the harbor of Fort Constantine. And after a few minutes we approach a small light gray ship, on the deck of which you can see the trophies of archaeologists.

Together with him we return to the pier and watch how a multi-ton cannon, covered with a layer of clay and rust, swings on the crane boom and slowly lowers into the back of a truck.
It is the cannon that should give the final answer to the question of which ship the found artifacts belong to. The fact is that Portsmouth was armed with cannons donated by Russia’s ally, the King of Denmark, and each of the cannons was decorated with the Danish coat of arms - a shield with three lions. Although researchers have virtually no doubt that this is the remains of the Portsmouth, until restoration and research work is completed, the found object continues to be called the symbol K-1. These are the rules of professional ethics. But where will the ship's guns be placed (another 18 guns discovered by divers are still lying on the bottom) and fragments of the hull of the found ship? But there is also object K-2 - presumably this is the second sunken battleship - "London". In general, in the immediate vicinity of Kronstadt, at least 30 ships belonging to various eras await their researchers - from Peter the Great’s battleships to a German military boat that sank in 1918.

A small but impressive exhibition of the Kronstadt History Museum, dedicated to maritime archeology, has been operating for several years in the building of an ancient water tower. Here you can see fragments of ships, dishes, personal belongings of sailors, one of the first diving suits, photographs and paintings dedicated to sunken ships. But there simply isn’t enough space for new finds (which may include preserved ship hulls). On the same day, May 5, the first step was taken towards creating a fundamentally new exhibition, which will be located in the future and should receive registration at Fort Constantine. In a pavilion on the territory of the fort, a tripartite agreement was signed on the creation of a museum complex of underwater archeology on the territory of Fort Constantine. The State Budgetary Institution "Museum of the History of Kronstadt", the Center for Underwater Research of the Russian Geographical Society and JSC "Third Park" - as an investor - agreed on cooperation in the name of preserving national maritime history.

“There is an idea to make something like an atrium so that visitors can observe the entire panorama from above - as if looking from the surface at what lies at the bottom. Place the bottom of the ship below, put the cannons directly on it - exactly as they lay at the time of their discovery... There are many options, but these are all just projects for now. There are ideas, there are specialists who implement them in practice,” Evgeniy Grishko, director of the State Budgetary Institution “Museum of the History of Kronstadt,” shared his plans.

The new exhibition will become a branch of the Kronstadt History Museum. And it will be replenished with new exhibits by the Center for Underwater Research of the Russian Geographical Society (CPI RGS). Since the territory of Fort Constantine has the status of a monument of federal significance, there is no talk of any construction of new buildings for the museum. After restoration and reconstruction, the exhibition will be located in one of the historical buildings of the fort. The executive director of the Russian Geographical Research Center, Sergei Fokin, spoke about this while speaking at the signing ceremony.

“This project is very interesting for Fort Constantine. Finally, we begin to justify our main purpose - a cultural site. The fort, which is itself a historical monument, makes an excellent platform for displaying artefacts. I would like to thank my partners for an interesting project. I believe that our cooperation will develop, and the exhibition will be replenished with new artifacts,” said Kirill Dyakovsky, General Director of Third Park JSC.
Let us remind you that JSC “Third Park” is the owner of the historical and cultural complex “Fort Constantine”. At the moment, there is a museum of the lighthouse service, fortifications accessible to visitors, a rope park, viewing platforms, a cafe, a hotel, and excursion ships depart from here to the forts of Kronstadt.
I would like to believe that the idea of ​​the exhibition, in the implementation of which representatives of Russian business were involved, will be embodied in stone, glass and metal. And in a few years we will have a new unique museum.

Historical reference
Battleship Portsmouth
A 54-gun battleship, one of the first battleships of the Russian fleet. Built and launched in Holland in 1714, the masts and rigging were installed in London. On the way to Russia, he stopped in Copenhagen, where cannons were installed on the ship - a gift from the Danish king. Portsmouth was the flagship during the battle with the Swedish fleet off the island of Ezel, in which the Russian fleet won its first major victory and participated in military campaigns to the shores of Sweden. Sank near Kotlin Island on the night of October 1, 1719. A huge warship at that time (almost 40 meters long and 11 wide), returning to Kronstadt along with the battleship London, ran on an unknown shoal, was damaged, and after some time was blown to depth by a storm. Before this, some of the guns were removed from the ship, and unsuccessful attempts were made to save the ship. The circumstances of the disaster are still unclear.
Thus, the ship commanders (English officers in Russian service) had never gone to Kronstadt before and did not know the fairway, but for some reason they did not ask for a pilot. During the crash, under unclear circumstances, the commander of the Portsmouth, Lieutenant Captain Adam Urquhart, was killed.

Raising sunken ships is an extremely expensive and troublesome task. But underwater archaeologists examine them from time to time and remove individual artifacts from the water. the site has collected information about several sunken ships, which, according to experts, are the most valuable and interesting.

Petrovsky "Portsmouth" - 1719

The battleship Portsmouth, built 300 years ago according to the drawings of Peter I, sank near Kronstadt. It was laid down in 1714 in Amsterdam and after launching it became part of the Russian Baltic Fleet. The crew consisted of 330 people and was armed with 54 guns.

Portsmouth took part in the Northern War and entered the military annals with its victorious participation as a flagship in the battle with the Swedes in 1719. Peter called this first victory of Russian ships on the high seas “a good initiative for the Russian fleet.” In memory of the event, a medal was knocked out with the inscription: “Diligence and loyalty are greatly superior.”

In the autumn of 1719, the Portsmouth, together with the English-built ship London, ran aground near Kronstadt in calm weather and clear visibility. This shoal is still called the London shoal. Soon the Portsmouth was blown aground by the wind and sank.

The remains of the legendary ship were discovered only in 2008. Underwater archaeologists found a large fragment of the bow and recovered objects from the depths, including cannonballs, the tip of a boarding lance, a chain nipple, and fragments of an anchor. Today, the found artifacts are exhibited in the Kronstadt History Museum.

The remains of the Portsmouth were discovered on the seabed only a few years ago. Photo: Kronstadt History Museum

Swedish frigates - 1790

The real underwater city is the Swedish ships that sank in 1790 during the Vyborg naval battle in Dalnyaya Bay. Now the coordinates of three battleships, two frigates and even the royal yacht on which King Gustav III was located during the battle are known - he managed to escape.

The Vyborg naval battle became one of the key events of the Russian-Swedish War of 1788-1790, and one of the largest naval battles of the 18th century. Its results determined the outcome of the struggle for dominance in the Baltic.

The Swedes were going to destroy the Russian Revel and Kronstadt squadrons, land troops on the coast of the Gulf of Finland and take St. Petersburg. However, during the Battle of Revel and the Battle of Krasnogorsk, the Swedish fleet failed and found itself blocked in the Vyborg Bay - 22 battleships, 13 frigates, and more than 200 rowing ships were trapped. The Russian fleet was commanded by Admiral Vasily Chichagov.

On June 22 (old style), the Swedes decided to make a breakthrough. Part of the fleet escaped from the encirclement, and part died. Thus, the 64-gun Swedish ship Omheten ran aground and then surrendered along with the schooner and three galleys. Another 64-gun ship hit rocks and sank. Three Swedish ships and two frigates also ran aground and lowered their flags. The standard of Gustav III was shot down on the royal boat - it itself went under water.

During the subsequent chase, more than a dozen small ships were sunk and two battleships were captured. In total, the Swedes lost 7 thousand people killed and captured, 7 battleships, 3 frigates and 54 other ships in the battle. The losses of the Russian fleet amounted to 280 people killed and wounded, not a single ship was sunk.

Dozens of Swedish ships sank at the bottom of the Baltic. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

In the 90s of the last century, an attempt was made to study and raise elements of the Swedish ships to the surface, but it ended unsuccessfully. Currently, submariners have identified specific locations of 6 ships. Perhaps in the coming years the royal yacht will be raised to the surface.

Frigate "Oleg" - 1869

In 1869, the 57-gun sail-screw frigate Oleg sank between the islands of Gogland and Sommers. It was laid down at the Kronstadt shipyard in 1858. It was launched two years later. The artillery armament, unprecedentedly powerful for its time, surprised contemporaries - a 60-pound gun could throw bombs weighing 17 kilograms over a distance of almost two nautical miles.

“Oleg” visited many ports in Europe and on the Atlantic. More than once the winds threw it onto the rocks, but the crew, to the great surprise of foreign experts, managed to bring the ship with a destroyed keel to the docks. In 1865, the Russian frigate returned to the Baltic after an overseas voyage.

On August 3, 1869, after a two-day exercise in formations during a change of front, the Kremlin battery and the Oleg frigate collided. "Oleg" sank after 15 minutes.

The complete calm, the proximity of all the ships of the squadron and the discretion of the commanders made it possible for the commander, officers, midshipmen and 497 lower ranks to escape on boats. Of the large crew of 545 people, 16 died.

In 2002, specialists from the Russian Geographical Society discovered the wreck of a ship at a depth of 50 meters. The submariners were amazed by the excellent condition of the frigate. Over the course of several years, they examined the entire building from the outside. And inside we reached the officers' saloon and the ship's church. Church boxes with utensils and wax candles have been preserved intact. Photography allowed us to create a 3D model of the ship. The recovered objects and part of the ship's hull also added to the collection of the Kronstadt History Museum.

By the way, with the help of sonar equipment, a two-masted destroyed barque of the 19th century and a sailing transport ship of the 19th century were discovered near Gogland. The objects lie at a depth of 60 meters or more, visibility is less than a meter, so it is not yet possible to identify the vessels visually.

In Kronstadt, submariners lifted a cannon from a sunken ship of the 18th century.
It is believed that this is the battleship Portsmouth of the Petrine Fleet.
This was reported on Friday at the Center for Underwater Research of the Russian Geographical Society.
The Russian Geographical Society assumes that this is the battleship Portsmouth of the Petrine Fleet.
The artifact was raised on the London Shoal.
The ship Portsmouth was one of the first battleships of the Russian fleet, built in 1714 in Amsterdam.
The warship took part in campaigns in Sweden, but five years after construction it sank near the island of Kotlin.
Peter I ordered the search for the remains of this ship in 1722.

The Museum of the History of Kronstadt has an exhibition of “Underwater Archeology”, where large fragments of the “Portsmouth” raised earlier are exhibited.
01. Part of the hull plating.

02. Diagram of the location of debris at the bottom.

03. Part of the bottom of a ship.


04. The so-called steps - a socket into which the mast is inserted with its base.
And across there is a keelson-longitudinal beam above the keel, inside the vessel.

Virtual exhibition of underwater archeology

The Kronstadt History Museum is carrying out painstaking work to collect items related to underwater archeology to expand the “Secrets of Sunken Ships” exhibition. We present to your attention the virtual exhibition “Sailing ship “Portsmouth””, which presents objects recovered from the sunken ship, as well as its fragments.

Sailing ship "Portsmouth"

The sailing ship of the line "Portsmouth" was laid down in July 1714 in Amsterdam according to the project of Peter I and after launching in November of the same year, it became part of the Russian Baltic Fleet. The ship was armed with 54 guns and had a crew of 330 people.

The ship "Portsmouth" forever entered the military annals of the Fatherland with its participation as the flagship of Captain 2nd Rank Naum Senyavin in the first truly naval victory of the Russian fleet over the Swedish on May 24, 1719 between the islands of Ösel and Gotska Sandö. Peter I called this first victory of Russian ships on the high seas without boarding “a good initiative for the Russian fleet.” In memory of this victory, a medal was struck with the inscription: “Diligence and loyalty are greatly superior,” and Naum Senyavin was promoted, bypassing the rank of fleet captain, directly to captain-commander.

However, in the fall of 1719, the Portsmouth, together with the English-built ship London, ran aground near Kronstadt in calm weather and clear visibility. This shoal is still called the London shoal. The Portsmouth was refloated by a storm and carried to the side, and two years later it was dragged even further during a severe flood. Under Peter, they looked for him to secure the fairway, but they did not find him. And now, almost 300 years later, the remains of the legendary ship were discovered. It was only in 2008 that specialists from the Underwater Research Center discovered what was Portsmouth three centuries ago. Underwater archaeologists found a large fragment of the bow of the ship and other parts that also belonged to it. Work at the site of the sinking of the Portsmouth continues: some of the ship's parts have been lifted out of the water and mothballed.

1. Cannonballs

2. Chain nipple

3. Tip of the boarding pike